Matt Jenkins, barefoot machine
I first saw Matt at Grandfather last year. He was running the marathon in socks. On his back (I never passed him) was a big tattoo that said “PAIN.” I remember thinking “Pain? He must be doing it wrong. Maybe I should give him some advice.” Mind you, I was running in aqua socks, so he was closer to actual barefoot than I was. I’m not immune to thinking too highly of my own cranial capacity sometimes. Or summer colds – seriously, I need a faucet installed in my head.
Turns out, a tattoo is just a tattoo. The guy knows what he’s doing. He’s running across NC barefoot, carrying his necessities in a stroller, and is making excellent time.
So many extraordinary people out there.
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Comments
Is there a scale for barefootedness? Socks are closer than aqua socks. Aqua socks are closer than Vibrams. Vibrams are closer than running shoes. I want to see a graph.
I’ve been following Matt for a couple of years. Yep. He’s amazing. We actually ran Huntsville last year at the same race but I didn’t get a chance to talk to him in person. He’s literally ALWAYS running……in socks 
Hi Matt:
Look forward to meet up with you when you come through the Triad. What do you need? new sox, shower, food? just let me know and we can help you out.
GO FAR (Go Out For A Run)
VC – I read Bill Bryson’s “A Walk in the Woods” last year and now I’m a bit obsessed with thru-hiking the AT. Don’t know if I would want to run it necessarily. I’d like to hike it with all the essentials on my back. Perhaps when I retire and teach, then I’ll have a free summer to do so. Think you could break Andrew Thompson’s 47 day record running the AT?
[...] Barefoot Josh » Blog Archive » Matt Jenkins, barefoot machine: ” I first saw Matt at Grandfather last year. He was running the marathon in socks. On his back (I never passed him) was a big tattoo that said ‘PAIN.’ I remember thinking ‘Pain? He must be doing it wrong. Maybe I should give him some advice.’ [...]
Kelly: I have checked out A WALK IN THE WOODS and am loving it so far. Immediately I knew it was a book I wanted to read in shortr sittings to savour the adventure.
Josh won’t tell you that he ran a 4:22 at GMM this year (17 minutes faster than my barefoot PR, which was on a flat course).
And Rob won’t mention his 3:40 something in socks (or was it barefoot) at the rocky Rocket City Marathon.
“So many extraordinary people out there.” Yeah, it’s you guys.
Matt: Hey dude! Glad to hear you’re recovering from the snake bite. Thanks for the kind words. Now go get better and back on the road before I get misty.
I’m leaving Wednesday afternoon for Franklin. I’m not sure if I’ll be “fully” recovered, but it’s only 3 days and the foot’s healing so quickly, I think I’ll be in good shape.
People may be afraid to run barefoot after hearing my story, but they also may have more respect for all of the other barefoot runners out there. If they don’t they’re idiots, and their opinions don’t really matter all that much anyway.
Hope the toe is healing.
He is incredibly talented and motivated.
With my powerball lottery winnings I will drop out of work and fulfill my daydream to run the Western States 100. Then I will run the length of the Appalacian Trail.
Now I just need to win the lottery.