Let’s give it a bit of welly! How fast can I run barefoot?

I slept in this morning, so missed my morning jog, but I managed to get home from work on time, giving me the chance to squeeze in a jog before Sarah, my wife, returned home from work. My calves were still tight, but I thought they’d be fine once I got warmed up. That didn’t take long. Today was one of the hottest days in Dubai for a while – somewhere in the mid-30’s – so it must have still been around 30c when I set off at 5pm. A big difference to the temperature I’m used to at 5am. In a couple of months it won’t drop below 30c even in the middle of the night, so I should best get used to it. Not nice though: breathing in hot air totally dries your mouth, like a sauna you can’t escape.

I completed my usual lap, avoiding The Walk by running along the beach. It was lush. As I ran towards the setting sun I thought about how nice it is not needing to wear gloves and a hat like I used to when running back home in the UK. Another thing I’ve noticed is that even though some sand is sneaking its way into my VFFs, I’m not getting any blisters like I would if I was wearing my Pegasus on the sand.

Towards the end of the run, I picked up pace for the last mile, just like on Tuesday. But I’m dying to really push it and see just how far my feet can take me in VFFs – they’re getting a little impatient with my calves slowing us down.

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