The revolutionary New Balance 479 Sods.

It’s my opinion that grass is the best surface to run on. Naturally, I was excited when New Balance rolled out the new 479 Sods a couple months ago. I bought a pair the first day they were available.

Truly revolutionary, the soles are embedded with a thick root system of specially developed grasses designed to withstand the pounding of even the highest mileage runners. New Balance touts the soft, comforting foot strike as easy on the legs and feet. Indeed, within a few days of switching to the Sods, my nagging injuries cleared up.

The Sods are great, but they can become bushy and overgrown without close attention.

New Balance has one maintenance recommendation – water them once every few days. I like to go the extra mile to keep them looking really nice. The grass can get long and bushy, so I trim around the edges. The soles have nutrients embedded to feed the grass for the life of the shoes, but I like to fertilize to make the grass a very dark, vibrant green. Though the grassy part of the sole, called the lawncap, stays short with normal running, I like to mow every couple weeks to keep the lawncap uniformly even and attractive.

Fertilizing and carefully trimming your Sods keeps them looking new.

You gotta mow if you want the Sod’s lawncap to look as nice as your yard.

When I’m not wearing my Sods, I make stick people out of toothpicks and arrange them on the lawncap like friends enjoying a backyard barbecue.