Having read Born to Run (brilliant book btw) I took the plunge and ordered a pair of KSO's a couple of weeks ago (having bought into the 2 million years of evolution trumping 4 years of podiatry degree argument).

Initially I wore them around the house and on a couple of short runs, when I did get a couple of blisters between the toes, though nothing major.

They were tested properly tonight when I wore them on an 8 mile club run over roads, trails and a few gentle hills. Overall, I really liked them. The negatives were that I found them a bit hard on the calves when on road though that felt like the result of a sudden change in cushioning rather than a permanent issue but I suppose only time will tell. On the trails a couple of large stones caught me out, but it was only a temporary 'ouch', no serious damage. Also, grip on wet grass would probably be an issue so I can't see me using them for racing in.

That said, I absolutely love them - you do change your form - strike on the forefoot, my hips seemed to shift forward as if to be keen to get somewhere rather that slouching at the back. I also found that I wanted to kick my heels up so that the lower legs were more like pedaling in a circle as on a bike rather than thumping up and down - difficult to explain, but I know what I mean! Also, you notice that when running uphill, all the power drives you forward, nothing is lost - big difference - it's suddenly obvious that the cushioning in a normal shoe dampens the forward drive when climbing.

I also feel after just a couple of weeks that my feet feel generally stronger and tougher.

I won't wear them all the time, and I'm certainly going to be mindful of hurting my calves by using them too much on the roads in winter. But I will wear them regularly and I think this will help my foot strength and running form, and I'll certainly look forward to each run in them because running in them doesn't half feel great!

Just need to cope with the mickey-taking clubmates!

Dave.