Jingas…. ultimate packable travel shoe

I’ve been meaning to write about these for ages… the ultimate off-bike travel shoe. Given my impending journey it’s kind of appropriate to write about them now. Jingas are a Brazilian shoe, incredibly light, incredibly bend incredibly comfy and rather cool… see I didn’t want to overdo use of “incredibly”, and after all cool factor is very much a matter of personal opinion but I like mine :-) My pair of “originals” packs flat and weighs just 300gr for the pair, in a size 45, so you can probably see the relevance to light weight bicycle travel… I prefer these days for bike tours to wear my stiff carbon-soled cycling shoes for better pedalling efficiency rather than an “all in one clipless walking shoe” that can weigh well over a kg/pair. Jingas come in two flavours – the feathery “originals” (green and gold in the pic below) and the slightly heavier “Cushties” which have a thicker sole. I’m taking my cushties with me on this next trip. My originals are well travelled already and possibly a little fragile for the altiplano…

I should write a bit more about Jinga – they’re a thoroughly ethical company with a chunk of profits going towards social projects in Brazil… as they say on their website…

We are a social enterprise. What this means is that where regular companies are driven first and foremost by finaicial goals and targets, our goals are social as well as financial. Our purpose is not just to run a successful business, but also to provide opportunities and social development to disadvantaged young people in Brazil…. <read more….>

They’re also a nice bunch of folk and kindly provided a pair for the raffle at the photo exhibition for the Julio Otoni Project my sister and I did last year. You can buy online here in a wide range of eye-watering colours… and some not so eye-watering colours too. Sizing can come up small so if you’re normally a 44 like me then a 45 may be a better fit, but the returns process works fine if you get it wrong first time anyway.

There is also a facebook page if you’re connected in that way….

I’m feeling a little battered this afternoon, the surf was really rather heavy ‘outside’ at Sennen this morning and it seems like I spent rather a lot of time vertical, flying through the air, upside down and every other which way rather than actually surfing in my kayak. All very exciting and fun if not a good surf session – with a strong onshore wind it was just rough in a big way. I’ve managed to slice my drysuit and arm somehow during one wipeout, one of those strange occurrences where you recover, roll upright and carry on as if nothing had happened and then look down to find blood running down your arm in a “well swipe me how the heck did that happen” kind of way…. Oh well, could be worse, I only have work for the next few days :-|