Review of the Xeroshoe Huarache Sandal Kit

I previously gave a poor review of these shoes; I did not like them at all, however I recently found myself in the tropics and being unable to find my normal sandals took my huaraches. As you can see they are a Xeroshoe Huarache kit and I had to finish making them.
(The Xeroshoe Kit contains 2 rubber soles which smell like tyre tread, two lengths of paracord, a hole punch and a hair clip and no instructions. You have to go online to the Xeroshoewebsite and watch a video). Making them was very frustrating and a trial and error affair...and I still do not think that I got all the knots right, but now I am scared if I take them to bits I will be unable to get them tied again!

So, having arrived in the tropics to 35 degrees Celsius and almost 100 degrees humidity I was very thankful to have these huaraches as they are so light (due to the thin rubber sole) and with the minimalist paracord strap allow maximum air flow to the feet.
Previously my criticism was that they were uncomfortable and that the toe post dug into the toe webbing, however I have now worn these in and they are becoming more and more comfortable. Of course I was reluctant to blame my poor attempts at tying the paracord strap rather to blame the shoe itself...my fathers oft quoted expression now comes to mind: a poor craftsman blames his tools...

Running in them feels a little strange yet they soon become second nature, mainly because  they are so light and the sole so flexible. The 6mm rubber sole has almost no "bounce" so that the barefoot experience is probably the closest you will get however I found running in these particularly heavy going on the ankles. That toe post strap will also take a while to get used to as it feels a bit tight at first.

I found that the paracord eased in after a few days... I started to get a foot slap sound which is not right...and so needed a readjustment to make it tighter. A few days of adjusting the paracord and they became a very comfortable sandal.

However after a further week they loosened up again and I again experienced the foot-slapping sound, so again started to tighten up the paracord. To fully lock the foot to the sole meant making the paracord quite tight, and this meant that the cord between the big toe and the second toe started to chaff the skin. I re-cut the paracord and removed the thick wrapping which I had made around the toe post.

I found that the thinner the cord at the big toe the more comfortable however, I also found that although the paracord was now tight enough to lock the foot onto the sole, after a day of wearing them the paracord had left grooves in my skin, and the top of my foot was a bit puffy. For this reason I cannot envisage these sandals as practical for running.

Conclusion
These huaraches have been a lifesaver in the hot and humid tropics.The one criticism I have is the paracord which feels a little uncomfortable at first, I think a wide strip of leather would work much better, however Xeroshoe chose Paracord because of its durability however I found the paracord to be a poor choice of material. I fully intend to re-string them with leather lace or a wider strip of leather.

Despite my reservations of the paracord I would say that, all in all, the Xeroshore Huarache Kit gets a belated thumbs up from me, they are well worth giving a go...they may well be the best and most cost effective barefoot running shoe / sandal on the market...and would at least provide a low cost entry into running sandals - to see if running sandals are for you...I have to say that having worn these sandals every day for 2 weeks that the running sandal is not for me, I will wear them for walking around and on the beach but for running I prefer my leather Skora Form!