I bring this up because it dovetails so perfectly with a post from a while back about Altra.

Altra is unveiling a Hoka knockoff and I had a chance to mess with a pair over the weekend while I was at the Outdoor Retailer Show in SLC. This is the show where everybody flaunts their new product lines for the media and retail buyers. It's closed to the public but I was able to get a pass from one of the companies that supports me.

Has anybody else seen this shoe? It seems like a significant deviation from the brand they've created. I'm really curios to see how this goes when it hits the market.

Altra has long maintained that they are not a minimalist brand, but rather a zero drop brand that stays true to their belief that a foot-shaped last is best. What they have done is produce shoes with varying amounts of cushioning that respect these two core beliefs, and the Olympus is a trail shoe that sits on the maximal end of their cushioning scale (the Altra Torin previously occupied this spot – my wife is currently experimenting with the Torin along with her Hokas). My suspicion is that this shoe will be popular with members of the trail running community who like the Hoka feel but who have trouble with the snugger fit of Hoka toeboxes.

Read more at http://www.runblogger.com/2013/08/brooks-transcend-and-altra-olympus-max.html#Xy5ohtxKVWaWtMfM.99

Wait until you see them and get them on your feet Sara, you'll know what I mean. My unofficial and unscientific poll from the show suggests unanimous consensus that these are not zero drop shoes.

Are the specs on the Olympus wrong that they're 32mm-32mm = 0 drop?

http://running.competitor.com/2013/08/shoes-and-gear/2014-running-trend-oversized-shoes_79859

Not seeing it on Altra's website yet to confirm the heights.

Hokas are actually zero drop but rockered. All it means is the heel cushion and toe cushion are the same height. I haven't tried the Olympus and may hate them or love them but they are still exactly within the scope of Altras brand image. Wide toe box, foot shaped last, zero drop sole.  I am sure I will get to try a pair as soon as they are available.

I thought Hokas were 4-mm drop, maybe 5 or 6mm on a couple models? At least based on the specs I've seen.

 

I'm not sure what the measurements actually mean when there's a lot of motion in the cushion - or at least seems to be.

 

Or are you saying that some people are confusing 0 drop with being low to the ground? Two different characteristics.

 

Both my Xodus 3 (go-to shoe) and Hokas (seldom wear except in gravel parking lots) claim to be 4-mm drop.

I could be wrong. The one and only time I tried Hokas I was told they were zero drop. Maybe that was the discontinued model? Either way drop and cushion height are two completely different animals. That was my originally intended point.

Current Hokas are between 4-6 mm drop. However, I was quite sure that the first pair I bought (Mafates) were supposed to be zero drop. I'm wondering if they changed the drop as they designed new models.

Update: I just found a review that was written on the original Mafates and the drop was listed at 4 mm so it appears that they never were zero drop.

All that aside, I will be watching for the Altra when it comes out because my feet and knees like cushioning.

Hokas are actually zero drop but rockered. All it means is the heel cushion and toe cushion are the same height. I haven't tried the Olympus and may hate them or love them but they are still exactly within the scope of Altras brand image. Wide toe box, foot shaped last, zero drop sole.  I am sure I will get to try a pair as soon as they are available.

Well, I tried a pair before they're available and Altra can say whatever they want. They're rockered just like Hoka. The pictures in the article you posted doesn't reflect the shoe that they brought to the show.

Nonetheless, that's not really my point at all. If you read the entire review that Sara posted, it discusses the transient nature of the shoe buyer and it suggests that minimal shoes are falling out of popularity while these maximal shoes are the current rage amongst all of us trail runners. I think that's a lot of bullshit, but people can write what they want.

My curiosity with Altra has always been in consideration of how they would follow market trends when they firmly locked themselves into a brand that was rooted in ZERO DROP and WIDE TOEBOX. These characteristics will also fall out of favor over time.

I predicted, and stand by this prediction, that Altra will migrate away from that logic at the same rate the market migrates away from it. Otherwise, they become obsolete. This new shoe is a perfect example of it.

Zero Drop becomes far less important when you get into a maximal shoe. The mechanics of it don't follow the same principals as a more minimalist shoe. It's the first step toward broadening the product line before they become irrelevant like the VFF.

Give it a year...maybe two. Zero Drop will be discussed as frequently as the VFF.

 

 I don't see why having shoes that fit would be a fad. 

 

Yeah, I didn't say it was a fad, I said it would fall out of favor. It's a lot more about marketing than than anything else. Shoe companies make shoes that people want to buy, not necessarily shoes that work.