Nike Structure (2009-2020) Replacement (Read 48 times)

I was alerted to this thread! I'll add some blowhard anecdotes and wisdom borrowed from other members; as is my wont.

I gave up on Nike training shoes decades ago; even when given free ones. Too heavy, hard, and uncomfortable fit. I try some on every couple years, but haven't discovered any that I like more than offerings from other brands. Nike racing shoes kick ass, though.

The popular "do it all" shoe right now is the Saucony Endorphin Speed-2, and now the 3. I can attest that the Speed2 is an excellent shoe. The Speed3 has some changes directed at making it a better daily trainer than the 2; I only have a couple runs in the 3 and haven't really noticed any obvious improvement in fit or performance. You should be able to get the Speed2 at discounts, I bought another pair a month or two ago for $80.  It pairs with the Endorphin Pro2 (or 3) as a race shoe, but the Speed is very marathon race-worthy on it's own.

The other Swiss Army Knife shoe is the New Balance Rebel-2 (and now 3). It's a soft and flexible shoe with a slipper-like feel. Not as snappy as the Saucony, but my legs never feel beat-up after running in them. The flexy-ness is easy on my plantar/achilles/gastrocnemius. The longest I've run in them is 12M, and they were perfectly fine. I also have the NB RC Elite2, and it's kind of a combo between the Saucony Speed2 and NB Rebel2; is has about the same rigidity as the Saucony, but has the cushiness, actually more cushiness, of the Rebel2. I have not worn the 3, but it sounds like it has also been changed to be a better daily trainer.

Another shoe in my rotation is Skechers MaxRoad 4+. Light and cushy and flexy. It's what Hoka Clifton wishes it could be. I use it for long and recover runs, so I actually put more miles on this than the other shoes. The only downside, for me, is that the outsole rubber wears down by 200-250M. Some other people get 500+M out of them, my gait is weird.

I have a few other shoes that I'll wear 1-5x a month; NB Rebel-1, Hoka Stinson, the already mentioned NB RC Elite2, Skechers GoRun7, GoMeb6, and Speed Freek. The Meb is mainly for on the track, since it's legal, and I just got the Freek; not sure about it, very rigid.

If you like Nike, reviews say the Infinite is a good trainer, as well as the Pegasus.

For candid reviews, on Youtube visit Ed Budd, Kofuzi, and Believe In The Run.

A little OT, Surly Bill. But I have a kid in need of a new track spikes would those YouTubers be a good place for him to check out? He’s away at school so he’ll likely be ordering them online.

I haven't seen those reviewers actually run in spikes, but Running Warehouse youtube channel has had a few spike videos. If you're looking for a distance spike the Gold Standard is the Nike Dragonfly. The recent trend (finally!) in distance spikes is to add more cushion to encapsulate a propulsion plate, similar to the marathon racing shoes. The World Athletics shoe rules allow up to 25mm midsole thickness for 800m-10k track races, and companies are taking advantage of this. Below 800m is 20mm thickness.

Complete list of approved shoes can be found here, under Manuals and Guidelines:

https://www.worldathletics.org/about-iaaf/documents/technical-information

I like the Asics MetaSpeed-LD and Adidas Avanti TYO at least in concept, I haven't tried them on.

Thank you! I will pass along that info. I’d rather him spend more time studying and less time looking for shoes.

Depending on budget, the Nike Rival D is a fine spike, better than the spikes we were wearing back in the 80's, and people set world records in those spikes from the 80's.

Big selection and great deals at eastbay;

https://www.eastbay.com/category/sport/track/mens/shoes.html?query=track%20field%3Arelevance%3Aproducttype%3AShoes%3Agender%3AMen%27s%3Ashoestyle%3ATrack%20Spikes%20%26%20Flats%3Ashoesubstyle%3ALong%20Distance%20Spikes%3Ashoesubstyle%3AMid%20Distance%20Spikes

or Running Warehouse:

https://www.runningwarehouse.com/catpage-MTSP.html

Apparently, everyone else on the team has Vaporflys. He is a freshman so has four years (hopefully) so it will be worth the money, I guess.

Vaporflys are illegal for track races. I hope they aren't training in them, either!

In college, spikes would last me about 1-2 seasons. We didn't do many workouts in spikes, maybe once a week for a portion of a workout, and then in races, of course. We got a free pair every year, so maybe that's why they only last one season! Shoes are made better and out of better materials now, so maybe they would last multiple seasons. If someone is on a budget, I like to remind them that the BEST shoes from last year are not suddenly obsolete and worthless because there is a new version out (often just new colors). Last year's spikes can often be had for more than 50% off. It may not be worth the time scrounging, but I've found Nike Victory, Mamba, and Rival spikes at Ross Dress For Less for $7-20. They don't always have them, but when they turn up at one store, they are also in their other stores.

If their coach has them doing a significant amount of miles in spikes, the Nike Splat (spiked racing flat; basically a Streak LT with a spikeplate) is good for workouts because it doesn't beat up your legs like a less cushioned spike, and it's reasonably priced. (anecdote; Joaquim Cruz was on our team when I was in school, and he had custom Nike shoes that were their American Eagle racing flats with a spike plate, which is what the Spike Flat is today)

And of course XC spikes are different than track spikes; don't use track spikes for XC.

I’m thinking the Dragonfly’s are different than the Vaporflys. I think that is what they have. So many flies!  We’ve been frugal during high school but have kept up with trainers expect that one time I accidentally bought a walking shoe. He couldn’t figure out why his Achilles were bothering him. Oops. He is mostly a mid distance runner. He loves the 800m but is running cross country and whatever his coach tells him to run. He has big feet and is one of the biggest kids on the team at 6’3”. I think he needs good trainers, he like ON and spikes for cross and track. He thinks he also needs a lighter shoe for longer tempo runs. I think shoes are pretty individual but he is a pretty neutral runner and seems to make stuff work.

Yes, a lot of flies!

definitely invest in good trainers and let the race shoes be secondary. 95% or more of the time he'll be in the trainers. My initial post at the top of this thread describes some good shoes popular with most runners now. Saucony and Asics seem to be very durable, and I assume you want to get 500 miles out of a pair of shoes. One thing I've noticed about the super-critical midsole foams is that they are fragile (Skechers Hyperburst, NB FuelCell, Saucony PwrRun PB, etc) and if worn on trails, gravel, or very rough pavement they will get torn up. The areas of outsole rubber are ok, but they all have exposed midsole material on the sole, and it will get shredded. I prefer a lightweight trainer, so the transition to a race shoe isn't so jarring.

If I see any great deals, I'll send a personal message so I'm not spamming the website. There is also a thread under Gears and Wears called Cheap Shoe Alert! where people post about sales and clearances and things, usually time sensitive.