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8:21 pm
June 15, 2010
Offline
Moragg said:
All I've said above are my own findings. I have absolutely no comercial interests (here or elsewhere, I'm still in school).
Marc1313 – that's pretty cool! Which ones do you have?
Hi Moragg,
I've done the Fivefingers and the Skele toes. For much as I like the 'barefoot' philosophy, I still have a hard time having my toes seperated. I've moved to the Merrel style Barefoot TrailGlove, it looks more like a conventional shoe, but its built with bare footing in mind. And this shoe also would be my last choice to play badminton in, they are great, in one direction. Stops, starts, and side to sides would destroy them, and my feet. 🙂
Cheers
10:01 pm
March 17, 2013
Offline Paul – as you said yourself, coaching and practice will do much more for your game.
The best analogy I can come up with: your current badminton shoes are the Voltric 80. Top-notch, reliable. My Komodosports are the Arcsaber Z-slash; still top notch but very different and require time to get used to. But, if you perservere and they suit you, they could turn out to be better for you.
Rob – While I do feel the lack of cushioning, lunging hasn't actually hurt me yet. That said, the fact I'm only 60kg could be helping. The insoles do provide a fair bit of padding (if you look at the reviews, they all say these are the comfiest VFFs).
Rob and Marc – this particular model is specifically designed for making lateral cuts. While most Vibrams are just for forward running, these have their own sole designed for moving left and right quickly, and it works really well.
Durability: Mine came with a 2 year warranty, but that varies from country to country. This guy is the one who's using them 18 months on. The upper is a tough fabric which I don't think will ever tear, but you'll have to judge that for yourself. If you get the right size then, with the laces, these shoes contour your foot like a glove, so I don't think you'd get enough movement to do much damage at all.
Marc – shame about that. I quite like the separation of the toes. And I especially like how in these shoes the toes can “splay out” when you put any pressure through them. While I would never play in another model, the Komodosport LS does what it's designed to pretty well.
3:16 pm
April 6, 2011
Offline If I wanted foot-shaped shoes with thin, flexible soles, that offer zero cushioning, zero ankle support, and make me look like a knob – I'd wear my wetsuit boots.
9:30 pm
February 15, 2011
Offline
Sketchy
Priceless statement!
Paul
4:29 pm
May 25, 2010
Offline I have to say, that is a tad harsh. I am glad this was brought to my attention, something different!
Whether they would work, either for me or for badminton players is another matter.
I agree they look weird, but you'd get used to them. Besides, you'd mess up the opposition when serving as they'd be too busy staring at your shoes! 
BUT, you can't diss it until you've tried it. It may not catch on, but it might actually just work. Keep an open mind, there are many things and products that people thought were strange at first but now it's normal (anyone remember the one arm sleeveless badminton shirts. I mean, what the……..
Just my 2p! And thanks for posting about these shoes, always good to know! 
Badminton Gives Me A Purpose In Life – To Serve Others
I'd Rather Be Playing Badminton…………..
5:38 pm
June 15, 2010
Offline sketchy said:
If I wanted foot-shaped shoes with thin, flexible soles, that offer zero cushioning, zero ankle support, and make me look like a knob – I'd wear my wetsuit boots.
I think it's actually comments like this that make one look like a knob, regardless of the shoes you choose.
10:54 pm
April 6, 2011
Offline Think what you like.
There's a reason they don't even attempt to market those shoes to racquet-sport players. They are totally unsuitable for badminton (for exactly the same reasons a wetsuit boot would be) – aside from their light weight, they provide literally none of the things you need in a badminton shoe:
* No cushioning – that might not be an issue for running, because you are expected to change your running style to land on the balls of your feet – but in badminton, heel first lunges are an essential part of good footwork, along with jumping etc. With no cushioning, the shock will be transmitted up your leg, leading to shin splints, knee injuries, etc. Plus it's obviously not going to be as comfortable.
* No support – again, not such an issue for running, but in a sport than requires constant changes of direction and explosive movements, this is going to lead to injury.
* Soles that are designed primarily for outdoor use – so grip won't be as good as with quality badminton shoes (are they even non-marking?).
3:26 am
June 15, 2010
Offline “…and make me look like a knob – I'd wear my wetsuit boots.”
“I think it's actually comments like this that make one look like a knob, regardless of the shoes you choose.”
There! I shortened your the quote since you completely missed my point. Your response does nothing to make me change what I think, especially since I was actually the first one to chime in and say that I thought they were a horrible idea for badminton! It's not even close to what these shoes (if you can even call them that) are designed for. My issue is with the 'knob' comment. I notice that Moragg has not been back to this conversation since. I'm here for the discussion, and I'm not exactly sure how insinuating the OP is a knob lends itself to that.
9:20 am
February 15, 2011
Offline OK – let's draw this topic to a close…
These shoes have brought out a good debate and that is evolution sometimes meets with criticism, contempt, acceptance, curioscity, etc but rarely immediate acceptance.
Everybody has an opinion based on their experience and that's why forums like this should exist. A healthy debate is good.
For me Sketchy's opinion and comment were just as valid because he has raised an objection and spoken for many. In fact Sketchy, your comment made me laugh so much because it described how you would feel walking onto a court in these shoes. And that is a major barrier to acceptance that needs to be raised.
Only a year or so ago, I felt a complete idiot walking onto court in a pair of black badminton shoes. I felt so awkward I wore them only one time and then never wore them again. They looked fine whilst wearing my tracksuit bottoms but once I took them off, everything was wrong…how we sometimes mock convention but at the same time struggle to break old habits!
Nowadays we are seeing all colour of shoes from bright yellow, bright orange, green, red and thankfully there are still white shoes available although they still have the flash of colour.
The point is this, it's a brave person who will take the plunge and try these shoes. For some they may feel great, very comfortable and possibly do the job very well.
For others, they will be very wary considering there isn't the support to make them a viable option. The price won't help either as they are competing with top-end badminton specific shoes.
Thanks to everyone for sharing their views so openly and refraining for getting personal which we don't want. Bottom line here is that the proof of the pudding is in the eating and these shoes do not give me an appetite. But, I'd love to know whether those brave enough to try have found them an improvement on a badminton shoe. They will certainly be different but that does not mean better.
I suppose my final comment here is just as valid. None of us are professional badminton players. Therefore we're not necessarily looking for the edge in terms of speed. Our love of the game dictates that we wish to improve and hopefully through improvement our love and appreciation of the finer points of the game will also improve. But, improvement will rarely show through the purchase of equipment and that includes rackets too. Occasionally we can get lucky and find that racket or that pair of shoes that fit our style or feet perfectly. Enjoy those times because they're really the best!
Paul
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