Article by Peter Stuart, Jeff Beck, and Sam Winebaum
Altra Paradigm 6, NB Rebel v2, ASICS Magic Speed Scott Speed Carbon RC, Ray-Ban Stories Glasses, Skechers Max Road 5, NB RC Elite 1, OG OG Vaporfly goes back to the races!
Peter Stuart (Austin, Texas)
It’s been a minute. I fought through injury for a while this summer. Thanks to Dr. Halasz at RunLab in Austin for tuning me back up. I’ve haven’t had many shoes to review this summer so I’ve been leaning HARD into some favorites.
I’ve put about 300 miles in a 2nd pair of New Balance FuelCell Rebel v2 (RTR Review). There just isn’t a shoe out there that I like running in as much as I like the Rebel V2. They’re not my go-to workout shoe, but for everything else they are a no-brainer.
I did a workout in the ASICS Magic Speed (RTR Review) this week and really like that shoe.
My favorite shorts of the summer have been the Tracksmith Strata shorts. They’re light and super comfortable.
Other than that, lots of Gu Electrolytes and LMNT recharge to keep my system balanced my
favorite water bottle of the summer has been the Salomon Active Handheld
Finally, favorite socks this hot Austin summer are these gems, Darn Tough Vermont Micro Crew Ultra
Jeff Beck (Denver, Colorado)
I’ve continued to run in the Skechers Performance Max Road 5 (RTR Review). The H-plate in the midsole gives it enough stability that I’ve had none of the midsole/pod collapsing issues I had with the Max Road 4 and 4+ (200% blister rate in 3 miles or less in the previous models). I can’t get over how fun this shoe is to run in, but I shouldn’t be.
Hyperburst has a really good bounce to it, and is crazy light to boot. Doesn’t hurt that the Max Road 5 upper is very similar to the GoRun Ride 9 (RTR Review) upper - both are easily the best uppers Skechers Performance has put on a running shoe. And it’s not even close. If only the Razor Excess (RTR Review) got the same style upper, I’d probably be a bigger fan.
But not all of my miles have been in the MR5, a pair of Altra Paradigm 6 showed up, new midsole material and all. The Paradigm is Altra’s most cushioned road trainer with a 30mm zero drop platform. We’ll have a full multi-tester review out soon, but the cliffs note are:
-Ego Max midsole is the real deal, best Altra midsole material with a soft ride and really nice subsequent bounce rebound
-Upper continues Altra’s trend toward sloppy in the midfoot. It isn’t 1994, not everything has to be baggy
-Nobody is going to confuse this for a track spike, but it dropped more than an ounce from last year’s Paradigm 5 (RTR Review)
Sam Winebaum (New Hampshire)
I raced a local 10K this past weekend. Spectacular scenery with water on all sides as the course followed a loop around New Castle along the harbor and back bays.
I was joined by my younger brother Jake who soundly beat me, borrowing my pair of New Balance FuelCell RC Elite 1 (RTR Review) after briefly testing everything in my collection. I have work to do averaging 7:44 per mile on a relatively hilly course but it is early in my favorite racing season, Fall!
After much debate I went “classic” and wore my trusty Nike Vaporfly 4% from 2017 with over 150 miles of racing on them. Still I think the best any distance super shoe for me and for sure I have tried almost all. Its comfortable upper, easy to find rocker, and especially springy soft forefoot (if relatively low in comparison to more recent super shoes) combination of Zoom X plus plate just works. I had, as usual with it, zero soreness the next day.
Of all the other shoes I considered and ran short stretches in the day before the 361 Flame (RTR Review) was my other option. It’s stable, somewhat firmer feel and smooth rocker will be at my next race.
Scott Speed Carbon RC
Three runs in the Scott Speed Carbon, a giant 34mm forefoot, 39mm heel trainer/racer with a dynamically flexing Carbitex plate. While lower drop than I prefer in a carbon plated shoe, the relatively dense (and somewhat heavy) midsole and excellent rocker had me forgetting the drop.
The Carbitex plate essentially gets stiffer the faster you go: more down pressure flex up of the plate stiffer than flat or flexing down. This allows the shoe to handle varied paces and this I can say it does.
The ride is clearly distinguished by the very stable, pneumatically rebounding forefoot combination of giant stack and plate reminding me of the Nike Tempo Next % (RTR Review) or Alphafly but without all the noise and with a touch less explosive rebound. The heel is more stable than either of the Nike.
I am seeing the Speed Carbon as a durable stable trainer to racer due to its weight of 8.8 oz / 240g in a US9 somewhat which is above other options but recall only Metaspeed Sky, Alphafly, and Tempo Next have as much forefoot stack and Tempo Next weighs about the same as the Scott. It is a great option for the mid pack 3:30-4:00 marathon racer and otherwise for general training. At $190 it is "reasonable" in pricing.
Ray-Ban Stories
I made an “impulse” purchase the instant I saw the Ray-Ban Stories ($379), smart glasses with highly miniaturized cameras, microphones, and fine speakers all built in and developed in collaboration with Facebook. I got the version with Transition lenses for both sun and darker conditions.
Needless to say I am always taking pictures and video on the run for reviews and in general and the ability to just say (or press a button on the frame) “Hey Facebook take a video/picture” without missing a step is a game changer for me and anyone who wants to put all their “gadgets”: music, camera, call answering into one stylish wearable.
And above a small sample taken on the run with Ray-Ban Stories as I reviewed the Scott Speed Carbon entirely with the glasses for an upcoming YouTube review ahead of our multi tester written review.
Some tested samples were provided at no charge for review purposes others were personal purchases. RoadTrail Run has affiliate partnerships and may earn commission on products purchased through affiliate links. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content
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1 comment:
It’s been a minute. I fought through injury for a while this summer. Thanks
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