A love letter to my shoes

Please bring the Akasha back, Sportiva

Have you ever been in love with a pair of shoes? I mean really in love, to the point where you can’t imagine life without them on your feet? That’s how I feel about the La Sportiva Akashas, the most perfect pair of running shoes I’ve ever owned. 

I put more than 450 miles on my first pair before they started showing signs of wear. Every subsequent pair -- I’m on my eighth -- has lasted just as long, if not longer. In all that time, I’ve never once had an issue with blisters, soreness, or anything else for that matter.

All told, I’ve logged almost 4,000 miles in Akashas, enough to run from here to Los Angeles and still have enough tread to make it up the coast to Seattle. I’m pretty sure the Akashas could handle everything from Mississippi mud to the Rocky Mountains and not break down. Actually, I know they could handle it because I’ve put them through every conceivable environmental and meteorological condition from coast to coast without any issues whatsoever. 

I kept that first pair, by the way. They live in the trunk of my car just in case I ever somehow find myself needing a pair of trail shoes unexpectedly. It could happen, you know. I have another pair stashed at my parents house in Jersey and still another at my in-laws in Indiana. 

At any given time, I have three different pairs of Akashas in the rotation backing up the pair getting primary use. I’ve had long-term relationships with running shoes before, but never this level of commitment. I wouldn’t even think about replacing them as my everyday trainer except for one tiny problem – Sportiva discontinued the model last year. Sportiva, my friends, please reconsider! (Sportiva, amici miei, vi prego di ripensarci!) 

I bought the last few remaining pairs in my size (44.5 Euro) when I heard the news and I’m down to my final two. There’s the ones I’m wearing now with about 200 miles on them, and the final pair that sits in an unopened box in the back of my closet waiting patiently for their turn. That should take me through the spring and into the early part of summer, but I’m legitimately freaked out about what I’m going to do next. 

I realize that I’m being a little ridiculous about this. At any given second, I can go online and browse the offerings from a dozen different outdoor brands all making quality footwear for a variety of different terrains and conditions. Imagine telling a trail runner in 1996 it was possible to choose shoes according to stack height, tread, or whether it has a rock plate or not. It’s that overwhelming variety that has me so befuddled. How do I even begin trying to replace my one true love?   

I fell for the Akasha’s by accident. That is to say, I went to an REI and came home with the wrong pair of shoes. I was trying to buy a pair of TX3’s in ahem, spicy orange, because I had just come back from my first trip to Colorado and noticed that a lot of mountain-type people wore them. 

To put it another way, I thought they looked cool. As someone who was just getting into exploring the outdoors, I wanted to look cool too. Or, at least I wanted to look the part until I could figure out what being an outdoorsy type of person meant. One could make the argument that I was trying a little too hard because I had been loading up on gear at the time, much to the consternation of my wise and ever-practical wife. 

Don’t let anyone ever tell you trail running is a minimalist sport. I’ve got an entire extra dresser full of running clothes that says otherwise. Fortunately for my bank account, as well as the planet, my consumption has decreased dramatically over the last year or two. At this point in time, I would never seriously consider buying the TX3’s. According to some online marketing copy, the shoes were, “Well-suited for everything from high ridge crossings to brushy approaches with multiple creek crossings.” Not a lot of those in the greater Boston area. 

Did I mention they look cool, though? An NBA player called me over to his locker when I wore them one night and inquired about their origin. That was pretty much the pinnacle of my style/fashion years. In that sense, the TX3’s did their job. They made the statement I was trying to make: that I was an outdoorsman with a fine sense of aesthetics. Thank you for noticing, Jeff Teague.

It wasn’t until much later that I discovered their true value. Turns out, the TX3’s are great for getting around town in the winter and particularly awesome when encountering icy sidewalks that my lazy neighbors don’t bother to shovel. Save a few cameos here and there, the TX3’s do their work for a few months and then get put away during the other seasons. It’s not what I intended when I eventually bought them online, but I’m happy to have them in my collection.

So much spicy orange.

Since REI didn’t have TX3’s in stock, I reluctantly tried on a pair of Akashas. They didn’t look nearly as cool, and seemed kind of boxy and inelegant. I really didn’t want to like them since I had already convinced my wife that buying a different pair of $140 mountain shoes was absolutely necessary for enhancing the quality of my life at sea level. 

Yet, as I walked around the store, I was startled at how perfect they felt on my feet. There were no hot spots and no, “this is probably fine” compromises to make with the fit. The toe box was just right, the heel didn’t slip, the laces were tight without feeling constricting. 

Trying to avoid yet another impulse purchase, I put them away and went to the checkout line. Still, I kept thinking about those shoes. They felt so right. It wasn’t until the very last second that I doubled back to grab a pair. At the risk of being overdramatic, it was a life-changing decision. 

Back then, I had been making do with Brooks Cascadias for all my trail runs. The Cascadias are solid shoes that have had a place in my quiver ever since. They’re really, really good shoes, and would be on my shortlist of recommendations for road running folks looking for an entry pair. Still, they didn’t quite offer enough protection on some of the gnarlier trails I was encountering. 

The Akasha, though, could handle everything I threw its way. The shoes gripped rocks like Spider Man, stayed firm on exposed roots, and drained well in mud season. I could wear them for hours and my feet never tired. They’re the only shoes I’ve ever owned where I could just lace them up and forget about them for the rest of the day. 

I wore the Akashas during training for my first 50K and didn’t think twice about racing in them. I get the idea that having a lighter racing shoe distinct from everyday trainers is an effective racing strategy, but why mess with a sure thing? I’ve worn them in training and in every race since without any issues whatsoever.

Neither freezing rain, not sleet, nor ice, nor mud could bother the Akashas at the Mountain Marathon in Stowe, Vt. circa 2018.

The one downside is they are a little heavy at around a pound and a half. That’s more than twice as much as my old road runners. That got me thinking: Was I leaving speed on the trail at the expense of comfort? 

It was a fine theory, but not really relevant compared to the effortless peace of mind I felt in the Akashas. After brief flirtations with different makes and models, I invariably kept coming back to my one and only love. 

I was thinking about all this during a long, snowy run through the woods without a soul around. The thought of me doing something like this a few years ago would have been preposterous. Hell, the thought of me running in these woods at all, snow or no snow, would have been a stretch. Now, I can’t imagine my life without it. 

I had on one of my old pairs of Akashas to save the current ones from getting trashed. They still had their shape and much of their old grip. I believe I could get another hundred miles out of them. More than that, they provided confidence that I could take on any condition and come out just fine. 

It’s funny. I went to that REI trying to buy a new identity. I wound up creating a new life for myself, thanks in large part to a pair of shoes I didn’t even want to like. 

How about you guys: what’s your relationship with your shoes; ever have a beloved model discontinued?