Choosing and packing shoes for travel

[Badger]

Maybe you should take a look at Home Page | Soft Star Shoes . They are made in Corvalis, OR and sold via the web site or the workshop/showroom only,

They allow try out of their shoes on clear surfaces, not outdoor. Hmmm remind me of another company, which one could that be?

I'm from Corvallis! The awesome thing about Soft Star is that you can customize your shoes or slippers so they have the color, fabric, and sole that you want. They use Vibram rubber and suede for the soles.

Corvy is a nice little town—and so much more than "a slightly cooler Ames [IA]," as my mover put it to me. Um, thanks dude. "A slightly cooler Ames." Gah.

[backpack]

I'm from Corvallis! The awesome thing about Soft Star is that you can customize your shoes or slippers so they have the color, fabric, and sole that you want. They use Vibram rubber and suede for the soles.

Corvy is a nice little town—and so much more than "a slightly cooler Ames [IA]," as my mover put it to me. Um, thanks dude. "A slightly cooler Ames." Gah.

Oh really! You need to tell us everything about Corvalis!


I know about the possibility of customizing the Soft Star Shoes, I already have the models and color setups in mind, (color coordinated with my Tom Bihn Bags of course)

Right now, I am just happy to fit in my Plum canvas shoes, which is a miracle in itself.

[Badger]

Oh really! You need to tell us everything about Corvalis!

Corvallis. Two Ls. The name is derived from Latin (by which I mean someone made it up), and means heart of the valley. It's smack-dab in the middle of the Willamette Valley, and is a nice enough place. (And way better than Ames. Way better.) It's about 1.5 hours from Portland, another 1.5 hours from the coast, about 2 hours or so from Sisters. There are wineries nearby, lots of good running and cycling, good coffee and beer, and everything is organic. They just got a Trader Joe's a couple of years ago. Corvallis is the home of Oregon State University, a land-grant institution with a large college of agriculture. My parents live near-ish the OSU dairy, which, during the summer, is just as unpleasant as you might suspect.

We visited last summer with Titus in tow. He rather liked Corvallis, I think.

[thisisme]

What is a "minimalist shoe"?

I would say my clothing style is a slightly dressier version of the typical 'hiker/granola/traveler' clothing style.
For longer trips (2 - 3 weeks) I take three pairs of shoes (pack 2):

1. Comfortable 2 - 3" heels that I can wear with dresses and look fairly dressed up. Also works as walking shoe.
2. Pleather flip flops that work at the beach, yet are still dressy enough to wear around town.
3. Fluvog ankle boots OR my running shoes. I wear the ankle boots on the motorcycle, in the rain (not ideal, but better than open-toed shoes), and when it's colder. I can also hike in these, although they won't tolerate anything too backwoods.
I bring the runners instead if I'm not on the motorcycle. Again, I can hike in them (but I don't look as cool as the Keen-wearing folks.)

[Badger]

What is a "minimalist shoe"?

Check out birthdayshoes.com for a good primer on minimalist footwear.