Wispa the Wonder Whippet has been assisting me in the development of a new form of exercise. I’m not sure I really needed any more exercise in my life but this new, very fast-paced style of walking is actually proving to be a great tonic. It’s fab to have an excuse to leave my desk two or three times a day for a quick walk in the fresh air.
While you might be surprised to discover that whippets do not need a lot of walking (mostly only about 15 to 20 minutes each outing) you will be unsurprised to find out that the walking that they most enjoy is ultra speedy.
WWW is now allowed off the lead for short periods and in locations away from roads and danger and when she runs, she goes at an extremely impressive pace. It’s a wonder to watch. Thankfully she’s learning to come back to me when I call (and offer her a nibble of digestive biscuit!).
So perhaps the nice man at Webtogs knew more about whippet walking than I did because he recently sent me a pair of test-drive hiking shoes with the appropriate title: Women’s Adidas Terrex Fast X FM GTXs.
Adidas state that these are: Super light hiking shoes designed for fast outdoor activities. They must have had whippet walking in mind, surely!
So I have been wearing my Adidas Terrex Fast walking shoes while taking WWW for fast-paced walks. Serendipity!
What do I think of the hiking shoes? The shoes have a number of great features, especially when the walking I have been doing is on wet and muddy trails. Most usefully, the footwear has a Gore-Tex membrane, which keeps the water and rain out but while still allowing the feet to breath. When you’re walking fast your feet can all too easily get sweaty so a breathable but waterproof membrane is a great bonus.
The Adidas Terrex Fast X FM GTX hiking shoes also have a sole with excellent grip. The rubber sole has a stud-like design that means the foot feels stable and well-controlled even on steeper slopes and muddy banks (I know this because I had to assist WWW back over a stream with muddy banks the other day when she went chasing a bird at 30mph and sort of skimmed the surface of the steam to reach the other side and then couldn’t work out how to get back again).
The shoes are a really comfy fit, too, and feel very light for a hiking shoe. Another well-thought-out feature is the elastic lock laces, which mean that you can evenly lace up the shoes and not have to worry about the laces coming undone mid-walk. This is really important if you suddenly have to head off to chase a misbehaving whippet through puddles and streams!
Oh, and because I am a girl, I like the colour of the shoes, too. They will most likely end up mud-coloured this summer but just now they still look pretty in purple. I know this isn’t an important feature when it comes to trail walking but I do like outdoors footwear in a nice colour!
The women’s shoes come in a range of sizes up to an 8 (which is big enough for my usual 8.5 feet!). There is a men’s version, too. They are priced at £74.99, which isn’t the cheapest of hiking shoes out there but these are robust and well-made and I expect them to last a good couple of seasons of walking.