A few months ago, my husband ordered a rice cooker from a catalog. As I unpacked the large countertop appliance I thought, "What the heck am I going to do with this?"

As it turned out, that rice cooker is now a valuable part of my kitchen arsenal. It's not that we eat a lot of rice, but the machine makes great soup, something that we now eat weekly.

This isn't a cooking column, but the rice cooker is a good example of something I didn't know I needed until I tried it.

Something like my trail shoes.

I had always thought of trail running shoes as some clunky cousin to real running shoes. After all, I run in all weather and on all terrain.

My lightweight stability trainers have carried me from the streets of Boston to the mountains of Wyoming, back roads in my backyard to back country trails halfway across the country. I guess I was tempted by a perfect storm of buying opportunities.

After years of dedication to the Asics brand, following generations of GT from the original 2010s through the current 2090s, my local shoe expert recommended trying a light, but stable, Brooks model.

I loved the fit of my new sleek and airy Adrenaline GTS 5s. So when the Adrenaline's trail version, the ASR, arrived at the store as a sample in my size, I was just a little curious.

The trail version felt a little stiffer, a little more solid, but it had that same glove-like fit of my road shoe. With a generous price discount, I decided I could live with the ugly solid gray color and give them a try.

I enlisted my daughter's help for my first trail shoe trial, an hour's run through Deer Lakes Park.

Lottie was an obvious choice, since she wears my shoe size. We took turns with the ASW's, stopping to trade midway though the run.

I had to admit, the off-road shoes felt more solid yet cushioned, especially over the rocky portions of the trail.

But while the road shoes had no problem on the hard-packed forest trail, they seemed to skid precariously out from under me in the downhill scree compared to the lugged trail shoes.

The true test came as we crossed into the boggy side of the park where springs seep from the sides of the hills and run into the valley below. We dashed through the puddles, Lottie's socks getting soaked through the mesh of the road shoes while mine in the tightly woven Gortex of the trail shoes remained dry.

When we returned to the car, Lottie asked, "Can you get me a pair of those trail shoes, but do they come in any other color?"

Now, I wear my trail shoes anytime I go off road, but I've found that they're not just for running. I also slip them on when I walk the dog in the woods or tromp through the snow to take out the trash. They're still that ugly gray color, but, unlike, my road shoes, after a few hundred miles, they look brand new.

Trotting along a snowmobile trail last weekend behind my cocker spaniel, I thought of just how much I appreciate those shoes I didn't need. My feet were warm and dry as I broke through to hidden puddles, and surefooted as I dug into the slippery snow.

Just a few more comfortable trail miles and I'd be back at the house enjoying some of that hot soup.

Saturday, 9 a.m.: Up-N-Running Group Run, Valencia. Any distance, non-competitive. 724-898-2525Sunday, 10 a.m.: Larry Winschel St. Paddy's Day Run, South Park. Choice of 4.2 miles, 2 miles, 1-mile walk. Part of GPRRC series. 412-833-0850Sunday, noon: Shamrock 15K and 5K, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. 330-920-3786Sunday, noon: Lady Footlocker Women's Expo 5K, Cleveland. 216-623-9933

Spring Thaw 10-Mile, Feb. 26:Leslie Kramer, 1st Overall W, 1:11:27; Mark Courtney, 1st 45-49 M, 1:05:43; Scott Pearson, 1st 40-44 M, 1:05:58; Mitch Radella, 3rd 35-39 M, 1:14:59; Tom Sosko, 3rd 45-49 M, 1:15:44; Sharyl Relic, 2nd 45-49 W, 1:17:28; Lori Piedimonte, 1st 40-44 W, 1:21:46; Lou Lodovico, 2nd 70 and over M, 1:24:07; Tom Murray, 3rd 60-64 M, 1:24:18Jeff Lynn, 1:06:53; Paul Carlson, 1:05:46; Jim Burns, 1:09:53; Matthew Snider, 1:11:35; John Millea, 1:15:31; John Limbacher, 1:15:39; Jeff Wiley, 1:15:44; Robert Riffle, 1:16:19; Bob Miller, 1:16:55; Christopher Meanor, 1:18:27; Fernando Saglio, 1:19:11; Mark Kay, 1:23:16; Bruce Barnes, 1:23:22; Jeffrey Yingling, 1:23:22; Jeff Cypher, 1:24:57; John Antinossi, 1:26:25; Bob Mowry, 1:31:45; John Uleski, 1:33:44; Kim Kenetz, 2:14:16Spring Thaw 15-Mile, Feb. 26:Mitch Radella, 1:54:58; Jim Burns, 1:55:28; Robert Riffle, 1:58:18; Bob Miller, 2:02:11; Bruce Barnes, 2:06:35; Jeff Yingling, 2:06:35; Joella Baker, 2:27:37Spring Thaw 20 Mile, Feb. 26:Lori Piedimonte, 2nd Overall W, 2:43:14; Mark Courtney, 1st Masters M, 2:13:26; Scott Pearson, 1st 40-44 M, 2:18:33; Jeff Lynn, 2nd 35-39 M, 2:22:41; Matthew Snider, 2nd 30-34 M, 2:29:10; Tom Sosko, 1st 45-49 M, 2:29:45; Jeff Wiley, 2nd 45-49 M, 2:30:58; Mark Kay, 2:59:40; Bob Mowry, 3:09:47Send comments and suggestions: to: 435 Cherry Valley Road, Saxonburg, Pa. 16056. Phone or fax: 724-352-4395. Email bigp@highstream.net