Members of Denver’s Abraham Lincoln High School cross country team spent a
morning volunteering for One World Running, a Boulder non-profit that sends
shoes to needy children and young adults in Africa and Central America.
Coach Oscar Ponce (far right) was an all-state runner at Denver East High
School and later an All-Big 12 runner for the University of Colorado. A
story about his re-starting the cross country program at Abraham Lincoln
High School will be featured in the September 2009 issue of Running Times.
For more about One World Running, visit www.oneworldrunning.com.

Here’s a note from our first Ironman entry winner Alex. We’ve got another entry to give away this summer-stay tuned for the next contest!

“Many thanks to Newton for the IM slot!  In 2008, I was injured all year and didn’t get to race at all.  This year I have been slowly working my way back into shape and was planning to be racing sprints only, but obviously my plans have changed somewhat due to IM Florida on the horizon!

I didn’t really get started with any type of fitness activity until I was almost 30 years old (circa 1994).  I was living in Salt Lake City, and tired of my sedentary lifestyle, started running for fitness.  I started competing in local races and enjoyed the gradual improvement I was seeing with my running.  A coworker talked me into trying multi sport and my first  triathlon was in the fall of 1998, a short local sprint race done on a mountain bike.  I was intrigued enough to try a couple more the following Spring and once I bought a used road bike and finished a couple of International distance races that summer, I was hooked.

I moved to Upstate New York in 2005 and have managed to keep up the training despite the vastly different training conditions from Salt Lake City.  In 2006 I had the race of my life in Montreal at the Esprit Triathlon, finishing second overall at just under 10 hours.

My  favorite race distance is probably the 1/2 IM but I have done no long distance races since 2006.  It will be interesting jumping back to the iron distance this year, somewhat unexpectedly.  I chose IM Florida since it was the easiest logistically for me to attend and also gave me the most time to prepare.”
Good Luck Alex!

Consider this email nothing more than unsolicited and unabashed support of your product. First, some background: I moved from the Midwest to Denver during the summer of 2008. Upon my arrival in Denver I was simultaneously surprised at people’s activity level and inwardly disgusted by my sedentary lifestyle. I decided to start jogging again (as I was an avid recreational runner in college, but had long since stopped) in order to get back in some semblance of shape. Over the next 8 or so months I battled fatigue (in the early stages primarily due to the altitude change) and the dreaded “shin splints” as a result of having improper footwear and a gait that just beat my lower body to death (I am a heel striking, over-pronating mess). I was on the verge of giving up and relegating myself to biking, or something “lower-impact,” (Not a palatable option being a man who takes great pride in my athleticism and not accustomed to injury) when my best friend and old college roommate, himself a running enthusiast who lives in the Denver area, suggested I look into getting fit for a pair of Newton running shoes. He swore to me they were the best shoes he had ever had on and are most certainly worth the price. I finally convinced my wife to take a trip to Boulder with me (She agreed no doubt solely to find a good shoe that would “silence my whining and grumbling after a long run”). We were treated wonderfully by the staff at Active Imprints and even though they were thick into a store move, took the time to answer all of my questions and help me get fit for the shoes.

Still skeptical, I went out for a run the next morning and my oh my, I never realized shoes and a proper stride could make such a fantastic difference during and after the run. After battling the initial soreness from changing my stride, which was mostly located in my calves, I decided to go out and try my usual 5.5-mile loop after work. Not only did the shoes ride better than any other pair of shoes I have ever had, I shaved a full 3 minutes off my normal time. Additionally, the post-run joint pain I experience previously (knees and hips) was replaced by a dull muscle soreness that will subside after about 2-3 more short runs once my legs become fully accustomed to a new type of stride. I can only attribute this to the fact that my legs were no where near as labored as normal due to the fact that my stride has become much more efficient thanks to a bit of coaching from the staff at Active Imprints and my Newton shoes.

I am not accustomed to sending an email to a manufacturer singing the praises of their product, but in this case I felt compelled to do so. First off, I will never, ever own a pair of non-Newton running shoes. Secondly, all of my friends who run will hear about your shoes and hopefully convert from whatever sub-par product they are using now to a truly great shoe (this includes a co-worker, one cubicle over who swears she will be purchasing a pair in 4-6 months when her current shoes wear out).

Keep up the good work,

Brian L., extraordinarily satisfied consumer, Newton customer for life

Robert Downey Jr. on the set of Ironman 2, wearing Newton Gravity trainers.

There are so many options for a great caption here….

Best caption posted in the comments gets a free Newton Race Hat.

View the whole set of photos here.

(Newton President Stephen Gartside smiles at the Sunshine Hill Climb)

Wow. It was a busy weekend for Team Newton.

Things started off bright and early with the first-ever Newton Sunshine Hill Climb in Boulder on Saturday. Eighty hearty runners showed up to test themselves on the 5.8 mile course that basically climbs straight up – 1,800 feet of elvation gain pain. Endurance athelete extraordinare and local Boulderite Travis Macy now owns the course record, finishing in a blistering 39:37. Stephen Gartside, Newton’s president, finished in an impressive 49:17. Full results here. All in all, the race was a terrific success in its first year.

On Sunday, the Newton crew was in Denver for the Colfax Marathon. Newton put together a corporate team consisting of  Stephen Gartside (pres), Ian Adamson (Product Dev.), Paul South (Newton Running Lab), Jerry Lee (co-founder & CEO) and Sara Nelson (Newton Running Lab).  The team finished as one of the top corporate teams in the relay division (the relay results are mysteriously missing from the race website). Bob Weiner, age 44, took second place in the Colfax Half Marathon in his Newtons.

(Julia Eyer)

Other highlights:

• Newton pro Jessica Jacobs won the Trek Women’s Triathlon in Austin.
• 12-Year Old Newton pro, Julia Eyers won her division and was seond overall at the Roseville Tri for Kids.
• Michellie Jones was second at the Memphis in May triathlon behind Pip Taylor.
• Tim Berkel finished in 10th at the Florida 70.3 and Michael Simpson came in 14th.

(photo by Patrice Malloy)

Newton Running is proud to have sponsored the 2009 Union Tribune Race for Literacy weekend in San Diego on May 2-3.  All proceeds from the weekend will go to the San Diego Council on Literacy, an organization that in the past year provided over 71,000 children and 46,000 adults with free literacy assistance.

The weekend drew over 6,000 children and adults to participate in the kids’ Magic Mile race as well as the 8K all in effort to fight for literacy.

Here at Newton Running, we like to perform rigorous product testing. Last week, we were testing the stickiness of the rubber on our shoe outsoles.

Newton VP Anne and money man Rich testing the grip on Newton's outsoles.

(Ok, not really. We had a team building day at the office that ended with a rappel off the top of our building in downtown Boulder, CO. I guess this is what happens when your product development director is also a world-champion adventure racer).

Ian setting the rig for Newton's international/legal pro Erica and Newton's president, Stephen.

Ian and Danny - Newton's product designers/mad scientists

Newton co-founder Jerry Lee and warehouse king, Hawk

Danny and Customer Service Queen, Tory

I recently ordered a pair of the Newton neutral shoes.  I have to say that I was very skeptical when I ordered and the only reason I did order was because you had a  30-day guarantee. I have had a lot of trouble with my lower extremities  (stress fractures and venous insufficiency).  I love to run and so I  just kept trying gimmicks and different shoes, compression, etc.  to  improve my run.  I was sure I would send your shoes back expecting to find that they were essentially the same as any other good running shoe.  OH MY GOSH!  Your shoes are incredible!  I improved my time by three minutes in the next 5k I ran!  I run so much better and smoother.  I increased my stride for some weird reason, reduced the impact, and greatly improved my gait. I have been telling EVERYONE!!!   Now when I run in competitions I actually feel kind of guilty. I feel like I am cheating. Running has never felt this good.  So if  you notice an increase in shoes being sold in Northwest Tennessee it could be because of me. You would be crazy to run without them!!!!!

Gina W.

Rives, Tennessee

We just got this message in our inbox:

“In mid-April, the MIT Triathlon club sent eight athletes to the USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals, held in Lubbock, Texas. Facing competition from the best Triathlon clubs in the nation, MIT competed hard and had a great time.  Not only that, but we looked good in our brand-new uniforms and Newton Shoes!  Not a single person escaped without turning to gaze upon the bright-colored shoes. While some where skeptical, now all of the team members will attest that the shoes make them run faster, better, and more comfortably.

Thanks Newton Running for all your support!”

Smart shoes for smart people…

Good form is the key to efficient running and preventing injuries

By Danny Abshire, co-founder, Newton Running

I’ve been coaching efficient running and injury prevention through optimal running form, foot support and footwear for years. It would be naïve to go by the results of sponsored elite athletes and satisfied customers, but the initial results of a study started last spring at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology reinforced my ideas.

The study, conducted through the Chemistry of Sport class taught by Dr. Patti Christie, took 25 athletic individuals with various running abilities and put them through an eight-week distance running program. The research was based around running 4×800m or 4×1600m repeats while holding a constant heart rate.

The first set of intervals was done in traditional EVA foam-midsole running shoes the participants started the program with, while the latter was done in Newton Running Trainers (Gravity and Motion). That preliminary data revealed that all of the runners who completed every workout recorded faster times in the final interval wearing Newton shoes. Results showed that 77 percent of the runners ran faster on two or more intervals wearing Newtons and 55 percent of the runners were faster on every interval.

“The results were statistically significant,” says Christie, who is continuing the study with a new group of runners this spring. “It indicates there is a more efficient way to run. And if you combine the Newton Running technique, ‘Land-Lever-Lift’ with the Newton shoes, there was definitely a significant difference.”

If you were to run barefoot along a smooth sidewalk, your body wouldn’t have you impact on your heels because it isn’t engineered to accommodate the blunt force trauma of repeated heel striking. Through increased forefoot communication with the ground Newton shoes allow for the body’s natural propensity for a light forefoot landing, foot leverage and a lifting of each new stride (instead of pushing off) known as the “Land-Lever-Lift” technique.

Newton Running’s patented Action/Reaction forefoot technology encourages Natural or Barefoot Running Gait and enhances the shock absorbency, leverage and energy return in the forefoot. Newton’s Independent lab research shows the system returns up to 28 percent more energy and reduces impact up to 44 percent when compared training and racing shoes offered by leading running brands.

The basis of natural form and midfoot/forefoot running gaits has been around for decades, much of it derived from the super-efficient form elite runners have been employing for years.

“It’s not new, it’s just that most runners have either gone away from what they used to do or they were never taught the proper way to run in the first place,” says Malcolm Balk, a Montreal-based running coach, form guru and competitive masters runner who teaches The Art of Running workshops in Canada and the United Kingdom. “I think the most important thing is that you need to keep braking to a minimum if you want to reduce muscular effort and the impact that goes with it.”

Danny Abshire is the co-founder of Newton Running, a Boulder, Colorado-based company that makes shoes that promote an efficient midfoot running gait. He has been making advanced footwear solutions for runners and triathletes for more than 20 years.