In a way it is. Yesterday I ran with my brother 4.4km in the VFF. Then we ran another 2.5km, just for him to try out "barefoot" running. And he was very pleased, exclaiming several times "I'd really like a pair of those!" So he'll get them--as a present. The last 2.5km presented a bit of a problem to me, because I started out wearing Morten's shoes. Having the same shoe size, the fit was not a problem,and these were running shoes he'd bought after doing a running test (testing pronation and such things), where he'd been advised to not get shoes with any kind of extra support. But they were really difficult to run in. I was very quickly trailing him (he ran with better form than me), and I felt sluggish and as if I'd returned to that dreary, drudgy feeling that always depressed the hell out of me when I've been running before. After what I think is a kilometer I stopped up, and it was even worse! The shoes prevented me from walking normally, and it felt as if I was walking on a ball "rolling" over in my steps, which caused tremendous pain in my already sore calves. After thinking for a bit, I yanked the shoes and socks off, and set off barefoot, running with the shoes in my hands. It's remarkable how much feeling is cut off from our feet when we run with shoes (or even VFF's), and this new cold intimate ground contact quickly became very uncomfortable and my toes started to go numb. Again, I stopped up and thought for a moment. I really didn't want to put the shoes back on, and I couldn't really go on completely barefoot. So they only option that hadn't been tried was running in socks. The socks provided the perfect amount of insulation and protection, so I was able to run the last kilometer (I think even a bit further) without trouble. This is the first time in a long time that I've run without completely without shoes, and it's obvious to me that I require more practice before attempting this again. But I'm also happy that I was actually able to do it.