I ain't got no sole!

[El Gordo]

Excellent Almeria excuse there, SP. You've obviously been mulling over your failure to humiliate me totally.

I'm a New Balance 854 chap. One of the advantages is that I can buy new pairs from the factory shop in Cumbria for about £35 a pair, or roughly half price. The last couple of years I've bought 2 new pairs each January. This year I bought them plus a pair of 855s, the successors to the 854s. £40 instead of £80.

I also have some Asics Gel Guts, off-road shoes, plus a couple of elderly-but-not-quite-dead pairs of 854s by the kitchen door. Then I have a few pairs of deceased pairs that I still wear to the pub or to football.

The advice is usually to have at least 2 alternating pairs on the go. Apparently 2 pairs will last more than twice as long as 1 pair because they dry out better, and because the midsole (or something) has the chance to return to its proper shape, thereby prolonging its life. Another reason is that all shoes are slightly different, and wearing different pairs are a sort of 'workout for your feet'. I think that's how RW magazine described it. On the other hand, they like us to buy plenty of shoes to keep the advertisers happy...

So anyway, you might want to pick up a second pair in a sale, perhaps of a different type, to use on shorter runs.

Isn't it easy to recommend spending money to other people?