Blisters Almost A Hoopfest Tradition New Shoes Overheat Feet Quickly In Street Tourney
In the past two decades or so, footwear manufacturers have managed to make basketball shoes lighter, sturdier and much more comfortable than the canvas models that preceded them.
They have also managed to make them more costly than many top-of-the-line dress shoes.
What they haven’t been able to make them is blister-proof.
So it seems safe to assume that those fluid-filled bubbles that pop up on the heels and big toes of anyone trying to break in a new pair of sneakers too quickly will once again be a major bane of competitors in Hoopfest ‘97, which kicks off its two-day run in the streets of downtown Spokane this morning.
A record total of 17,854 players are expected to put their feet through hours of torturous punishment on the hot asphalt. Many will do it in shoes purchased in the past couple of days and worn for the first time in the world’s largest 3-on-3 street basketball tournament.
And many will suffer the discomfort of the common blister.
“I know two of my friends who will,” said Steve DeLong, who has treated a good share of blisters in 18 years as an athletic trainer at Gonzaga University. “They just bought new shoes for Hoopfest two days ago.”
Unfortunately for DeLong’s two friends and many like them, there is little that can be done to prevent blisters, unless your shoes have been properly broken in.
It helps, DeLong said, to wear two pairs of thick, well-cushioned socks. “That will help cut down on the friction,” he explained. “And it’s the heat buildup on your feet that causes the skin layers to separate and fill up with fluid.”
It might also help, DeLong added, to cover those areas of the foot most susceptible to blisters the big toe, the ball of the foot and the heel with some kind of skin lubricant or one of several kinds of adhesive-backed pieces of felt material that are on the market.
“And changing your socks as soon as possible after a game to let the skin dry out is important, too,” DeLong said, “because when skin is moist, it’s more susceptible to separation.”
Still, if you go hard enough long enough in a new pair of shoes, there’s a good chance a blister will form. And once it does, DeLong recommends protecting it from breaking.
The best method of protection, he said, is a “donut pad” that fits over the blister and keeps it from rubbing against the shoe.
“I don’t recommend lancing it,” DeLong said, “because once you do, you’ve penetrated the skin. And the inside of a shoe is dark, warm and moist - and a good place for things like bacteria to grow.”
If the blister is large enough, there may be no way of protecting it.
“If it does break, or you have to lance it, you need to make sure it’s covered with a dressing of some kind,” DeLong said.
Seahawks DL to visit
Star defensive lineman Sam Adams of the Seattle Seahawks will be one of the celebrities at Hoopfest.
Adams, the eighth player chosen in the 1994 NFL draft, will be at either Center Court or the Seahawks caravan on the corner of Howard and Spokane Falls Boulevard.
, DataTimes