In the world of obstacle course racing what you put on your feet on race day is of importance. Now I have seen people run some of these races in regular running shoes, Vibram Five Fingers and even saw a couple of athletes run it barefoot. I would not recommend going barefoot unless you have really strong feet and have a high pain tolerance. What I do suggest if you are serious about competing in OBC is pair of trail running shoes.

One of the first events I competed in I did not take into account the fact the traction on the bottom of the sneaker were so spread apart that I kept getting my foot stuck on the cargo net. After the race I was on the prowl for a good pair of sneakers to run this race.

A great pair of shoes I came across was the Green Silence by Brooks. The Green Silence is considered to be trail running shoes. They also fall under the category of minimalist shoes. There are several aspects of the shoe that will help on race day. The first is the light weigh of the shoe, being a minimal shoe it feels as though you are not wearing much on your feet. Even being lightweight the soles has great protection for the bottom of your feet. Trust me you don't want to feel a rock jamming you in the bottom of the foot on race day.

The other great aspect of the Green Silence is the mesh lining. This allowed the shoes to stay light even as they become soaked in water and mud. The air out pretty quickly and allow for great ventilation for your feet. If you are into the recycling world the Green Silence soles are actually made up of biodegradable soles this is the first of it's kind in running shoes.

The one issue I have with the Green Silence was how fast the soles did wear out. Using them to train for the different events has worn the soles pretty quickly. So word to the wise use the Green Silence on the trail in training and save them for the race. I give this Green Silence 4 out 5 obstacles.