REVIEW: INOV8 Evoskin

Summer, sun, beach: Walking barefoot is great, of course. Getting out of boots, on vacation or even at camp, and just walking around. Until you step on something that hurts. Inov8 actually comes from the sector of training and trail running shoes. The Evoskin is a minimalist barefoot shoe, an exotic in the lineup, but a practical one.

Here are the Evoskins: they weigh just under 200 grams, which is extremely light. You can simply pack them in your backpack so that you have footwear for when you don't want to wear boots anymore. Unlike Vibram FiveFingers, the Evoskin is made of a rubber-like plastic material, that's it.

Straps that go across the foot ensure a secure fit. They tend to fit rather tight.

Here you can also see the four "buttons" on each strap, which go through six holes, meaning you can adjust the straps. When putting them on, they tend to come undone - at least where the foot slips into the Evoskin, so at the rear positions. Otherwise, you can see the entire foot nicely: the bottom is adorned with a pattern like a fingerprint. Inside, it has a fine waffle pattern. The toes are all the same length. The material is quite firm, although stretchy. This barefoot shoe shouldn't be too small: it will be uncomfortable and won't make you happy. Small air and water holes ensure that nothing gets trapped in the toe area.

After wearing them for a long time, the Evoskin leaves marks - from the straps, but also from the water that comes in. They end up looking like wrinkled hands when you've been in the water for too long.

In practice, it is very practical: especially when the ground is not grass, but dominated by stones, having the Evoskin is better than without. You can walk relatively normally with them because you don't feel every single pebble. However, it doesn't provide better grip when climbing on rocks. That's not its purpose.

At the same time, it fits so snugly that no stones come into the shoe.

As a "beach slipper" it shows its full competence ...

... it also wears very well in the field, but it is naturally inferior to normal, lightweight shoes. But it is not supposed to replace them, only complement them.

CONCLUSION: The Evoskin is definitely worth considering as a shoe for the camp. It essentially gives barefoot walkers an elephant skin. However, when it gets wet, it remains damp inside. With its very light weight, it easily fits in your backpack.

You can get the INOV8 Evoskin, as seen here or in civilian colors, on Amazon for around 30 euros. 

INOV8 on the Internet: www.inov-8.com