Happy Feet

Feet Got You Down?
See the Maestro!

By Martin F. Curry

Running had been an important part of my life until I woke up one morning in excruciatiting pain. My orthopedic doctor called it tight heel cords — a condition that people with long legs and high arches are susceptible to. Stretching would be the key. But three years later, even after very short little jogs, I’d feel it tightening up again. I eventually concluded that I’d just never be able to run again.

Then I walked into Le Feet Lab in Winter Park, Colorado where Jacques Thomas has operated a ski shop, custom boot shop, and now Le Feet Lab. I was out the door with my new, custom footbeds in under 20 minutes. Not quite three months later, after wearing his footbeds every day for just walking around, I decided to put it to the test: a 50-foot jog. Then a little more and a little more. I’m now running 5 to 8 miles at a time, plus doing fast-paced interval workouts. Life is good again!

Thomas is a genius in my book. He started out as an aeronautical engineer in the French Air Force (he was disqualified after tests revealed he was color blind) and ended up in a far flung skiing career that ranged from technical advisor to the French ski team during the 1976 Olympics to racing manager for Nordica, where to worked with the men’s U.S. Ski Team.

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Alpenglow: As someone trained as an engineer, what do find so interesting about the foot?

Thomas: It’s a very complex piece of architecture with a ton of muscles, bones, ligaments and joints. The multi-functions of the foot comprise an incredible piece of engineering. It’s specific to your body stance and it’s every bit as important as the foundation of a house.

Alpenglow: Why are feet so important to everything we do?

Thomas: They give you the joys and the pain. When you have more joy than pain in your feet, your life is a lot more cheerful. You have a better time at everything you do.
Alpenglow: Guess you could say the foot is our support system?
Thomas: Yes, it’s supporting 200 pounds on a very, very small surface. And you’ve got a lot of impact when you, say, run on a hard surface. A lot of pounding — and your foot is your shock absorber. Your foot is your power steering.

Alpenglow: You custom-mold each footbed so that it matches the contour of each individual foot. What’s the reason for that?

Thomas: It improves your platform and your body stance. It improves your balance and improves your comfort right away. In two days you correct every problem you had since you were born. And in 10, 20, 50 days it can correct a lot of your other foot problems.

Alpenglow: How did you develop your techniques?
Thomas: I was trained by an orthopedic doctor for three years. He said, “If you teach me how to ski, I’ll teach you what I know about boots. And, of course when you work on feet every day for 30 years, you learn what works and what doesn’t work.

Alpenglow: Your footbeds are made out of a plastic-like material. How did you develop it?

Thomas: I work with a woman who works with NASA to test materials that go into space. And she’s helping me out to improve the product I’m working with. I told her I needed a product that has stability, memory, and won’t crack with time. I said I needed something that rebounds. She then came up with the formula.

Alpenglow: Just what is the material?

Thomas: I’m afraid that’s classsified.

Alpenglow: What’s the most rewarding thing about your job?

Thomas: I love what I do. People come in the shop and they can barely walk. They come back later to say “thanks” and they tell me they can play tennis or they can run or they can ski again. It’s a great feeling.