+1 for barefoot running in the grass

You can't jump into the forefoot strike, your foot's not ready for that. You'll strain it. I went to barefoot running, overran and screwed up my foot. I had to go all the way back to running a half-mile, slow, focusing on form, then up to a mile, then a mile and a half, and so on, until my feet go strong enough to deal with that new foot strike and running form. It's not a fast process. Saying that, I love my Vibrams and I love the way minimalist running feels. Not sure you'll be able to get the footstrike right in any shoe that has a heel because that heel won't allow you to have the proper stride for a mid/fore foot strike.
This is a great blog for that kind of stuff:
http://www.runblogger.com/