Review: Vibram Five Fingers Spyridon LS

When Vibram announced their spring lineup a few months ago, the Seeya piqued my interest as a road running shoe, but the Spyridon did nothing for me. After getting more serious about trail running in January though, it was clear the Spyridon was something I needed to investigate.

Five Fingers Spyridon LS
Military Green w/grey & black accents

I've owned a pair of Five Fingers KSO Treks for about a year and a half and have occasionally used them for trail running. When running on dirt trails with relatively shallow grades or trails that have minimal rocks, they are pretty good. When the grade gets steep though, the kind that requires you to go up on your toes or down with very rapid shallow strides that are essentially a controlled fall, they could use improving.

After running just over 70 miles on trails this year so far, I was getting close to investigating other offerings, like the Merrell Barefoot trail shoes. My wife has a pair and loves them. Actually, I already have a pair of the Tough Gloves, but those are my dress shoes, so I'd need something for outdoor abuse.

That was when I recalled the announcement about the Spyridon LS from Vibram. The shoe is named in honor of Spyridon Louis who won the first modern Olympic Marathon in 1896. The "LS" in the name refers to the speed lacing system the shoes have rather than the Velcro strap most often seen on Five Fingers.

I received my pair via courier on Thursday and decided to test them out on a 10 mile run Monday through Whiting Ranch, an area that provides a wide array of surfaces and grades.

Outsole, including a view
of the "rock-block" mesh

The tread is an aggressive design, mimicking the tread on a BMX bike tire. The outsole is a mere 3.5mm thick, compared to the 4mm thread on the KSO Treks. Despite being a bit thinner though, the Spyridon's offer better protection from rocks. The midsole has a nylon mesh that spreads the impact from a rock over a wider area, thus lessening the impact. It is difficult to see in the pictures, but that white area just under the arch is a semi-transparent piece of plastic or rubber. Under that you can see the mesh that protects the midsole of the foot.

The tread also offers superior grip on loose surfaces, such as dirt or rocks. If you compare the sole of the KSO Trek and the Spyridon, you can quickly see the difference.

KSO Treks, top
Spyridon LS, bottom

The KSO Treks, the brown shoes on top in the image to the left, have 5 cross shaped lugs on the heel and just over a dozen under the ball of the foot. The rest of the sole has ridges of various thicknesses. After running on loose surfaces, I am convinced that sole is more for looks than actual traction. For trails with low grades, they are great, but steep grades causes more slipping than I would like. Part of the reason is those lugs wear out fairly quickly. I have 100 running miles and 24 hiking miles on those soles, plus a few hours of casual use. There is also about 10 miles on asphalt or concrete running to and from trails. With under 150 miles on them, those lugs have gotten too worn to be very useful. That tread may be more useful as a hiking tread than a running tread.

Tracks made by the Spyridon

The Spyridon, in contrast, has the same tread design over the entire sole. This tread continues around the edges on the sides, front and rear. I found this to be helpful when running on sections of the trail where the sides of your feet are likely to need traction in areas where water has washed out part of the trail, or on sections that are heavily banked. Of course, if you are going up or down a steep grade and the surface is completely loose, you are still going to slip. It is like thinking your fancy SUV with AWD is invincible in the winter. If you get on ice or aren't careful on snow, you will break traction. The same holds true on a trail. The Spyridon doesn't allow you to be an idiot oblivious to the surface, but it does give the focused runner more security than the KSO Treks. (In case you are wondering what an oblivious idiot looks like when running, check this video out.)

An example of a trail that, with
careful steps, you can easily tackle
with the Spyridon LS

When wearing minimalist shoes, you have to keep your eyes about 10-15 feet in front of you so you can anticipate where to step. Unlike shoes that have very thick soles and heavy cushioning, true minimalist shoes offer little more than a thin layer to protect the skin of your foot from the running surface. You can step on a dime and feel it. This is good because you are more focused on the run. This is both more enjoyable and can prevent the type of injury you get from stepping on a large object like a tree root or in a hole, both of which can cause a twisted ankle or a severe jolt to any number of joints not expecting the impact.

The Spyridon offers a good compromise between the these two extremes. You won't feel a dime, but very small rocks and twigs are noticed. Larger rocks, say the size of a small grape, though no longer cause as much pain due to the rock-block effect at mid-foot, the area you are most likely to get hurt. You will still feel small objects though, perhaps two dimes thick, so you aren't insulated from the run.

As far as comfort, the Spyridon's feel great. I quit trying to run sockless in Five Fingers a year and a half ago. I always run with Injinji socks. No matter how well Five Fingers fit, there is slight rubbing directly against the skin, and when running for several hours, that can cause blisters and eventually callouses. Injinji socks almost completely eliminate that possibility. There are people though that like to run sockless in Five Fingers and these should perform well. The fabric is made of a sock-like material, similar to other offerings from Vibram like the Bikilas and Komodo Sports.

Carrying the shoes on
my Camelbak

Tread life is an unknown at this point. In order to maximize tread life on my trail shoes and minimize the frequency I have to purchase a new pair, I've started driving to the trail heads instead of running to those that are closer to the house. The closest one though is still nearly two miles away, and putting that kind of asphalt mileage on trail shoes will take its toll. On my first run in the shoes today though, my wife needed the car so I decided to run to the trailhead barefoot. I figured I'd carry the shoes and put them on when I got there. The only flaw in that plan is my hands are the first things to sweat and carrying anything, especially a shoe in each hand, got annoying quick. While running on the trail, a place where I do a lot of thinking, I remembered by Camelbak has some straps on the back that I've never had any idea with to do with. Now I know. I ran barefoot home and this was a much better solution.

Styling is about what you would expect from Vibram. Toe-shoes always garner attention and Vibram throws a bit of flash in for good measure.

Top view of the Spyridon
before the run today. They will
never be this clean again.

The sides near the ankle have a rock pattern, suggesting their off road purpose. There are two colors of fabric accenting the shoe as well as reflective strips running from the toes swooshing to the outside edge. When it comes to running shoes, the more reflectivity the better. While it might not be very useful on a trail, the reflective properties could help if you run on a fire road or unpaved country road when the sun isn't up.

Cleaning is the same as all other Five Fingers. Wash in a gentle cycle then allow them to air dry in the shade or inside. I always recommend using a fan to speed the process to minimize any odor issues, a problem most likely to occur if you don't wear socks.

The shoes are $120. I ordered mine from CitySports, a store I've had good service with. You should be able to find them at your favorite online Vibram Five Finger supplier. Right now you cannot order them directly from Vibram. Immediately after launch, Vibram gives 100% of its production to retail partners until there is an adequate supply. If looking for them locally in a retail store, focus on stores that have a wide array of off road shoes, like REI. It has the shoes on its website, but when using the inventory tool, it shows all stores in my area "out of stock" which means they don't have them in yet.

If you have some Five Fingers already, the sizing should be the same as other models, both in men's and women's sizes. I have several pair and all of them are size 43, except for my KSO Treks (42) and Mocs (44). If you have Flows, KSOs, Sprints, Classics, Bikilas, or Komodo Sports, the size should be the same.

I highly recommend them for running trails, but only if you have experience with so-called barefoot shoes.

Related links:
Vibram Five Fingers Spyridon LS Page
Birthday Shoes Review - From the perspective of someone that runs with no socks