Category Archives: News

Double Boston Marathon By Our Own Brian Beckstead

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As racers were getting ready to compete in the 2012 running of The Boston Marathon, extreme heat was anticipated for the event on Monday’s midday run. Our own Brian Beckstead (Altra Co-Founder and Sales Manager) was gearing up to run his first running of the famed Boston Marathon. With this newfound news of the heat and his position at the back of the last corral, he knew that it would not be a race that was going to record a personal best.

Without the prospect of a PR, Brian needed a little bit more adventure. He joked about doing the marathon twice. Well, he joked about it too much that he ended up getting committed to it and then was solidified to running what is known as a Boston Double.

We rolled up to Copley Plaza in a taxi at about 5:20am. There we walked the short walk to the finish line that was set up the previous day. There in what was still a dark morning we got a brief piece with Brian and he started his watch and off he went. His start time from Boylston was right on at 5:30 am. He started out at a steady pace around 8 min/mile heading upstream along the entire course.

Just after his 5th mile he cruised down Heartbreak Hill and then up past Boston College. Heading along the course up towards Hopkinton. Those who have run and competed at races know that running 26.2 miles on the road can take it toll on the body. Brian felt that he needed to repeat it so while running through the quiet holiday vacated streets of Massachusetts he was able to push himself along the course in something that he had never done before – 50 miles on the road. Brian is an avid ultrarunner and has done a number of trail ultras up to 100 miles at a time, but this was a first for anything of this distance on pavement. Up to this point Brian had only ever ran one marathon on the road before. That would quickly triple.

Stopping at the 10k marker to catch a picture with a great pace he kept on rolling up to the start to go again.

He was able to finish his first 26.2 in a time of 3 hours 57 minutes without any aid along the course other than maybe the last 5 miles while they were getting aid stations set up.

At the start he grabbed a quick snack to down the carbs and reload. While there he was able to hang out for just over an hour to let the body relax. He was able to stay well hydrated and load up on electrolytes to keep the body from cramping.

Then it was time to be off again for another 26.2 miles. Starting with the invitational/charity spots it was a very emotional experience for him. Running along with those that were running for loved ones suffering or lost kept a good strong frame of mind.

Along the course the support was astounding. For a guy that is used to running in the mountains away from everything he said that the enthusiasm from everyone along the course was unreal. They would have their sprinklers on for the runners, bringing runners ice from their freezers, and even the all girls college out there providing moral support along the way.

Brian rolled through the finish line looking very strong with a 2nd leg time of 3:44:29. With the negative split he posted a total 52.4 mile time of 7 hours, 41 minutes, and 30 seconds. A great accomplishment to complete the Boston Double in under 8 hours, especially on a day that was recorded at 87 degrees at Logan International Airport. Way to rock the race in your Provisions Brian! You are truly an Altra Maniac!

Brian's feet after running 52.4 miles on the road - Thank you Altra foot shape toe box!

See Dane Run…in Altra Footwear

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Altra is proud to announce a partnership with Dane Rauschenberg, an extreme endurance athlete, motivational speaker and author.

In 2006 Dane successively ran a certified marathon every weekend. He did this as a part of a fund-raising effort titled “Fiddy2″, which benefited the Mobile, Alabama chapter of L’Arche Internationale. Through this he successfully raised over $44,000 for L’Arche Mobile, all while working in a patent licensing firm in the greater Washington, D.C. area.

Dane is the author of “See Dane Run – One Man, 52 Weekends, 52 Marathons”.

This past weekend Dane completed a 100 Mile Ultramarathon solely in the Altra Instinct.

100 miles. Feet look pristine. That is what Altra Instincts will do for you.

Look for Dane at events around the country and checkout his inspirational book.

AltraManiacs! — Are You Ready?

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AltraManiacs, Zero & DropReleasing soon will be our new video mini-series around our two new awesome AltraManiacs, Zero & Drop! The will be guiding you to a fun and successful adventure in running. Be sure to jump on our YouTube channel and subscribe so that you know when the new episodes are up. We will also be creating a website where their adventures will be posted and hope that you will post yours as well! Also, check out the new Facebook page. More to come soon, but look for some great fun in the very near future AltraManiacs!

Altra Footwear Touts A Vegan Story

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Our shoes are more than just Zero Drop™, Foot-Shaped, Gender Specific goodness. They feature more than a glorious fit and amazing running feel. They are more than a great tool to get you from start to finish. Rising above the designed tool as an injury prevention device. We are proud of all of these things that our shoes do. Among these many amazing things that our shoes do all of our Altra Footwear is 100% Vegan.

We are proud to support the Vegan runner by providing an entire line of footwear that is not made or tested on animals (well we, the founders, sometimes are considered such – but we were not harmed too badly in the testing of our products).

Altra is the Title Sponsor of The Naked Foot 5k Series

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Altra Zero Drop™ Footwear has partnered up with The Naked Foot 5k series to help with Soles4Souls and promote fun and healthy running. The title of the series does not say it all. This is a series that promotes better running technique, healthier running, and the ability to give back. We wanted to support them in their efforts as well as continue to promote our mantra of “Run Better, Run Healthier, Run Altra”. We will utilize the Learn To Run Initiative along with their clinics and programs around each race across the country.

A little about The Naked Foot 5k Series from their website.

Every few years a new idea or trend comes up in the running world and minimalist running seems to cycle through every once in awhile. While this may be interesting, it has nothing to do with The Naked Foot 5k.

This run is all about having fun and feeling free. Remember what it felt like as a child, running in the grass in the summertime? Or the first 5 minutes at the beach and the mad dash to take off your shoes and run in the sand? This is what the Naked Foot 5k is all about. We want people to have fun doing something different. We also thought our event would be the perfect opportunity to partner with Soles4Souls. It is a great charity and we know everyone has old shoes ready to donate.

That being said, we will provide tips and training advice if you are nervous about getting out there without your running shoes on. We are exercise physiologists and want people to enjoy barefoot running. So keep up on our videos, articles and join a local barefoot running group to train for the Naked Foot event near you!

We hope that you can locate a race near you to come and join in the fun! You can also find them on Facebook

Hear Altra Founders on NPR

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At the Winter Outdoor Retailer show we, the Altra Founders, had the opportunity to converse with a local NPR channel. We were able to discuss the history and some of the future direction of Altra Zero Drop™ Footwear as a company.

This was broadcast on Monday and then later posted online. You can listen to the audio here.

Runner’s World awards Altra “Best Debut”

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ALTRA ZERO DROP Running Shoes
Win Runner’s World’s “Best Debut” Award
In 2012 Spring Shoe Guide
For Altra Instinct and Intuition

Salt Lake City, UTAH (January 19, 2012) — ALTRA Footwear, innovators of the revolutionary Zero Drop line of footwear, received the “Best Debut” award from Runner’s World magazine for Altra Instinct (men’s) and Intuition (women’s) shoes.

The award was given today at the 2012 Outdoor Retailer Winter Market.

Altra’s award-winning shoes are the first ever to combine Zero Drop, fully cushioned, foot-shaped and gender-specific features.  The Instinct and Intuition ($99) hit the market in late summer 2011 and have been best sellers since their debut.

Runner’s World gives only five awards in their shoe guide.  The “Best Debut” award is given when “The shoe represents a promising new addition to its category, receiving high marks from the Shoe lab, wear-testers and editors.”

Runner’s World will feature the Altra Instinct and Intuition in its March 2012 shoe guide, including these comments:

Golden accepting the March 2012 Shoe Guide "Best Debut" award from Warren Greene with Runner's World Magazine

REVIEW:

“Let’s be honest. At first glance, the Instinct doesn’t dazzle. The

horizon-line-level sole. An enormously wide forefoot. The less-than-cool gray color. But look again, and you’ll see that the shoe appears this way for a reason.

The sole is level because of “zero-drop,” meaning the sole’s almost a flat surface beneath your feet. And the forefoot is so wide because the shoe is built on an “anatomical” last, so it lets your toes splay out the way they would if you were barefoot.

The design resonated with testers, who loved the extra width up front.

All of these elements combine to give you a barefootlike feel but without those barefoot-like intense slaps of your sole against the road.

BOTTOM LINE

A perfect running shoe for someone transitioning to barefoot running but seeking solid protection underfoot.

HOW IT FITS -> The Instinct

Because The Instinct is a minimal shoe, it’s not surprising that it is spacious by just about every measurement. The shoe is especially wide in the toebox-12.2 mm wider than average. But the design works because The Instinct’s upper wraps the foot almost perfectly, providing for a very comfortable fit.

SHOE HIGHLIGHTS

Flat-bottom sole stays in contact with the ground through the gait cycle.
Offset laces follow the top of the foot for a comfortable fit.

The shoes are part of Altra’s complete line, which are the first to combine the bio-mechanical advantages of barefoot positioning with the structure and protection of traditional cushioned footwear.  The shoe’s groundbreaking design places the foot in its most powerful and stable positioning, leading to less injuries and greater speed. Because of the full cushioning and durable outsole, runners can also expect to run much greater distances than with other barefoot running-positioning shoes.

The line includes the Instinct and Intuition core running shoes, the Lone Peak trail runners, the only trail shoe to position the protective rock plate between two layers of midsole, reducing ankle roll and rock pivoting;  The Adam and Eve, the most versatile minimalist shoes on the market; and additional shoes to debut at Outdoor Retailer. Check www.AltraZeroDrop.com for information and photos.

To find a specialty running store with Altra Zero Drop footwear, click here.

About Altra Footwear

ALTRA is exhibiting at the Outdoor Retailer 2011 Winter Marker in booth number 38160, next to the Endurance Zone.  ALTRA Footwear was founded in 2009 and acquired in March 2011 by ICON Health & Fitness, the leading innovator and manufacturer of fitness products.

Retailers

For new account information and to place orders for immediate and future shipments, please contact Brian Beckstead at brian@altrafootwear.com or 406-96-ALTRA (25872)

Media

For information and photos contact Colleen Logan, VP Marketing at clogan@iconfitness.com or 435.757.4601.

Recap 2011 and A Look Forward

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Wow what a year it was in 2011! We are so excited by everything that has taken place over the course of the past 12 months. We are going to build on that momentum over the next 12 months.

You all have been a huge support and have helped us to be able to establish a strong brand as well as grow the equity of the Altra name. We would like to thank each and every one of you for embracing The Altra story and becoming an AltraManiac.

We came out starting the year with no product on the shelves. All we had were prototypes when we went to the Outdoor Retailer show last January. There we were able to interest some retailers inside of our small 6′ x 10′ booth in a small corner. With these retailers and a few others we had added through word of mouth we shipped out our first product April 1st.

There are many who were excited about what we were bringing to this community of runners. We worked hard to appease this market and were able to then launch our flagship product, The Instinct and Intuition, which were the world’s first fully cushioned Zero Drop™ shoes. Our initial shipment was not very big and it flew off of the shelves so fast that we were out of product for about two months. Many of you were clamoring to get your hands on a pair trying to find a shop that you could purchase a pair from, but to no avail. Then we finally stacked up the inventory and have been solid ever since.

Then in late July we release the long awaited Adam and Eve, which has been touted as the most versatile minimalist shoe ever created. We have seen these shoes become a big success in minimalist running, outdoors, watersports, CrossFit, casual, and many other uses. Very flexible with its ability to go with either of the optional insoles so that you can mix and match the fit.

In October, because of the great demand of The Instinct and Intuition we released an alternate color option. These have been received with great success!

We also released the ultimate in trail running—The Lone Peak for Men and Women. This is the first fully protective Zero Drop™ trail running shoe. Giving you all of the protection with the ability to run better and healthier. Having a trail shoe without the elevated heel and with the foot shaped toe box you are able to better enjoy the journey. The Lone Peak is helping you to improve proprioception and balance on the trails as well as enjoy the protection that you’re used to with many of your trail shoes with a full-length StoneGuard protection plate that is sandwiched between a two layer midsole. This rock plate usage is still vastly unique to the market. We are the first ones to really do the sandwich technique in a trail shoe.

Now with three shoes out on the market we continue to hit it strong. We have 160 retail locations across the country currently carrying the Altra product. They are selling really well and in many shops it is one of their top three brands.

Each and every day Altra continues to grow throughout social communities by adding fans for Facebook and followers on our Twitter page. We are uploading and updating videos as much as we possibly can, giving those people subscribed to our YouTube channel worthwhile content. We are improving our contact through our newsletter and obtaining this RSS feed for the blog with it. We have also started up on Google Plus and Pintrest. We strive to stay social through these mediums. To stay in the community we have visited many events across the country and we plan to do so with even more aggression in 2012. We want to reach out to you. We want to be part of the community and we want you to embrace us as much as we embrace you.

We welcome any feedback from each and every one of you as to how we can be more involved in this community and what kind of content you’d like to see from us. We’re looking to update our blog on a regular basis in 2012 as well as send out a monthly newsletter. We are constantly involved in our Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Google Plus we want you to be a part of that. We want to be able to contribute worthwhile things that you want to see. Please give us a shout out through any of these mediums or e-mail us and let us know what you’d like to see from Altra in 2012.

This year we will be branching out our line. In March we will release The Samson and Delilah–lace up minimalist performance shoes and The Provision and Provisioness (pictured)–the first “stability” Zero Drop™ shoe which includes our StabilityWedge™ (more info coming soon). We will be creating some triathlon specific shoes, racing performance, as well as really building upon the Zero Drop™ concept to core running avenues. There’s a lot of things we can do in this market and we really want to be part of continuing this trend.

Coming up in 2012 you’ll be able to find us at pretty much all of the major marathons. We are committed to Houston, Boston, and Los Angeles. We will be at Chicago again, and we’re working to get in with the New York City marathon. Should be at Twin Cities again as well as out in Marine Corps. Look for us at many of the Rock ‘n Roll races and throughout the Ragnar Relay events. We are finalizing a deal with The Naked Foot 5k also. Stay up to date with our events on Facebook.

We look forward to a great year and are really excited what we are able to bring to the table through Altra Zero Drop™ Footwear.

2011 Year In Review

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As we look back at the events of the past year there has been a lot of progression in the running industry, but mostly in Altra. As we started 2011 we were a company with very little exposure, no product, and 3 guys working on an idea. We had a number of stores that were buying into our concept from a few prototype products that we had shown them at The Running Event back in November 2010. We had prototypes we were testing, an early print of catalogs, and our energy.

With the 3 of us and our dream of making this company become a reality we felt that we needed to be at Outdoor Retailer in January. All that was available for us was a small “10×8″ which actually seemed more like 8×6 in the corner near the endurance zone with a giant pillar at our back. We took what we could get, set up a few banners, and went to work. There on a small 6′ card table we presented to the outdoor world our coming line of footwear. We were showing The Instinct, The Adam and The Lone Peak. All we basically had was a pair of each that we could show and a few pairs for each of us to wear.

Rolling into Spring of 2011 we were fighting to secure some funding to continue this product to ongoing success. We were in talks with a few options and finally received a great opportunity from fitness giant Icon Health and Fitness. As we sealed the deal in March our dream was looking to come true with the opportunity to make this company a strong global footwear company. This occurred just in time to receive our first shipment of Instincts and Intuitions just before April 1st 2011. We shipped out all of our pre-orders and were clean out of product by mid-April. Luckily we had a shipment coming later in the month so we were only out shortly, but the product was received so well that we were again out of inventory a few weeks later and struggled through early summer without inventory while we awaited China to finish up our next order.

During that first month Brian and I hopped in his car and headed to the Boston Marathon. We took an epic journey through Wyoming, Nebraska down into Missouri into St. Louis to visit a few shops, then up into Chicago to interview a sales rep. After that we headed over to Michigan where we have a strong store presence and did initially then. We are thankful for our early supporters over there. We spent a couple of days driving through Michigan and visited a number of shops. We drove down through Toledo into Cleveland and then across Pennsylvania meeting as many stores as we could on the way. Stayed on Long Island and then off to Boston where we had an epic expo.

Boston was our first ever consumer trade show and we had a lot of success there. We introduced many runners to our product and also had many influential people show interest in our product. After Boston I flew back home while Brian continued driving down the East coast and through Georgia, Alabama, Texas and finally back to Utah. Logging thousands of miles on his car while visiting shops, reps, and influencers across the country.

Summer was a whirlwind with races and events all over the country. We visited races, trade shows, triathlons, The CrossFit Games, major marathons, Ragnar Relays and more.

We added to the team by hiring Seth Wold, an experienced and elite marathoner, late in the summer. He has been great in helping us work on being able to open international locations and keep our inventory levels right where we need them.

We continued to succeed very well with our flagship shoes – The Instinct and Intuition – The World’s first ever fully cushioned Zero Drop™ running shoes. For a while this was the only SKU we had available. These shoes were awarded Most Innovative Editor’s Pick from Competitor Magazine in their fall shoe guide as well as receiving astounding positive reviews all over the internet.

In June we had solved our inventory issues and had backed up stock well. Late Summer we added another color to both The Instinct and Intuition and also released The Adam and The Eve – The most versatile minimalist shoes on the market. In early fall we rolled out The Lone Peak to finalize our current line.

We ended the year off strong with another solid showing at The Running Event and with nearly 170 total retail locations across the country. 2011 was a fast paced and exciting year for us. We really look forward to what is coming up in 2012. It will continue to be fast paced and excited as we bring this brand from a unique novelty brand to a major player in the running community.

Thank you all for your continued support!

ALTRA Continues to Grow

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ALTRA Zero Drop Footwear started up as a basement idea a few years back and now has produced three very well made products. Pioneering the way in the Zero Drop Footwear realm of running shoes we have succeeded in bringing out the worlds first ever fully cushioned, zero drop, foot shaped running shoe which has been selling really well. Now, as of last month, we have the world’s first fully protective zero drop, foot shaped trail running shoe. These two shoes combined with the versatility of The Adam and Eve minimal/barefoot style shoes we have successfully penetrated the running market with three new and innovative products.
ALTRA shoes can now be found in over 130 retail locations across the United States with online retailers shipping globally. We also have a lot of interest from other locations, international retailers and some larger vendors as well. We are really excited of the prospects of our company as we start to move into the holiday season and then into 2012. Be prepared to see the market continue to grasp ALTRA and what we are bringing to the market.
We thank you all for your continued support and we look forward to many years of great success for ALTRA!