Yeah VFFs are funky...but sometimes not in the good way

[Hawkeye]

My sweaty feet sometimes slip around in my KSOs, especially the ones that were too big, but even with the ones that fit there is a little movement. I try to tighten the strap down and that seems to help.

[Zombee88]

I had the same problem when I would run intense intervals, once you get to a certain point of sweat inside, my feet would slightly slip inside which made it very annoying to run, I own the Flows, and all I had to do was tighten the strap on the back of the heel, which I never did, and it worked. No more slip

[ZeitHeld]

I got the worst slip one night, walking home from dinner. I stepped my right foot into a puddle and the footbed became so slick that my usually form fitting KSO's felt like I was walking in water-filled rubber boots. Luckily, this has been a one time problem.

[iain]

P.S. - Do any of you that have sweaty feet notice that your feet slide around a lot inside the shoes, or could this be a fit related problem?

Since my toes are a snug fit I don't slide longitudinally, but if my feet are sweaty they can slide sideways. I have black KSOs.

How's your drying time?

[Hawkeye]

Drying time for KSOs was slightly more than overnight like maybe 14 hours? That was without fan. I think with a fan on them it would be more like 8-10 hours.

It depends on how humid your environment is. If it's too humid, it will take forever for anything to dry.

[iain]

It depends on how humid your environment is. If it's too humid, it will take forever for anything to dry.

Heh, I think you've described my flat pretty well

[toastergirl]

drying time for my KSO's is longer than my classics.  what takes the longest to dry it seems are the toe pockets on my KSO's. 

ran in my classics in a torrential rain with lots of puddles....I posted on this somewhere on this site, but don't remember exactly where.  maybe on the running thread.     anyhow....they got a lot of water in them and were squishing water out the arch area which was very annoying.  have run in classics on dry roads and they are fine - prefer my KSO's for running though.  Classics are a little different to run in than KSO's - don't know how to describe it, but know it felt different. 

[ZeitHeld]

Has anyone with Treks experienced funk yet? I'm hoping to keep it at bay. I think of my KSO's as my athletic shoes so it's okay if they get a bit rare, but I'm having a hard time adjusting to the idea that these leathery beauts will fall to the like.

[GreenLightJerky]

Drying time for KSOs was slightly more than overnight like maybe 14 hours? That was without fan. I think with a fan on them it would be more like 8-10 hours.

It depends on how humid your environment is. If it's too humid, it will take forever for anything to dry.

After taking them out of the spin cycle I place them face down on a small desk fan (in California) and they are dry in about 2-4 hours. Must be really humid where you are.

[RichardLillard1]

Living here in Arizona, they're typically dry in a couple of hours. My big problem is sweat while wearing them.

However, I have noticed something recently...

I wear the wrong size! I should be wearing a 41 and the guys who fit me to my first pair put me in 42's instead. I am not happy about this as I remember asking them if the 42's seemed a bit too big and if I should size down. They said they didn't have any 41's and that the 42's were perfect for me--they just wanted the sale.

The horrible part being that I cut the pull string out of these as it was too tight and I didn't get to actually try on a pair of 41's until I went to Tucson and tried on some 41's at Summit Hut. The shoes are too old to sell and too beat up, but at the same time I can't stand wearing them since they are the wrong size and it helps my feet slide around way too much.

Bummer.

Oh well, ordering new ones this weekend.


Richard

[ZeitHeld]

That is a real bummer. Such a store would have a few words from me.

EDIT: I think this is another GitM post.

[Hawkeye]

I really hate washing my VFFs. It gets really old, really fast when you hand wash 5 pairs. 

I tried cleaning my VFFs with only clorox greenworks today and I'm impressed. It gets the grey color out of the yellow footbeds without too much toothbrush scrubbing (less scrubbing than oxyclean). I sprayed greenworks into each VFF and left to soak in a hot tub of water. After spraying all the vffs, I sprayed each shoe again and scrubbed with a toothbrush making sure I got in between the toes. After scrubbing they went back into the hot water tub to soak until rinsing. So do this 10 times over and that's how I spent my evening. 

The VFF funk was less than when I used oxyclean, but the greenwork's lemon scent could have been masking the odor. I'll post back on how the funk is after the VFFs dry out.

I also use a mirazyme rinse afterwards because I had half a bottle left. Honestly I don't think it does anything, but didn't want to waste the leftover stuff.

I would use the washing machine for my VFFs, but I don't think it gets the footbeds clean enough or gets the gunk in between the toes out.

Note: use Clorox Greenworks in a well-ventilate area, so the fumes don't make you sick. I learned the hard way.

So my VFFs will now sit in front of some fans to dry overnight and I'll finish up with a hairdryer on cool air if needed.

Classics are much easier to clean that KSOs. I didn't bother to scrub the bottoms because they're going to get dirty anyway, although I did scrub the yellow Virbam logos clean. 

[RichardLillard1]

I think the best way I've found is with the homemade oxiclean.

Because I am making it myself, on the spot, I can adjust the amount of each of the two components for whatever I need it for. In this case, I use a good amount of baking soda and just enough hydrogen peroxide to make a sort of wet sand-feeling paste. This is a great scrubbing agent and gets the dirt and grime out of the soles very easily. I typically scrub, then let them soak in the oxi-solution for a bit, then rinse with extremely hot water.

If they're really bad, like my classics get sometimes, I have to scrub more than once, however this is usually good for KSO's.

At some point I want to try adding a bit of white vinegar to the mix--the mild acid and reaction with the baking soda might be enough so that I don't have to scrub at all.

Stay tuned. 


Richard

[Adam C]

Got a case of the Shoe Cheese building up in my KSO's... it is awful!  I take my feet out and leave the residue all over the house which is a real pain in the butt to clean up...  I would love to throw the KSO's in the wash but 2 years of use and the right and left toe seams have come undone and I am fearful of throwing them in the wash since I am unable to get a new pair as the store I purchase them at hasn't had a new order come in with my size.  Why does 43 have to be such a common size!  Any other suggestions of getting the cheese out of the KSO's?  Anyone else experience the cheese factor? Gross I know! 

[Hawkeye]

Got a case of the Shoe Cheese building up in my KSO's... it is awful!  I take my feet out and leave the residue all over the house which is a real pain in the butt to clean up...  I would love to throw the KSO's in the wash but 2 years of use and the right and left toe seams have come undone and I am fearful of throwing them in the wash since I am unable to get a new pair as the store I purchase them at hasn't had a new order come in with my size.  Why does 43 have to be such a common size!  Any other suggestions of getting the cheese out of the KSO's?  Anyone else experience the cheese factor? Gross I know! 

Check the VFFs is funky not in a good way thread for cleaning tips. I use Clorox greenworks, hot water, and a toothbrush and hand scrub the gunk out of my VFFs. Then drip dry or a hairdryer on low heat to dry them.