Connect 3

Received these this morning. My third purchase from Freet. I love them! The comfort is fantastic! It is like walking with socks on, but with more support. I walked around the house with them and then decided to go out and have a quick walk. These are going to be the main shoes I will wear for most days; unless I want smart, then I will wear my comfortable Nimbus. Bliss is the only way I can describe walking with these. I was looking at getting the flex; so this was a hard choice between the latter and Connect 3. I went with the Connect 3 due to the water resistance. I made the right choice. I didn't think shoes could be so comfortable. Nice softness at the ankle area and a little bit of cushioning makes it pleasant round the ankles. No rubbing, so can have the laces nice and firm and not in anyway feel any restriction. Lovely and roomy and a nice fit. Good cushioning, but a great ground connection. It is like walking on a cloud. I like the red inside and round the edge of the top of the shoe, just with the black and red laces. Just perfect for everyday use, cycling to the woods and walking a trail. Nothing to criticise with the Connect 3.

My Connect 3s have been put through their paces on trails in wet summer weather & dry conditions. It took a couple of goes to get the right size but Freet’s fantastic customer service made this a painless and quick process. The fit is superb and on a dewy morning or light rain they do well to keep my feet dry. I’m slightly disappointed with the outsole as it’s not as grippy on the trails I run on. However, as a fairly new trail runner and completely new barefoot runner I have lots to learn - this is one of those learning experiences. With hindsight I probably should have got the Feldom which may be better suited to the South Downs in wet conditions. Overall though it’s a great shoe and I’ve racked up the miles in the few weeks I’ve had them with no real issues. I’m a huge Freet fan and they will be my go-to brand from now on.

I bought these intending to use them for road running. They fit well and are comfortable everywhere (the heel is shaped differently to the Flex and more similarly to the Feldoms that I already have, so I had no discomfort with the heel counter). The only reason I have decided not to keep them is because the inner lining, which is water resistant, does reduce breathability, and I have decided I would prefer something more breathable if I'm opting for just one pair of road runners. I can imagine this would be a good shoe to wear in cold rain though!

Having only just taken delivery of these, I can’t make a comment – other than to say that they look very promising. However, a comment about sizing may be helpful. Over the years, I have found that an EU size 46 generally fits. It is unusual for me to find a 47 to be a better fit. I already have the Feldom in a 46, and this fits perfectly. With the Connect 3, I definitely needed to size up. Having been very pleased with the Feldom over the last 15 months, I'm hoping that the more water resistant Connect 3 will serve me just as well.

This is a fantastic shoe for winter and in between the seasons. I would liken it to a softshell jacket in that it’s not fully waterproof but water resistant enough for light rain and wet ground. And the advantage of not being fully waterproof is that it still breathes quite well so the foot doesn’t end up wet from sweating (especially if you’re walking fast or running in them). I found the open mesh combined with membrane does not hold out water for long if fully submerged in a stream, so that’s where you’d need a boot not only for more water resistance (i.e. leather or Freet’s leather-like microfibre to back up the membrane for greater water protection) but also higher up the ankle so water is less likely to go in over the top. The membrane also adds some warmth to the feet on cold days. I bought them recently so haven’t tested them in summer and am unlikely to do so as they will probably be too warm (I prefer sandals or open mesh shoes in summer). The membrane combined with the thin mesh upper is nice and soft so you don’t get any hard folds in the material pressing on top of the foot when flexed which is an issue I sometimes had with Goretex type shoes. In fact the shoe is really comfortable and a joy to wear, almost like a comfy pair of slippers. The level of cushioning for me is just right with the few mm of built-in cushion plus the supplied flexile insole. One of the fairly unique things about Freet is that there’s the option for a 6mm Ortholite insole which is good for longer distances on hard ground, I say unique because there’s enough vertical volume in these shoes for a 6mm insole whereas the other barefoot brand I use only just has enough room for a 3mm insole and has no built-in cushion without the insole therefore Freet has better options for low to moderate cushion (well moderate in the barefoot shoe world anyway). You could even do a multi-day backpacking trip with different Freet insoles stored in the rucksack and therefore have the equivalent of two shoes in one which is a real tactical advantage. I found the grip of the GripPlus to be decent enough for moors and trails, the lugs aren’t deep enough for fast moving over soft trail conditions but I don’t mind that too much as most of the walking I do is on trails and I have other footwear for when I want to go fast ‘off piste’. Overall a great shoe, I’ve always enjoyed the softshell concept for jackets and am glad Freet make a shoe like this.