After six days of wearing my VFF Classics in Black size 40, the elastic has come loose out of the nylon drawcord sleeve as shown in the photo above. Quite honestly this is unacceptable quality. Also quite honestly, after working with many Chinese factories, I am not surprised and despite my high standards I am also resigned to that reality. Most factory workers do not have a personal pride or spiritual stake in the product they make. I will probably repair the defect myself rather than deal with the hassle of returning it. In over a decade of owning and using outdoor gear I have never had a drawcord fail. However I am enjoying the comfort and barefooted feeling overall. It makes even my minimalist running shoes feel very cushy. My girlfriend still thinks I look very odd. If she gets out of line I threaten to buy her a pair. At the library checkout counter, I caught a mother and daughter both do a cartoonlike double take at my toeshoes...so I waved my toes at them. As I walked through the library parking lot I saw them drive by and they waved and smiled. VFF's seem to effect good natured curiosity rather than freaked out horror. At the Fresh Market grocery store, a customer inquired about the shoes while I was getting my free coffee. On the other hand, my parents just find it strange but par for the course when dealing with me.
Yesterday I went up on the roof to clean the gutters with a blower. While I hate heights, the VFF's gave me good traction and feel. It gave me a little more confidence to walk up closer to the roof edge than in the past while wearing boots. It is still cold here to be wearing VFF's but I cannot wait to run some dirt trails in them.
My VFFs don't protect my feet from the ground...they protect the ground from my feet!
