A few months ago, I reviewed Vivobarefoot’s Primus Flow road shoes. These were my first pair of barefoot shoes ever, and it was an awesome roller coaster of an experience.
The only con I could find with those shoes was the inability to wear them anywhere besides a paved road. Aka, I couldn’t run on gravel or anything with a slightly rough/gritty surface without consistent pain on the bottoms of my feet.
Hence the curiosity to try the Vivobarefoot TRAIL Primus Flow shoes. The trail version of the shoes I really enjoyed?! Let’s freaking go!
Barefoot Life
Coming from a pair of Brooks Launch 11s, my right knee started to act up and hurt on longer runs. Transitioning to the Trail Primus Flow shoes, and the knee pain was nearly fixed after the first run!
I don’t know what it is about these low heel-to-toe-drop shoes, but this is like the fourth time they’ve corrected a pain that a high heel drop shoe created. Just for this reason, these shoes are worth the money!
Plus, I love how well the Trail Primus Flows handle trails and rocks. Now I can run on country dirt roads without beating my feet to a pulp like normal, non-barefoot shoes.
Don’t get me wrong though, they’re still barefoot shoes.
You still need to keep an eye on where you step, and you might run a little slower too.
And, because these are barefoot shoes, the experience is ever growing and changing. It’s strangely organic how much your thoughts and impressions change the more you run in them.
Weird Rubbing
Anytime I run entirely on a paved road, I nearly end up with a blister on the pad of my foot between my big toe and index toe.
It’s not uncommon for a shoe to rub one spot more than others, and over time your body naturally thickens the skin to deal with it. However, my body doesn’t have the chance to really get used to it because of the mix of gravel and paved roads that I run on.
This happens because when I run on a trail or gravel road, the shoes don’t rub that spot. But when I transition to the road or a sidewalk, the rubbing starts. Keep in mind that most of my runs are on gravel, so that spot isn’t accustomed to the rubbing when I randomly do a road-only run. Even after nearly 70 miles in these shoes.
Day-to-Day
One of my favorite parts of the regular Primus Flow shoes, is that they’re great to live with. I can seriously wear them everywhere, because of how much I enjoy the sense of freedom they create.
This was something I thought the Trail version would have too. Sadly though, they’re not super nice to wear all day.
The thick lugs do a splendid job of gripping and protecting your feet on trails, but on a smooth indoor floor they feel bumpy and slightly uncomfortable.
Over time you mostly get used to them, but it’s still something I have to force myself to do. (I naturally reach for a pair of Altras for day-to-day tasks instead of these.)
And if/when you run through mud, the inside area of the foot arch tends to trap it. So, when you go to put them on for your next run, the mud is dry and easily makes a mess if you didn’t clear it out beforehand.
The Recap
I can’t deny the appreciation I have for Trail Primus Flows. I love how my opinions and past experiences are challenged each time I wear them on a run. The shoes never stop surprising me.
And to be fair, I only had one requirement for these shoes when I got them. That they comfortably handle rocky roads and trails. And they do exactly that!
But, in order for them to do that, they lost a lot of my favorite subtleties that the original Vivobarefoot Primus Flow road shoes have.
So, if you need a solid, capable pair of barefoot trail running shoes, then these are it! (My wife wore a pair of these on a 15.8 mile hike in the Tetons, and they exceeded our expectations.) But, if you’re planning to wear these as your daily trainers too, then you might be let down like me.