I can’t be the only one can I? Running in autumn is a real treat with all the changing nature around us and the beautiful array of autumnal colours we get blessed with. Even breathing in autumn air gives me a high! But... oh what to do about MUDDY trainers? How do you clean them when you get back home?
Previously I’d put my trainers in the washing machine on a quick clean cycle and they would come out looking brand new. But that’s very difficult to do when they are covered in inches of mud, and because I am running 3 runs a week I need them again very quickly not allowing time for a proper clean.
Please share any tips or tricks please for looking after your trainers during this naughty but nice season.
Help!
Written by
JaoJao
Graduate10
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I don't think it is wise to put any shoes into the washing machine, let them dry out in a warm room, then brush them gently with a cloth, give them a shake for any mud that refuses to come off, see how that works. 😊
Screwed up newspaper stuffed inside will help dry them out quicker if they get soaked. As for mud, I let mine dry out and then bang them together to get the worst off. The mud that remains? Wear it with pride - it's a badge of honour 😍
I do the banging thing too! Seems I need to do all this once they have dried. I try to clean them whilst they are still soiled. Maybe that’s where I’m going wrong. Thank you xx
Actually most running shoe manufacturers say that the insoles are fine in the machine at 30°. I didn't believe it at first but these days I throw them in with my gear after every run. Mine are Saucony/Brooks/Hoka
If you can get the thickest mud off by banging them when you return home then get then somewhere warm then the following day or your running day when the mud is dry use an old nail brush to get the dry stuff off 😊
Let them dry off for a day, then bang them together to get the worst of the mud off. Then, take the inners out, and wash them under the tap. Dry them under the radiator. If you are intending to do this kind of running regularly, get a second pair of shoes, you will still get the mileage out of this pair, you just rotate them.
I get the worse off outside with a scrubbing brush then I put them in the sink and run warm water on them and scrub them with fairy liquid I then rinse them and press the excess water out if them and dry them upside down on a towel balanced on the radiator. As you know I run 3 times a week and this week I’ve had to do it 3 times and they have always been dry for the next run obviously we have the heating on. Hope that helps JaoJao Xx
Kev I like your procedure and fairy liquid is a new one on me. I’m going to bang the shoes, then get a nail brush and use the fairy liquid method to scrub the rest. I’ll put this plan into action this week.
I treated us to a ‘Boot Buddy’ as I invariably have 2-4 pairs to clean. I can’t be bothered to get it all off but it does a reasonable job: it is ‘fish’ shaped with a tail at one end and a brush at the other. You twist the brush off to fill a reservoir with water. You can then twist this closed whilst you get rid of the worst of the mud with the tail (and banging them off course!), then you twist the brush end a little so the water can come out through the brush (but doesn’t remove it) and that gets rid of the worst of the remaining mud.. It works ok but not brilliantly effective on the knitted fabrics that cover most running shoes. It made a great job of my son’s football boots though and the best thing about it is you don’t end up spraying yourself with the muddied water.
That sounds very handy, I’ve seen adverts for those things. Usually something you’d expect to see on the shopping channels, a novelty product. I wouldn’t know where to get one. Ah maybe ebay!
We found ours in Sports Direct so it may be worth a look in there if you have one nearby. When I’ve looked on Ebay or Amazon they seem to come direct from Boot Buddy and the P&P is about a third of the price of the Buddy!
A short jog through longish wet grass is good at the end of a run. Then I let mine dry out, then brush them with a soft clothes brush on the tops. My problem then is sheep-dung'n'mud concrete in the treads. The only thing for that is a pointed stick.
Yea... but cows eat grass and theirs is nowhere near as bad. It's weird. Fox is another tricky one and of course the ubiquitous doggy dung. Deer as well, grass fed but more like horse dung. Rabbit pebbles aren't sticky either 🤔🤣🤣🤣 not that I'm picking any up on purpose mind, just seem to be getting better at recognising them 👍🏻
I am another advocate of stuff them with newspaper to dry them out, then bash off the worst of the mud. If you need to get mud off the uppers, damp a bit of kitchen towel and rub the shoe. At least that’s what I do with walking shoes and boots, my running shoes generally lead a pristine life on tarmac!
I stuff them with newspaper, let them dry next to the storage heater, then leave them by the back door until my husband takes them out to clean off the mud
Really nice of him, because my trail shoes gather much more mud than his do.
If I have to do it myself I bang them together and use a dry scrubbing brush.
NB my Footbalance insoles come out to dry and be used in my road shoes
I just came back from my 6k run in rain, hail and sunshine to find him cleaning his muddy parkrun trainers. Mine were already clean, he had even scrubbed the laces!
I came out of the shower and he was busy stuffing our road shoes with newspaper.
I must be very bad, I don’t clean mine at all! and god forbid put them anywhere near a washing machine 😱, I bash off the worst when dry and then off I go - I like theoldfellow ’s suggestion of the wet grass........other than that......I’d recommend just following manufacturers instructions.....😉
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