"OTHER BRAND" - RUNNING shoe thread - asics, saucony, new balance, hoka one one, adidas, reebok, brooks, altra, skechers, etc...

[kenb504]

1st run in the Mach 5s. Really comfy running shoe! I’m not a “runner” per-se, I just run for overall fitness with a weekly 5k.

The reviews for this shoe were all over the place. I usually take them with a grain of salt since I only average about 12-16 miles per month. It was a smooth ride but I found it to be not so responsive when trying to pick up the pace. 8:30ish is my comfort pace, I rarely ever do anything beyond that unless I’m feeling extremely good. For $100 shipped these are a win for me.

 

[spiderjericho]

(Pausing like Mase and Cam) Nice legs.

 

[Locke]

On to my 3rd pair; this shoe is just so good for me.

 

[Locke]

On to my 3rd pair; this shoe is just so good for me.

BTW, saw this on r/runningshoegeeks about this CW and the SB2:

 

[JPS]

On to my 3rd pair; this shoe is just so good for me.

Link?

 

[Locke]

Link?

ASICS SUPERBLAST Unisex Shoes Sunrise Red/Black | Running Warehouse

www.runningwarehouse.com

FYI, no picture—either mine or online—accurately depicts this colorway. IRL it’s more *hot punch* than red. It’s bright. I’ll definitely be visible on the road, lol.

 

[Locke]

Quite similar to the Turbo OG.

 

[rfx45]

not even gon lie, you posted that pic and all i knew was that its an asics

outside of nike, the models within each brand all kind of look a like unless some feature is super exaggerated then i know thats gon be like the most expensive and probably their super shoe

is it just me?

 

[Locke]

I don’t know, but the SB OG CW started the line right but it’s kind of gone downhill since, IMO. My last 2 pairs have been chosen by which CW (available in my size) do I dislike the least.

 

[rfx45]

i think its just that they insist on keeping that logo on the same place and int eh same size so you have to really differentiate via midsole but even thats confusing like the sky and edge looking practically identical

heres asics line-up, if you make them all the same cw, the top 3 has a slight change in the midsole pattern and then the race day shoe is again where the sky and edge are twins





with nike, i can easily tell these 3 apart and they even managed to make the zoomfly look different enough from the vaporfly, its also distinct from the infinity react and pegasus and invincible, the midsoles are pretty distinct for each model and the upper has different padding and design too and they can put the swoosh in different locations

 

[Locke]

Yeah I agree but I’d argue that Nike seems—to me at least—to focus more on style than substance. I mean, it’s almost as if they design a shoe to look fresh and then hope it works out functionally.

 

[illustrayt]

Just saw these…

London ESpeed 4s

London Endorphin Speed 4

London, are you ready? Meet the power of the Endorphin Speed 4 – upgraded with London style.

www.saucony.com

There’s also a Boston ES4 and a Tokyo Kinvara Pro.

The midsole on the ES4s reminds me of the NovaBlast series with all those cuts and angles on be heel.

 

[rfx45]

Yeah I agree but I’d argue that Nike seems—to me at least—to focus more on style than substance. I mean, it’s almost as if they design a shoe to look fresh and then hope it works out functionally.

i dont know, i think it still works out for them, the VF and AF are still the best of the best out there in terms of performance and look

i wish the ZF goes back to being runnable but people still like the invincible and IRs, i do think with the lower end running like peg and vomero, they make 2 step forward then take 1 step back on the next model so the follow up they can take another step forward and then it looks like an improvement

with so many products and line (on all brands) its just tough to always improve on its predecessor, you can only do so much year after year, some lines you got to make heavier one year so you can make them lighter the next

 

[kaz109]

Anyone have a pair of Tracksmith runners?

 

[illustrayt]

i dont know, i think it still works out for them, the VF and AF are still the best of the best out there in terms of performance and look

i wish the ZF goes back to being runnable but people still like the invincible and IRs, i do think with the lower end running like peg and vomero, they make 2 step forward then take 1 step back on the next model so the follow up they can take another step forward and then it looks like an improvement

with so many products and line (on all brands) its just tough to always improve on its predecessor, you can only do so much year after year, some lines you got to make heavier one year so you can make them lighter the next

That’s why I stock up when a model that I’m a big fan gets phased out to make room for the next gen. The next gen isnt always better.

 

[Blecghhrunner]

i dont know, i think it still works out for them, the VF and AF are still the best of the best out there in terms of performance and look

i wish the ZF goes back to being runnable but people still like the invincible and IRs, i do think with the lower end running like peg and vomero, they make 2 step forward then take 1 step back on the next model so the follow up they can take another step forward and then it looks like an improvement

with so many products and line (on all brands) its just tough to always improve on its predecessor, you can only do so much year after year, some lines you got to make heavier one year so you can make them lighter the next

Agreed. Innovation rate for all brands is gonna slow down soon I think. Superfoams just hit every brand at different times but eventually we're gonna see shoes cooldown with how much better they've been getting. We've been so blessed since 2017 with how crazy shoes have gotten with every single yearly update. Sucks but eventually there's slowdowns in innovation where the materials don't significantly change.

 

[Locke]

i dont know, i think it still works out for them, the VF and AF are still the best of the best out there in terms of performance and look

i wish the ZF goes back to being runnable but people still like the invincible and IRs, i do think with the lower end running like peg and vomero, they make 2 step forward then take 1 step back on the next model so the follow up they can take another step forward and then it looks like an improvement

with so many products and line (on all brands) its just tough to always improve on its predecessor, you can only do so much year after year, some lines you got to make heavier one year so you can make them lighter the next

Yep I’m a fan of the VF and INV3 and really enjoyed the ER and Turbo. But the ER was essentially discontinued after V2 and likewise for the Turbo. Why? The INV 1 & 2 were wildly popular but then Nike redesigned it completely. Why? Honestly, I just think they’re trying too hard to keep everything new and fresh. The VF is a perfect example of what I wish they would do across their running models—play around with the uppers for a fresh look but keep the ride characteristics consistent.

 

[Blecghhrunner]

Yep I’m a fan of the VF and INV3 and really enjoyed the ER and Turbo. But the ER was essentially discontinued after V2 and likewise for the Turbo. Why? The INV 1 & 2 were wildly popular but then Nike redesigned it completely. Why? Honestly, I just think they’re trying too hard to keep everything new and fresh. The VF is a perfect example of what I wish they would do across their running models—play around with the uppers for a fresh look but keep the ride characteristics consistent.

Nike just does it so when the retro comes out or they bring it out it'll sell like hotcakes lmao, but seriously i think nike just always does this: they have a technology and they do like a million different permutations of it. like think the lunarlon stuff. like that stuff constantly changed. the last one was the LunarEpic thing which there were like three versions and the last two came out within months of each other (the low and the low 2s). the most stable shoes are like the pegasus and i guess now the AF/VF. Everything else is like cancellable or changeable to them. i guess its because they're so on top (like sales wise globally) they can experiment. i think other brands have their core customers they cannot piss off because they're so reliant on their business. Nike can (for now) mess around and hit gold or doodoo

 

[Locke]

Nike just does it so when the retro comes out or they bring it out it'll sell like hotcakes lmao, but seriously i think nike just always does this: they have a technology and they do like a million different permutations of it. like think the lunarlon stuff. like that stuff constantly changed. the last one was the LunarEpic thing which there were like three versions and the last two came out within months of each other (the low and the low 2s). the most stable shoes are like the pegasus and i guess now the AF/VF. Everything else is like cancellable or changeable to them. i guess its because they're so on top (like sales wise globally) they can experiment. i think other brands have their core customers they cannot piss off because they're so reliant on their business. Nike can (for now) mess around and hit gold or doodoo

Fair enough but they lost me, at least partially, after the ER and Turbo. I came from New Balance, and left with only the VF, until the INV3. It’s why I tried, and liked, other brands. It’s why my current rotation also includes the Superblast and Rebel V4. If they/I had stayed with ER/Turbo, it’s unlikely I would have branched out.

 

[rfx45]

Yep I’m a fan of the VF and INV3 and really enjoyed the ER and Turbo. But the ER was essentially discontinued after V2 and likewise for the Turbo. Why? The INV 1 & 2 were wildly popular but then Nike redesigned it completely. Why? Honestly, I just think they’re trying too hard to keep everything new and fresh. The VF is a perfect example of what I wish they would do across their running models—play around with the uppers for a fresh look but keep the ride characteristics consistent.

Epic React had a weird backlash because it was the first time they went full midsole (minimal outsole) and it disintegrated but its been replaced by the react infinity so the line is still going

Pegasus Turbo also has a weird fandom, i dont remember it getting great reviews for running and no one was buying them, they were like $40-$50 on ndc and it sat, same with the 2 so when they stopped making them because no one wanted to buy them, all of a sudden people got mad an supposedly love the shoe... its like a weird snyder thing where people would fight tooth and nail for his films but never actually spent the dollar to see it it was the weirdest thing

as for redesign, iuts the nike strategy, just every two years you got to change it and like i said, its for the better or the worse, they have a finite amount of upgrades and improvement that sometimes the line has to go a step back, nike knows peoples attention span is short and people dont want to buy the same thing over and over again with minimal improvement, people want to buy something new or else theyll just buy the prior model on sale, nike is catering more to the general public who thinks that way while other are ingrained in the running niche that they only cater to those but also why theyre design is the same and theyre fine with that because their core buyers is ok with that, nikes customers not so much

nike is also the only one that is taking more chances and trying (and failing) with their tech, remember when the vapormax was suppose to be actually for running? then remember the joyride? i think they like 3 different models when that tech came out(?) and that lasted or one year

i dont know, i think nike just knows that people also want to wear their comfortable running shoes casually and i like the effort in design while every other brand looks like futuristic dad shoes

thats why lunarepic is on the top of my running shoe ranking, im a casual runner that wants these shoes doing double duty and i ran a half marathon in lunarepics and then went out to dinner in them later that night

 

[rfx45]

really diggin this olive green rebel v4

 

[Locke]

 

[Locke]

really diggin this olive green rebel v4

These are comfortable/fun to walk around in; I’ve been grabbing them for errands. It’s softer on the walk than on the run, if that makes sense.

 

[rfx45]

better for walking than running… sounds right up my alley

 

[kaz109]

These are comfortable/fun to walk around in; I’ve been grabbing them for errands. It’s softer on the walk than on the run, if that makes sense.

Did you have the V3s before these?