Kicksology: The Hype, Science, Culture & Cool of Running Shoes

by Brian Metzler

"Kicksology is your all-access pass into every runner's favorite shoes. Author Brian Metzler, a longtime sports journalist and veteran running shoe wear- tester, reviewer and connoisseur, takes readers deep inside the $10 billion dollar running shoe industry, with a behind-the-curtain look at what makes iconic running shoe brands tick; a shoe's birth from inspiration to innovation to shelf; how small, innovative ideas have evolved into mega-trends; inside domestic and overseas shoe factories where products are built; alongside scientists in the lab who test shoe science; and, of course, a discussion of the controversial relationship between running shoes and injury"--

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction

274 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 15, 2019

Reviews

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a gift from my mom, who raved about it (although I suspect she only picked it up because it was written by a kid from our neighborhood), but I can see why. Even if you’re not a runner, everyone has been through the somewhat mystifying experience of trying to buy the right shoes.

The book that I kept thinking of while reading this was Moneyball, because while both books are ostensibly about a somewhat niche topic (running shoes and baseball statistics, respectively), at a deeper level they’re both talking about the same thing: how people and businesses adapt to a changing marketplace.

Metzler definitely has a passion for the topic, which seems excessive until he started talking about the New Balance 1080s, which sent me excitedly running to my closet, thinking that I’d actually owned a pair (I misremembered — I’d had the 1260). While he’s generally good about explaining things in a clear, concise fashion, I would have appreciated a chapter more explicitly breaking down the parts of a shoe (and a foot), detailing what they are and what they do. (It also doesn’t help that the eBook kept all the illustrations hidden away at the end, rather than interspersed throughout the book where they’d be relevant).

In all honesty, my biggest complaint with the book is really a complaint about the subject. As an amateur runner myself, struggling with injuries and a perpetual confusion about how to find the right shoes, I was really hoping for an easy-peasy one-step solution. That, sadly, is a fantasy, as the biggest takeaway from the book is that the uniqueness of every runner requires an individual solution, and that our understanding of those solutions is continuing to evolve. The solutions of just a few years ago now seem to be mistakes, or, at least, correct solutions to the wrong problems.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Something I'd never have thought would be an interesting thing to read about, but it was a really interesting thing to read about! Every time I go to my local Fleet Feet to try on shoes it blows my mind the technology that abounds. Now they have 3D foot mapping and will soon have 3D-printed insoles. Long gone are the days of running in Keds (and yes, I remember my mom taking me to the Shoe Tree when I was a kid). I try to keep my enthusiasm in check and not drop a gazillion bucks on the latest and greatest because, like so many other things, I find a 'perfect' shoe for my running style and it's suddenly upgraded to Version 87.5 or whatever, and now it doesn't work for me anymore and you can't find a pair of the old ones to save your life. Not that you can stock up when you find the perfect shoe because your feet evolve along the way. Mine got wider and developed bunions, so the old perfect ones don't work anymore so I needed new perfect ones. It's a complicated topic that the author succeeds in making a lot more interesting than this review. A fun read.

[Desiree · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am not a fan of Nike. I think their shoes are too narrow and I would never run in them, although I do own a few pairs that I wear casually. There were times when I would question if I was actually reading a Nike propaganda pamphlet. The author and I clearly feel differently about their shoes. I did learn a little about heel drop, and there was minimal information about some of the other brands that I enjoy (such as On, which while extremely comfortable, I would not run in either). I would have preferred a broader brand review rather than a long Nike commercial.

[John McLain · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book might not be for everyone, but for someone who nerds out on running, history, and engineering like myself, this is an enjoyable read. The subjective/autobiographical take of the author on the material could be off-putting, but it gave the book the feel of an extended magazine article (or maybe a series of articles) that I didn't mind. The structure makes sense given the author's background. A lot has changed in the shoe industry in the last 5 years, so the last few chapters aren't the most evergreen.

[LP · Rating 5 out of 5]

Imagine someone who loves running shoes comes up to you at a party and talks about running shoes for 9 hours, and that's what this was like. I was into it.
Just one thing: the author *really* committed to using "he or she" as much as possible, and I feel like we should just be on board with singular they by now (this book was written in 2019). Alternately, 90% of those sentences could be re-written without any pronouns whatsoever. Anyway.

[Ofer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written expose on running and running shoes in particular. I am surprised it's not more popular given the large runners demographics and the interest in running books evident by the success of books such as What I talk about when I talk about running, Eat and Run, Endure, Born to Run, and Shoe Dog in recent years.

[Jay Molnar · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interesting and I enjoyed seeing the evolution of the running shoes. I didn't know a lot about some of the newer features or why shoes all started to have the huge foam soles. It felt more like a series of articles and Metzler's articles that I've found online have been a little bit more of what I was looking for about this subject.

[Alex Kacprzyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent history of running shoes from and author who ran in 1500+ different pairs himself. I liked the combination of historical facts with personal stories.
It is clearly a book for committed runners and/or sneaker heads, as it could be too detailed for an average reader.

[Seyhan Civanlar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fun to read if you like the science behind the running shoes.

[Paolo Sarmiento · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really fun read especially for a physical therapist and running geek like me

[Ricky · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great synopsis on the history of running shoes, where we are today, and what the future might look like.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting insight into the world of running shoes. Nothing earth shattering and no new real information that is already out there in the running world

[Justin Payne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable book on the modern history of running shoe culture.

[Arah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure the world needed another book about running shoes (largely Phil Knight). Still, I enjoyed this quick read on a flight.

I liked that Metzler focused more on the passion for running and shoes, than on a quest for speed, though there’s plenty of that in this book, too. As a designer, I appreciated the stories about startups (Altra, Hoka) doing their research and getting feedback from testers. And that data-driven design of shoes has the potential/proof to work about as well as expected (poorly) for helping one actual human.

Learning that shoe manufacturing still largely requires human hands for many steps is fascinating. Oddly, that may be what gets me to my local running store for my next pair of kicks, not the fact that when brands sell direct to customer online, the customer pays the same price and gets no expertise or even a freaking conversation or smile from the experience.

I opened this book not needing another pair of running shoes. Now I plan to go visit my local shop, to fatten my quiver.

[Ross Slough · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super fun read for a very unique niche geek like me. Repetitive at times but if you love running or shoes it’s a must read.

[Ellen Brenner · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. It's neat to read a book where I've met, been in meetings with, had dinner with or been to their home of many of the interviewees. 2. It's neat to read a book that directly relates to my line of work as a running industry retailer. 3. It's neat to read about places the author was at and I was there too - TRE when the scanned my husbands foot for HP/Superfeet/Brooks shoe. 4. It's neat To live the last 15 years of the history of shoes as depicted. 5. It's interesting the author talked about footwear evolution and how technology plays a role, but would like to have seen Karhu noted as a shoe that used over 100k foot scans to develop its shape. This brand relates very closely to the last few chapters. Overall very good read for folks in the run industry or shoe geeks.

[Carianne Carleo-Evangelist · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this trip through running shoe history, from his visit to the museum in Massachusetts to the factories in China and how the industry has pivoted from minimalism to maximalism and back more than once. I loved learning about the different models especially the at-the-time of writing evolution of the super shoes. The brand evolution, including the Hoka/Altra launch together with those that have come and gone paint an interesting picture of the shoe business, as do the running stores in Boulder and the Chicago suburbs.

My one quibble if you're listening to the audio version, the accent that Lawlor put on when speaking on behalf of non Americans was a little jarring

[Bach · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really deep dive into the history and culture of running shoes, particularly 1970s on. The author dives into some of his personal background in shoes and neatly parallels it with the various running trends that have occurred across each decade. It's a wonderful look into the subject if you want to get into the nitty gritty of running shoe history and how it has come to where it is today as the book wraps up in modern running up to 2019. For those really into shoe culture and running, this is a five star read.

[Dpalange44 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Had really high hopes for this book. I love running shoes. I love books. Why not a book about running shoes. It just didn’t... flow...?
It went from dense technical jargon to personal narratives about running. If Metzler could write the same way the whole way through I think I would like it much more.

[Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A deep dive into running shoes.

Some hype. Some tech advances. Yes, better shoes, but really worth it?!?

Sure, donate old shoes! So runners who are poorer can use them.

Find the right shoes for you.

I listened to the audio book and thought the reader did a good job.

[Brian Atkinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mildly entertaining read about running shoe history. Perhaps I am too much of a running nerd but there was very little new information in this book for me about running shoes, and was more about running shoe fandom than history or technology. I did enjoy the pictures in the middle of the book.

[CherylR · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun facts about running shoes

This was a good book and I especially liked it as I am a running shoe nerd like the author. It gives a history of the running shoe industry.

[Amber Victoria Finlay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book for running shoe nerds, but I caught a few grammatical errors in it.

[Jeff Binder · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty good in depth history of running shoes since the 70s running boom.