So for what it’s worth, my friend: I wore a minimalist Road shoe on the same trail for a marathon in 2018, Newton Distance Elite, and had zero issues. I don’t recommend any trail shoe for your race - and remember I’m a trail runner who likes the Vectiv Summit Pro! Use your favorite road shoe. Or at least humor me and try both types of shoe the day before, as I did. VaporFly would work great.
Troy. My original plan was to run this to try to Boston Qualify. Luckily I did that in Rotterdam as my present injury rules that out. If I was trying for a performance then I would be in the fastest shoe I could get. After Rotterdam I was thinking of running in the Alphafly 3… but it is not yet released and likewise the Ultrafly. As I sit here my only aim is to get there, enjoy it and hopefully finish the full distance with a smile on my face. And not end in a crying heap in the tunnel! I will bring a few pairs of shoes and test a few days in advance…and you never know…
@@OldManRunnerwe have a Two Bays trail race here and I've seen people do it in 'finger' shoes (as minimal as you can get), Speedgoats and Vaporflys... Two Bays has sand, dirt and asphalt over 28 / 56K so all shoes are OK ; - )
Oh btw you might be interested to know, another AWESOME outsole is the Pumagrip in their models which have the tiny lugs … I’ve got the women’s specific Nitro Run XX and that is now my favourite outsole for variable terrain, even over the NF Vectiv Eminus , now my second favourite in the wet!
I am in agreement with Bev. Perhaps PUMA Deviate Nitro 2 or Deviate Nitro Elite 2 would have worked well in this race. Also did you consider HOKA Tekton X2, Saucony Endorphin Edge and Saucony Xodus Ultra 2. The last one doesn't have a carbon plate but is having great reviews.
The back injury has meant that I have not been able to test as many shoes as I would like...and I really wanted to try these...and so far so good! Though I guess I will really find out on Saturday...
Thanks for the advice as always Tolunay. I brought some salt tablets that I bought recently...will be taking one per hour on the run, plus the supplied Gatorade...and so far the temperatures look to be okay...I wonder how much shade there will be on the run, the tunnel obviously, but there might be tree cover. If there is I will use it...
Very good review, I must say I never considered that price point when picking trail shoes. Something to consider. Also had the thought that a video of the process you underwent last year for the virtual NY marathon with guaranteed entry. Such as how it linked to strava, how you knew the run was accepted and how you then entered the following year etc. There is next to zero information available online and might be an easy one to do while travelling.
So paraphrasing the North Face shoe description, carbon plate is used to improve stability and increase energy return... I keep asking myself if the energy return aspect is something important when running on trails? Stability, great... energy return? What's your view Barry? This goes for ALL carbon plated trail shoes from, HOKA, Saucony, etc. VERY good review, as usual Barry - thank you!
BTW, this is a great looking shoe! Looking forward to finding out more about the upcoming Nike trail shoe - it's popping up in conversation on various pods atm, the hype is coming : - )
I will take energy return wherever I can get it. I’m guessing that the softer the surface underfoot the less energy return. And of course it is all related to pace. The next marathon is on a Trail but it is very hard packed surface underneath with some gravel. So the plate should give some return on that surface. That’s the plan…
@@OldManRunner yep, that males perfect sense - the harder the surface the more return / benefit from the plates. Interestingly, I think trail shoes can have rock plates in them - and I assume these are in shoe soles (for protection) - I wonder if that's how shoe manufacturers got the idea for road running carbon plates...?
@@OldManRunner probably for the best, if they were available a day before, you would be tempted to run the mara in something you haven't tested out beforehand : - 0
Watching this after you mentioned it in my vid today. Seems a decent option. Never convinced personally by the widening of a shoe version to version but my feet are clearly abnormally narrow. The wide base of the Ultrafly was one of the main reasons did not much care for it.
Love the look. Saw a pair in my size a couple days ago with 60% off discount. Very much tempted, but didn't get them in the end. The midsole is quite soft and already creased with people trying them on. Stability and durability seem questionable...
I have 168km / 104 miles on mine and the wear and tear is completely normal. The upper is perfect and the only wear is some wearing down at the rear outsole, all as per my usual wear pattern on shoes. Because they are a trail shoe the outsole rubber is thicker than on my carbon plate road racing shoes and so they should last longer as it will take longer to wear through to the softer midsole foam.
AND the women’s comes in a GORGEOUS aqua+white … but at that price , bloody hell they wanna be a lot more than just gorgeous!! I wonder scientifically just how effective they would be for running slower as there is a huge difference between carbon plated shoes and how useful they are to us average runners!! Cause what IS certain is that we can’t just blindly believe what shoe manufacturers NOR shoe stores tell us as science shows that most of it is absolute bulls**t!!! Plus of course we’re all so different anyway!! I’m VERY curious how you get on with these Barry!!!
I can certainly notice the difference that the best carbon plate shoes make on a marathon. Jo Pavey regularly mentions how the carbon plate shoes provide benefits in training as you recover easier from running in them. I am usually looking for performance out of a shoe and will take a bit of beating up if needs be. This time it's the reverse and I m hoping that a nice foam and responsive plate, with a wide sole will cushion the run. I guess we will see!
Great review, I can get these at a very reasonable price but worried about the height of the heel tab. I've got Speed 3s that have a high heel counter and they've trashed my achilles. How is it in these? Thanks.
They were fine for me. The heel tab is high but it is pliable and can bend back easily. I have 175km in them including a marathon and no issues. One of the very few shoes I would buy a second time without hesitation...
They work fine for walking. The shoe has great ventilation and great grip. So they are very good when the path is wet. But if it’s raining they will let water in. One of my all time favourite shoes.
Welcome to my world! The one thing I hope to do is to put some information out so that people can agree or disagree but might help them make better choices and buy less, but more useful stuff
