Running shoes, another update, plus a milestone

OK, here’s a quick update on the increasing number of shoes that I’m rotating for my runs and their lifespan. In two previous posts on this subject, I showed the following two photos, first one from July 2020 and second one from December 2022.

Here’s the most recently updated photo (July 2025). 

                                                      * Includes two mothball years, so actually 7th year of use. 

                                                    ** 3rd year since being de-mothballed; forgot how many years I'd worn it previously.

The bottom row of five shoes is arranged in the same order as that of the first two photos above. The top row has one additional, the Merrell Trail Glove at upper right (my first pair of Merrell and still all-around favorite!), that I “de-mothballed.” So, starting in 2023, I’ve been rotating through eight pairs of shoes and, occasionally, two other pairs (another Vibram FiveFingers for treadmill and Brooks Pure Grit for rough trails). The “milestone” in the title refers to the MBA2, my first pair of shoes exceeding 2,000 miles.

Here's a table summarizing the numbers:

	MBA3	MBA2	VFF5	VFF4	MVG	MTG2	VFF3	MTG1
July’20	490	1370	350	670	35
Dec’22	1154	1854	928	1165	648	583	766
July’25	1383	2106	1526	1415	872	1362	1027	323

Obviously, I don’t buy shoes often. And I don’t buy the story that I’ve to buy shoes often because they are only supposed to last 300-500 miles. Using Shoe Goo and, as needed, duct tape for “shoe recovery” is much more economical.

As for my climbing shoes (bouldering) …

… I did get a new pair. 😊

(NB: I’ve zero relationship with any of the manufacturers of products mentioned in this post.)