I’m pretty loyal to shoes. Too loyal at times.

I had a great pair of shoes a couple of models ago that I absolutely loved! They were light enough to roll my foot, but heavy enough that I could walk a half marathon in them. I loved the shoe.

As is typical, the manufacturer “upgraded” the shoe. There were some obvious improvements and on my short distance days, I liked them better than the original. I was happy.

The problem started when I started training for a long-distance event. Somewhere around 5 or 6 miles I got a blister on the inside edge of my right heel. Having been a former Blister Queen, I was confident I could work through it. These shoes were a little different. The more I wore them, the shorter the distance needed to develop a blister.

The manufacturer even sent me a new pair in a different size, and that pair also caused blisters. I’ve never encountered that before.

It’s been a while since I have worn the shoes. Today I was short of time and decided to do just a short 2-mile walk with my husband. I thought it would be safe to wear the shoes. Before we were even close to being finished, I could feel a hot spot on each foot and ended up developing blisters on both!

OK, I give up. I’m not even close to having worn out the shoes. In fact, there is plenty of mileage left on them. I’m not sure if the problem is the shoes, my feet, or racewalking in these shoes instead of running.

So, through a local running store, FrontRunner, I’ve decided to donate both pairs to a group that gives shoes to needy runners. I hope a person with a different gait will fit these shoes better than I do.

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