Red Flutterby

My current runners are starting to fall apart. (Well, the sole of one actually did fall off, but Dad stuck it back on for me). Time to browse for running/casual shoes on the internest.

First stop: Merrell (I love Merrells!! XD)
The site is simplistic. Animations are kept to a minimum; enough to make it look good and interesting without being too fancy (and thus quick to load). Detailed description of products given including technical specs, weight of actual shoe, a couple of pics in each colour. They even tell you what kind of socks to wear with the Outdoor shoes! Products classed into various categories depending on use. There's there's a bit of technology jargon, but not to worry! There's a "Technology" section that explains everything.
IWANTTHESESHOES!!! And these ones!! Although I probably don't do enough trail racing to really warrant spending AUS$100 odd on them.
Downside: Very very rare and hard to find in Australia. Plus not all styles even make it to Australia.
Upside: The styles that are available here I can get for half price. Still expensive but!! >.<
Overall Website (albeit American): Good good good.

Next is Adidas. Went here cos my current runners are Adidas, and they are cheaper than Merrells.
...Qué?!?!
First I have to select Originals or Performance. I'm guessing Performance is for the more serious sportspeople, but what the hell is Originals? Click on Performance, click on Running. "Adidas Running. Click to launch pop-up window". Uhh, ok.
Oh. so. very. slow. to. load!
At the footwear section and there's a cool selector function. No, actually it's kinda useless:
Why I run: Fitness. A few shoes unhighlight.
That's where I run: Mixed (road/sidewalk & off-road). A couple more unhighlight.
Weather protection: High (cos I don't like soggy socks). They all unhighlight.
What? Ok, let's try Medium. Nope! Maximum Ventilation (i.e. no water protection whatsoever). Still nothing?? wtf??
Forget it! Lets just turn this selector off and pick a shoe based on looks and read the description.
<marketing jargon to try and sell the shoe instead of telling me features of the shoe. Oh! Here we go: arch support, cushion sole, protects heels>
Ok, but just about every sports shoe has arch support and cushion soles now. Why should I spend......100 Euros?!?!?
Goodbye!

Nike. Similar to Adidas.
Too much animation. Slow to load. Confusing website. Too much animation.
Goodbye.

Marketing departments are annoying. I'm gonna get me some Merrells.

Labels: Shoes