Barefoot Survival Techniques

I’m curious where this might go. We all like going barefoot. Many of us like being without shoes in public areas. I’m curious if there are any suggestions people might offer to reduce the likelihood of being hassled in these settings, anything that makes the experience more enjoyable (e.g., how to deal with rough surfaces, hot sidewalks, etc.). I’ve got a couple of things to offer, so I’ll start with one.

I travel quite a bit. I never thought about going through an airport, boarding a flight, and driving to my destination barefoot until a few members said they’d done it, so I decided to give it a try. Here’s what works for me to get through the airport.

I never go out with flip-flops if I’m running an errand around town. I consider them a safety net in case I “chicken out.” Not having shoes removes that option. The exception is when I go to the airport. It’s not so much a safety net as it’s a fall-back in the event I’m denied boarding for being barefoot. No way I’m going to eat a several hundred dollar plane ticket and/or miss a work-related appointment, so I figure having them available just makes sense. I’ve got a backpack with a side pouch. I put my flip-flops (cheap, thin, $2/pair from Old Navy) in the side pocket. I put the backpack over one shoulder so the flip-flops are facing forward and easily seen. Going through security barefoot, one could easily assume I’d just removed my shoes early. Walking through the terminal, one could assume my flip-flops were rubbing so I removed them and put them in my backpack. Getting on the plane, well, I have flip-flops, so unless the gate attendant’s a hard-ass…

So far it’s worked. I went through about a dozen airports in 2009 without incident. This included probably 20-30 individual flights. The only time I caught any flack was in Charlotte, NC. A USAir gate agent saw me approach the jetway barefoot and insisted the FAA required shoes. I knew she was full of shit, but I put my flip-flops on, walked the short distance to my seat, and quickly removed my flip-flops for the flight.

Any other survival suggestions??

 

Some things that seem to work for me...

Don't cower or try to hide - be confident. You aren't doing anything anything wrong.
Look people in the eye. Smile and say hello.
Don't look like a bum. Be clean and presentable. Do you want folks coming into your home filthy and dirty? Probably not, so why go into someone else's place of business that way.
If confronted don't pitch a fit. Be rational, logical & factual with your responses. You may not convince the confronter that your point of view is right but at least you'll leave them with a favorable impression and some facts to think about.

 

That is the most important thing with store employees. That may prevent them from looking down, and they may not notice your feet at all.

 

There are eleastic things that you can buy (but can make yourself!) that look like sandals- that way you go barefoot, but people don't realise as easily.
http://www.beautifulbarefootsandals.com/cart.html

 

A good idea, but those look way too girlish for guys.

 

Yeah those ones do, but you can easily make your own. I would never spend money on buying them, but have made my own.

 

You may be interested in this thread. It shows how I made some (complete with pictures!) from leather shoelaces. I believe you'll have to go to the second page of the thread to get the instructions.

http://www.hipforums.com/newforums/showthread.php?t=366130&f=403

 

I like them! I think barefoot sandles look pretty cool. I will start making a few more tonight.

 

Another suggestion has to do with bathrooms. Sorry if someone considers this too graphic, but this really is a SURVIVAL technique.

Sorry for the visual, but if you go into a busy men's restroom you'll almost always find a "moist spot" on the floor in front of the urinal. We dribble. And I've seen worse, but won't go there.

If a urinal is the only choice when I'm barefoot, I'll adopt the "spread-leg" approach to avoid the puddle. Anymore though, I usually head for one of the stalls. Somehow the area in front of a toilet stays dry for the most part.

Airplane bathrooms are a problem. The sinks are usually splashed with water, soap residue, etc. and the floor almost always has spots and splashes. Further, the restrooms are usually at the back of the plane with a flight attendant serving as passenger host/hostess, bartender, and bathroom monitor. It's just a lot easier (and more sanitary) to slip on the flip-flops on a plane.

 

Survival? Standing in piss will not kill you. It won't even give you a skin disease.

 

Urine by itself is sterile unless there's some medical issue going on. Nonetheless, it's rich in nutrients (nitrogen compounds, vitamins, etc.) not absorbed by our bodies. That makes for a healthy culture medium for microbial growth. As soon as the urine leaves our bodies, it's readily available to be inoculated by natural bacteria and microbes in the environment. While my feet are quite healthy, cuts, scrapes, etc. do occur, and I wouldn't want the stuff entering the sore. Further, most people (including me) find the thought of standing barefoot in someone else's urine quite distasteful. I don't think you should be denied the right to stand barefoot in urine if you want, but I ain't doin' it!!

 

Distasteful? I suppose it could seem that way, but all outdoor barefooting involves stepping on distasteful things, like bug shit, bird shit, decaying remnants of animal shit, and rotting natural materials like acorns and grass clippings. It's all loaded with bacteria. I wouldn't advise anyone with an open sore on his foot to go barefoot anywhere.

Once your soles get tough, you aren't going to have many injuries that don't seal up quickly. Your feet are designed to deal with these situations. I find it best not to spend a lot of time thinking about all the bacteria I am walking on outdoors. I don't remember ever getting an infection from stepping in anything nasty.

My best barefoot survival tip is to trust your feet. Nature designed them to handle anything you should regularly encounter in the natural world.

 

I'm with Striaght toes on this one; for some reason I find standing in human urine a lot worse that any animal waste. I think you get used to being outdoors and bird poo and bugs are just nauture. Perhaps, if I had grown up walking around in human piss I would feel differently.

I didn't explain myself very well, hope you get what I mean.

 

Gypsy, are you always barefoot, 24/7?

 

The majority of the time, pretty much only at work I have to wear shoes, or if necessary.

 

Because of "dress code" or something like that?As for me, I am a beginning barefooter. I live in Montreal.Though I didn't have much experience in barefooting, I am planning to walk out all the city barefoot this summer. Being barefoot is really cool!

 

Yeah, it's hard being an adult at times!

 

There you go This summer I wanna walk out all the city barefoot, but I didn't have much experience so far..What would you advise?

 

Don't put any shoes on before you leave the house and away you go.

 

I seriously started bractising barefooting last summer, but wasn't actually seen barefoot except of two public places: a grocery store and and a supermarket near my house.-) At home I am always barefoot and by the end of the day I can't wash up my soles as they get black-dirty.-)))And how do you manage to solve the problem of dirty soles or you just don't care?