Shoes that Stabilize: Reece's Range-tested Picks

Shoes that Stabilize: Reece's Range-tested Picks

Manisha: Hello Archery Family. I'm Manisha and welcome to the Archery Parent Podcast, what you need to know to best support your Archer. Archery life can come at you quickly, and there are often a lot of questions, but not a lot of answers. We are here to change that. We will share tips, how to's and what to expect to help you navigate your new Archery lifestyle.

You'll hear from other Archery parents, Coaches, and Archers themselves. We are going to do this one arrow at a time.

Hello Archery Family. It's Manisha of the Archery Parent Podcast. Today we have the most special guest. I am so happy to finally have my Archer, Reece on the podcast today. Hello Reece. How are you?

Reece: Hello, Mom. I'm great. It's good to be here on this award-winning podcast.

Manisha: Oh, my gosh.

Reece: Yeah. Glad to be here.

Manisha: Thanks. Why don't you share where this whole thing started? It's because of you that my Archery Mom journey began and look where we are now. So share, how did it all start?

Reece: Well it started back in kind of 2014, 2015. I kind of always had a fascination with the sport from a young age, just with like media, like movies, shows, video games, and kind of wanted to get into it more with the compound side of things. Maybe even like hunting. But then when we went to the PanAm Games, when it was in Toronto, at Varsity Stadium. We went on two days, the qualification day and the individual medals day.

I just thought it was super cool. And, by the end of the two days, I basically just kind of decided like that's what I want to do. You did some research for me and kind of found out about the shop up in Waterloo to go to.

So we took a, took a trip up to Waterloo, like a week later, not even maybe. and, I bought a bow. An Olympic recurve, just very basic stuff. Still have most of that bow, which is nice. Yeah, from there then you also saw on the bulletin board behind of coaches.

Maybe a month or two later, started doing some lessons up in Waterloo. So then started the journey from there. A lot of driving, lots of long days for sure. And, had a number of different coaches who really helped me out and a lot of other people as well.

Now I live in Waterloo, and work at the same shop that I first bought my first bow from. I've been able to make it onto the National team and traveled around the world a little bit. Hopefully more to come. It's been now 10 years, which is kind of crazy. Bit over 10 years, I guess, as of today.

But, it's been great.

Manisha: Let's give a shout out to that shop.

Reece: It is the Bow Shop or part of Shooter's Choice. It's been around for over 30 years now. I've been working there for a bit over four years now. Almost four and a half.

It's been really cool to give back a little bit more to the community. Help people out in a position where I once was trying to look for my first bow and helping those people along. Whether it's more youth or adults or families or anyone really wanting to get into it. Just helping them out with whatever they want to do, whether it's recreationally, competition, or anything in between.

Manisha: And what do you do at the Bow Shop?

Reece: I'm part of technically the sales staff. I'm a bow technician, helping people, fixing their bows, getting them new bows. I work on the floor primarily. My duties kind of are quite a few things.

Getting people set up on the range, whether they want to shoot a little bit or try different things. I also do a bit of coaching on the range there, under the Colby Shooting Club.

Been able to help a lot of people. Give back in that, in that sense as well.

Manisha: So the reason I have you on today is we're actually gonna talk about shoes. Let's talk about the importance of shoes, and it's actually quite overlooked, I think, until someone gets into Archery.

But why is it such an important part of an Archer's kit?

Reece: Yeah. With Archery, people think of it very much as a sport that is like focused on the upper body, which for sure it is, but it is definitely a very ground up sport, like when we do a lot of technique, we talk a lot about the base that you work from. So your feet on up to your hips and, and then your shoulders and everything like that. So getting a good, strong, solid base is good. So that's kind of where the shoes come in.

Quite important.

Manisha: And how would you describe the ideal Archery shoe?

Reece: I personally, I actually wear weightlifting shoes. So they are pretty low drop. They're not quite a zero drop shoe. They're, I think only like two millimeters. They're basically barefoot shoes.

And they're a relatively wide shoe, as well. So again, kind of adding to the solid base. Making sure you're very stable. You don't want to be rocking around. Running shoes are quite narrow, I find. And they have a really high drop from the heel. It causes me to lean in awkward ways or not just quite feel so stable.

I kind of like the weightlifting shoes and they still have a fair bit of padding on, on them. So when you're on your feet for eight hours or, or longer sometimes, certainly helps.

Manisha: What do you mean by drop? Can you just explain that?

Reece: So basically it's just like the distance, normally in millimeters, from your heel to toe. So generally in most shoes your heel is raised up a little bit from your toes. Inherently just how we walk is normally like on a heel to toe. So a lot of shoes will have the heel built up quite a lot.

Whereas some shoes are not so much. Most commonly you see the zero drop or very little drop in barefoot shoes. Because we're standing very stationary for the vast majority of our sport, making sure that when you're standing and just being very stable, having that low drop helps. I've certainly found.

Manisha: You briefly mentioned some things that can happen when someone has a higher drop, but can you explain a few things that you've seen as a Coach and as an Archer? What issues can the shoe cause.

Reece: So in my experience, when I have tried to wear like more conventional running shoes, I find I end up very much on my toes. In more extreme scenarios, I've had my coach tell me before your heels are almost coming off the ground sometimes.

If you don't have a, a solid base, and a lot of contact with the ground, the wind can, can kind of blow you around a fair bit, especially really, really strong winds. Especially if you're on like uneven ground, I've found that a wider base with a lower drop shoe can really help. I actually quite like that with the barefoot shoes because they were very malleable as well. So they would bend easy around surfaces. When we're at Caledon for instance, the ground is not very even and sometimes a little bumpy, just depending on where they maybe put the shooting line.

So I've had a time or two where I'm standing quite literally with one foot on like a rock. And so being able to still feel stable on a surface like that can be very valuable.

Manisha: Do you recommend that people have a specific Archery shoe compared to wearing their everyday shoes? Do you suggest and do you believe in keeping your shoes separate?

Reece: I do. That's how I do it, definitely. I have my, my specific Archery shoes. They just stay in my bow case. Especially with the weather now, I don't want to be wearing those outside in the cold and the snow and the, and the gross weather. I keep those just as my Archery shoes.

And I know a lot of people who do as well. I know a lot of people who their Archery shoes have kind of become their daily shoe, rather than the other way around where their daily shoe has become their Archery shoe. But it kind of depends what people like, too.

I've seen a lot of people use Converse or Vans or other sneakers. A lot of sneakers have low drop as well. So in those kind of cases, their daily shoes have become their Archery shoes. I think after a certain point it kind of becomes more the other way around where your Archery shoes become your daily.

Manisha: Does shoe stiffness and overall structure of a shoe play a role in that ideal shoe choice?

Reece: For me, I definitely don't want something that's, that's too stiff. Like I mentioned before, if you are on like uneven surfaces, or weird obstacles, having a shoe that can conform to those, those awkward angles can be definitely beneficial.

I also don't want something that's too stiff just because again, we're standing for so long in a day. I don't want to be halfway through that day and my feet are miserable and tired and stiff. Something that's a little bit more cushioned is nice.

Manisha: And I just wanted to clarify for our listeners, we are mainly talking about Target Archery, but we will talk a little bit about 3D and Field, as well.

And why is the proprioception of being so close to the ground important for you?

Reece: For me, definitely I just feel more planted. I like to really feel the ground a bit more when I'm shooting. When I'm raised up a little bit too much, like if I am in my running shoes or for whatever reason, like I had a situation recently actually where I forgot my, my Archery shoes and I only had my running shoes, which I wear when I work.

So I had to stay in, shoot our league, in my running shoes. And the whole time I just felt really wobbly. My balance was just kind of all over the place. I just didn't feel planted. I felt kind of awkward and I felt my body weight was shifting in weird ways.

I almost felt like too high off the ground. We're talking maybe millimeters, maybe a centimeter or two at most so compared to my normal Archery shoes, but it just was very awkward.

Manisha: Do you find that you really specify for the size of toe box or how much room you want, that will lend to your ability to feel the ground and be more grounded?

Reece: Yeah, I would say so. Like you said, having the kind of space in the toe box. I definitely want a shoe where my toes and my feet are a bit more spread out, compared to kind of crunched up and, and really narrow. It lends a little bit more to the balance and the stability, just making sure that everything is very planted and just very spread out and even as well. And it also kind of just helps a little bit to feel your balance. Especially if you want to kind of shift your weight a certain way when you're maybe working on technique.

It's very common for people to lean one way or another. So if you're working on those aspects of your shot, I find it can be quite helpful when you have a shoe that allows you to feel those kind of things a bit more.

Manisha: And we all know that Archers have to stand for very long periods of time.

The logic would be, if I'm standing for a long time, I need a shoe with a lot of cushion. How do you dispel that myth, that comfort is needed for these extreme periods of standing?

Reece: I've kind of gone to both ends of the spectrum: trying to have a shoe that is much more comfy for the standing side of it, but then also a shoe on the other end of the spectrum that is very much just for having ultra stability and really close to the ground. Like I said, when I shot with the barefoot shoes, certainly my stability while shooting was quite good, but by the end of a day, especially some really long days, I just could not wait to, to sit down.

Now I'm certainly more kind of in between. I try and try to find a happy medium where I am, maybe not always the most comfortable like I do kind of think. You just have to build up a little bit of that endurance, especially for the really long days when it might be a double-720 or something like that, or a 720 in the morning and matches in the afternoon.

You do definitely have to build up a bit of endurance and you do get used to it the more you do it. It's more about finding a happy medium where you get a little bit of comfort, but more, in my opinion, the stability, is at the end of the day, that's what you want and, and the shoe more is to allow you to shoot better, have good balance, and stay stable.

Especially after a certain point, what all you really care about is the performance, to some degree.

Manisha: In the 10 plus years that you have been an Archer, how many pairs of shoes would you say you've tried to find that perfect shoe?

Reece: I think the list is maybe longer than I'd like to admit. A fair number. When I, I started shooting, it was more just kind of taking daily shoes and trying to shoot in those. I've kind of gone back and forth a bunch, too.

I don't know, it's probably like maybe around a dozen to 15 maybe, maybe more. I don't know. I mean, I'm sure to some people that's, that's nothing. They have more shoes, but, it's a fair number. I've definitely had some staples that I've kind of like worn out. I had a pair of NMDs that I definitely wore out, by the end, which I refused to admit because I like those shoes so much.

But it got to a point where it was like, yeah, these need to be thrown out. My last pair of Under Armour that I wore, I definitely I put a lot of use into those. My new set of Under Armour that I have now, I've, I've put a fair bit of use into those as well.

So, there's been some staples, but, I've kind of gone through a fair number.

Manisha: How do you know when a shoe is done. That it's run its course?

Reece: In the case of like the NMDs that I had, the sole had like no cushion to it anymore. It felt like walking on a plank of wood.

They were just falling apart. But, again, the first pair of Under Armour that I had the heel, it was kind of protruding through some of the stiffer sections because they were weightlifting shoes.

So yeah, it was kind of time for those to be retired. If they're bending or falling apart, certainly from there, they're done.

Manisha: Do you find that some of these low-rise, barefoot kind of shoes, do you find that they will wear out quicker?

Reece: Not necessarily. I think, the pair that I had were, they were essentially golf shoes. Um, but. Meant, as a barefoot set of golf shoes. So those were quite durable, and did last me the year and a bit that I was using them. And I definitely could have kept using them, but they were just very hard on my feet.

But that set was very durable. Again, being golf shoes, they were meant to last, and they weren't terribly, cheap. So I'm glad that they did last, but I've seen some people use some more barefoot shoes, just kind of cheap ones to see if they, if they enjoy that change, or that way of walking and then kind of upgrade to the nicer ones, down the road.

But yeah, I still find that they last a decent while. It's just like any shoe really. If, if you have a nice shoe, you really hope it lasts.

Manisha: I guess we should go back just very briefly, what are the rules of safety for the range and the field of play when it comes to shoes?

Reece: For shoes, it's relatively straightforward. Just, it has to be closed-toe shoes. So obviously, no sandals, no, flip flops or anything like that. But honestly that's about it. Otherwise it's just a lot of semantics of just kind of what you find comfortable and then, what you want to wear in different types of weather, as well.

Manisha: So we'll get to weather, but, can we just quickly talk about the differences between an indoor shoe and an outdoor shoe, if there are any? Do you change your shoe choices up for when you go between the indoor season and the outdoor season?

Reece: I, personally, I don't. I have the same set of shoes. I like to just kind of have the same feel year round. Especially in the indoor season, it's kind of meant to be almost like a testing ground a bit, to prepare for the outdoor season, as we kind of ramp up the amount of arrows we're shooting and training.

From kind of late fall into the winter. So, and then January onwards, by then I would want to pick kind of what shoes I'm wearing for the rest of the year. So yeah, I just use the same set.

Manisha: And do you make specific choices when it comes to socks, when it comes to indoor outdoor.

Reece: Yeah, I mean for socks, definitely in the summer I am all about the nice, running socks, not cotton socks, especially in the hot weather. I generally do the same in the winter, but a little bit less concerned about temperature, but still, I normally wear running socks,

Manisha: Now let's talk about specifically outdoor shoes. How do you feel about golf shoes as a shoe for rain, slippery, wet conditions?

Reece: I've tried a couple different pairs of more traditional golf shoes. Like I said, the barefoot set that I had were technically golf shoes. They just didn't have spikes on the bottom, like your conventional golf shoes do. Generally, I wouldn't for Archery side opt for ones with proper spikes, but you can still get the spikeless ones that still have a lot of grip and tread to them. So, for that aspect, they can be quite valuable, especially if you are on a range that you might want to like almost dig in a little bit.

If it is uneven ground, having spikes or spikeless golf shoes that have a fair bit of tread to them on the bottom can be helpful for that kind of stuff. I certainly use them in that way. Being able to kind of dig in, and find a stable base. I certainly just kind of found them a little narrow.

Again, kind of getting back to the heel toe, the drop, between that, they're higher heel, in your conventional golf shoes. So, as I started to get away from that, I use them less and less.

Manisha: What do you do then when it's wet, if you're moving away from the golf shoe?

Reece: For a period of time had a set of, they're basically sneakers, but they were waterproof. Had some Vessis, basically. I quite enjoyed those. I don't know if it's probably, I guess, more of a superstition, I guess. But, I don't like changing shoes during a competition. In practice, it's different. I don't overly care. Maybe I shouldn't say that. Because even if I'm doing a practice score in practice, I don't change my shoes. Just because if it does provide a different feel. So I used to use the Vessis a lot. I would get really hot in those shoes a lot of the time, if they weren't super breathable.

But what I do now is I actually have some, like shoe covers. I still just wear my same shoes that I wear year round, but then I just put these covers on them so that water doesn't seep in. And they just go just above the ankle. I just wear those and they're great.

They don't cinch up, so they're still relatively breathable. I don't lose any feeling to the ground since I'm still wearing my same shoes just now. They're covered up.

Manisha: There are some people that will come with a rubber boot. Do you feel like that might affect their shooting style or performance?

Reece: I think I did that once when I was younger. I got a cheap set of rubber boots and I think I made it maybe a weekend with those because I just hated it. They're very awkward. I don't like boots, generally. It was even hard for me to come to get a set of winter boots again because I just hate wearing boots. I don't like doing that.

But, I think a lot of it is definitely mental. Again, for me, like I said, I don't like changing my shoes just because it's change in the middle of round. For some people, doesn't bother them. It depends on the person. Again, it kind of goes back to you're a little bit higher off the ground. You might not be able to feel it as much. Most boots are relatively wide in the toe, but some aren't. So it really depends. I know some people who've used boots and still shot very well.

Not quite my thing.

Manisha: Are there other types of shoe or shoe categories, if someone's looking for a shoe, what they can take a look at?

Reece: Yeah, so certainly sneakers are a very accessible one. Whether it's Converse or Vans. They're relatively thin in the sole, so you're still pretty close to the ground.

I've seen some people use Jordan 1s. They're pretty skinny still, but that's a very stiff shoe. I don't like wearing my Jordans out on the Archery range either. I've seen some people use basketball shoes because certainly there's a lot of stability.

Altra is a pretty popular company that make barefoot running shoes, but they still have a fair bit of tread and a decent sole to them. They provide the barefoot feel, but still with a decent bit of just kind of protection for your feet. And again, that grip and a lot of them are waterproof, too. And then, there are some people who just really do like running shoes, but again, in my opinion, they have too much heel-toe, a little too narrow.

And then, where I fall into is more the workout shoe. You have a little bit of heel to toe. I'm pretty sure mine are like two millimeters. But they're still pretty wide and for me, they're kind of the perfect middle ground. They're Under Armour Reign 6s, I think, or 5. Fives or sixes.

There's the Adidas DropSet. And one that's been really popular, I saw a lot of people shooting them, especially, worldwide are Nike Metcons. I think Metcon 6. Those have been really popular. Very stable, pretty wide toe box and a lot of support around the heel, as well.

Manisha: That's a great list. We're going to talk dollars and cents here. What, for a parent going out and buying a pair of shoes or an Archer saving up for a pair of shoes, ballpark, what are they going to pay for a half decent shoe that they can use for Archery?

Reece: I mean, the Converse, Vans. Those are relatively cheap. You can get some for around a hundred bucks. I got my Under Armours on sale for I think [$]120. I know Metcons are around [$]200, maybe a bit more depending on what you get.

Jordan's and stuff are going to get up there a bit. But I would say between a hundred to 150 bucks should probably get you something that would be pretty comfortable and last you a good while. I certainly wouldn't say cheap out on the shoes because they are very important, as the base of your whole shot really.

A hundred, 150 bucks Canadian, can get you something, something pretty decent, I would say. From there, to each their own.

Manisha: Now, in your opinion, if there was one pair of shoes that if someone came to you and said, I need a pair of Archery shoes, what should I go look at?

Reece: I did a fair bit of looking into different sets of shoes, and in the last couple years I've definitely tried to try a bunch of different ones. I would fully now recommend the workout shoe. My Under Armours or the Adidas Dropsets, and then, Metcons.

I've been really, really happy with them. So I would say if someone wants a really good all around shoe that provides some really good aspects, I would say yeah, like a workout shoe, provide like a solid, maybe eight out of 10 for pretty much all those categories. Not perfect in, in every category, but they're solid for sure.

Manisha: This question might be a little tough to answer, but in the gear priority list, how would you rate shoes versus something like a sight or a stabilizer? Where on the priority list would you put shoes?

Reece: That's a good question. I would say probably at first, when you're starting out in the sport, it's maybe a little bit lower in the list.

But, as you kind of start to build more body awareness and through lessons and trying to just learn more a little bit about how your body works as well, then I would say the shoes become, become more important. Once you do more balance work and working with your coach, then the shoes become more important.

Everyone kind of progresses at different rates, but I would say maybe on average, shoes become quite important, maybe two, two years, until you're shooting maybe a year or two.

If you have someone who's progressing really quickly and has already great body awareness from maybe previous sports. Gymnasts who come into Archery, they already have fantastic body awareness. So for them, maybe it's something that's important pretty much right out the gate, but for someone who maybe did some other sports or maybe wasn't as physically active and they don't quite have that body awareness yet, it's probably a little bit lower on the list.

It gets higher on the list, the more you shoot, I would say. And, the longer you shoot and I guess, better you get, and the more aware you are of yourself, then they become of more importance.

Manisha: That's a great answer. After all of these years, is there a technology that you wish that manufacturers would implement or develop into a Recurve Target Archery-specific shoe?

Reece: I would say maybe, if anything, there's some technology of balance board kind of stuff where you can distinguish where your balance really is. Because I mean, you can feel it, but sometimes it's very small and very sporadic movements.

So I think maybe something like that, where there's sensors in your shoes to really figure out where your balance is and especially maybe at different points of the shot, like, are you more on your front foot? Are you more on your heels? Are you more wherever? So, trying to figure out that, I think it'd be really valuable for a coach, as well, to really see what their Archer is doing.

But there's also technology limitations in our sport on the Target Archery side. So perhaps more of a training aid, but I would still say it's pretty valuable. Otherwise, I think our sport in terms of shoes is relatively low tech.

Manisha: Yeah. And we briefly touched on 3D and Field. Can you just share a few recommendations? What should someone look for in footwear for those two disciplines?

Reece: Yeah, I would say something where you're doing a fair bit more trudging around, especially through the woods, certainly hiking shoes are far more prevalent in 3D and Field. You do definitely see people a little bit more often with the rain boots I've seen some venues where you might be quite literally trudging through a bit of a swamp, especially after heavy rainfalls. So in that regard, your overall balance is perhaps a little bit less of a concern because you are also changing ground quite often.

My little bit of experience with 3D, more specifically, less the Field, but having a shoe where you can adjust to uneven ground. and in some cases, as well, some very extreme footings. I've seen where the stake you've got to stand next to is quite literally on the side of a hill. And it might be a downward shot.

In a case like that, you want something where you have a fair bit of grip, you don't want to be slipping, certainly. If you're on a decline aiming down and you're having to stand with a wide power stance or something like that where you're very much on your front foot, for instance, you want something that's going to be stable, but also that you can kind of conform to those uneven ground or maybe loose ground, if you're on dirt or gravel or loose sand or mud. Something that can kind of battle all those things. So certainly the hiking shoes, waterproof, hiking shoes are far more prevalent.

Manisha: And is there a difference in shoe choice perhaps between someone who shoots Recurve, someone who shoots Compound, and someone who shoots Barebow? Would there be any reason that those three shooting styles would require a different shoe?

Reece: I mean, obviously my standpoint is very much from the Recurve side.

I've done a bit with the Compound stuff. I mean, in my opinion, I don't really think so. I think a lot of it still applies universally in our sport in terms of wanting good balance, wanting good stability, and feeling your balance on the ground. From my experience, that all kind of applies universally.I wouldn't necessarily see the reasoning to change shoes.

I plan on dabbling a little bit more with the Barebow and Compound stuff after the competitive side of things. But, maybe in a couple years, I'll let you know.

Manisha: Sure. And you know, actually the Barebow people are so cool. Maybe I should talk to someone and, and see if there's something different that that group prefers. That's an idea for another episode.

Reece: Definitely.

Manisha: I offer two questions for you now, which I've been asking everybody. The first question is, being that you are starting to travel to different countries in different parts of the world.

What is your best travel tip that you can offer?

Reece: I was going to say a good eye mask and a neck pillow, but I'm pretty sure Joe said that. I think he said eye mask. Did he or…?

Manisha: Yeah, he also said Burt's Bees lip balm.

Reece: Right. I'll take the neck pillow one then, but I have to give Joe credit for that because he put me on the neck pillow that I now have, which is one that essentially attaches to your head rest, so that you can sleep without bobbing your head. And especially for me with the issues I've had with my neck, having something where I'm not kinking my neck in a long flight or anything like that, is pretty valuable.

I would also probably just say a relatively simple one is, especially on the long flights, if you know you're not going to have any WIFI or anything, just download a bunch of shows. I try and do that, a lot of the time very late and probably when I should be sleeping or about to leave, trying to frantically download a bunch of shows, especially if you know the place you're going to doesn't get the same shows that you like, wherever you live, whether it's here in Canada or in the States or anywhere else around the world.

So I try to download a bunch of shows. That way I always have something to watch or something to keep me entertained when I'm not on the range. Certainly one thing I've learned from my travels, which have only been as last two years really, especially at some events, there's way more downtime than I thought there was. At a World Cup, I think we spent more time in our hotel room than we did on the range.

So having something to keep you entertained. Also you're not maybe thinking too much about the shooting itself or maybe how your day went, how ever good or bad it was. I normally end up downloading a bunch of stuff and don't go through nearly half of it.

Manisha: But you're prepared.

Reece: Yeah. I like to think so.

Manisha: Thank you, Reece. This was Part 1, actually, of our discussion here. If you have any questions about shoes, put it in the comments. Let us know and be sure to listen to Part 2.

Reece, we will catch you in just a few minutes.

Reece: Yes, can't wait.

Manisha: Thanks for listening to this episode of The Archery Parent Podcast. This show is for Archery parents by an Archery parent. You can find more episodes at archeryparentpodcast.ca. While there, sign up for our newsletter and check out our blog. Share this episode with at least one other Archery parent.

The Archery Parent Podcast is hosted and produced by me, Manisha. Reece Wilson-Poyton and Elissa Foley are our resident Archery consultants and contributors. Fact checking by Manisha, Reece, and Elissa. Our theme music is "The Stranger" by Wooden Flowers, Michal Menart, and Giant Metal Crickets.

I'm Manisha of the Archery Parent Podcast. We're doing this one arrow at a time.