Nike ZoomX Zegama Trail 100km In Depth Review: ZoomX for long trail hauls!

Article by Jeremy Marie

NIke Zegama Trail (160$/160€)

Editor's Note: Jeremy is joined by 3 other RoadTrailRun testers in the Multi Tester Review of the Zegama HERE

NIke Zegama Trail (160$/160€)

Introduction

After some teasing, and appearances on social media, Nike finally revealed its latest trail shoe, the long-distance oriented Zegama Trail.

One might question the choice of “Zegama” for the name for a long-distance focused shoe, as this famous race is “only” a 42 kms trail with 2900+ meters of climbing, but it’s one the biggest and hottest event amongst the Skyrunning Series…”Zegama is Zegama” they say.

This is the first foray of the mighty ZoomX foam to the trails, and considering how shoes equipped with this midsole rock the road running world, this grand premiere was clearly awaited.

I was pretty interested to see how Nike could tweak its bouncy, energetic foam to make it work on uneven grounds, rocks, steep descents, especially so without a plate to stabilize it. It turns out that they managed to come out with something quite interesting.

Stats: 

Weight: Men’s 10.22oz / 290g (US9.5), 

sample (left/right): 11.18/11.28oz, 320g/317g (10.5US, 44.5 EU)

Stack: 37mm heel, 33mm forefoot, 4mm drop

Catalog/Specs HERE via our partner Top4 Running

Max Cushion Video Comparison Review: Hoka Bondi 8, New Balance Fresh Foam More v4, Saucony Endorphin Shift 3

 Video by Sam Winebaum

 Hoka Bondi 8, New Balance Fresh Foam More v4, Saucony Endorphin Shift 3

In the video, I detail and then compare in A/B tests: Hoka Bondi 8, New Balance Fresh Foam More v4, and Saucony Endorphin Shift 3. 

They are all similar in stack height but differ in platform geometries and  in best uses. The New Balance FuelCell SuperComp Trainer, a carbon plated yet higher stack trainer, is also briefly compared. 

Watch the Video Comparison Review (15:56)

Reviews and Details:

More v4: Multi Tester Review Available September 2022. $150

Shift 3: Initial Review  (Multi Tester soon) Available October 2022. $150

Bondi 8: Multi Tester Review Available now. $165

Samples were provided at no charge for review purposes. RoadTrail Run has affiliate partnerships and may earn commission on products purchased through affiliate links in this article. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content. The opinions herein are entirely the authors'

Comments and Questions Welcome Below!

Please let us know mileage, paces, race distances, and current preferred shoes

RoadTrailRun receives a commission on purchases at the stores below.

Your purchases help support RoadTrailRun. Thanks!

 

RUNNING WAREHOUSE

USA  Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

FREE 2 Day Shipping EASY No Sweat Returns

EUROPE Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

Europe only: use RTR code RTR5ALL for 5% off all products, even sale products 

AUSTRALIA Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

ROADRUNNERSPORTS

Men's and Women's SHOP HERE

Join RRS VIP

FLEET FEET

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

REI 

Men's & Women's  SHOP HERE

BACKCOUNTRY

Men's & Women's  SHOP HERE

TOP4RUNNING EUROPE

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

Use RTR code RTRTOP4 for 5% off all products, even sale products

MOOSEJAW

Men's & Women's  SHOP HERE

HOLABIRD SPORTS

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

FREE Shipping on most orders over $40

AMAZON  

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

NEW BALANCE

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

SAUCONY

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

WATCH OUR YOUTUBE REVIEWS ON THE ROADTRAILRUN CHANNEL

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Tour du Cervin-Matterhorn and Austria Trek and Super Light Fast Packing Gear Reports

Article by Markus Zinkl

Introduction

I usually plan each year a longer trip in my summer holidays. The trip is done in a “Thru Hiking” style. I try to disconnect and stay most of the time away from people during this time. Therefore, most of the nights I sleep in my tent and bring my food, with the occasional re-supply in town.

My original plan was to start the first section of the HRP in the Pyrenees. Due to the holiday season in France and the relatively short term possibility to take my summer holidays, I couldn’t get a suitable train ticket anymore.

Last year I did the WHR (Walkers Haute Route)  from Chamonix in France to Zermatt in Switzerland. Whilst the area is quite touristy, the mountains are just amazing. Therefore, I settled for Zermatt as “Basecamp” and did the lesser known Tour Matterhorn (TC=Tour du Cervin), which starts in Randa and ends in Zermatt. After a re-supply, starting again, the Tour du Monte Rosa around the Monte Rosa massif. Well, at least that was my plan. More on that later. 

I divided the report into two sections. First, I’ll go over each day of the trip, and then I will go over some gear I used.

ASICS Novablast 3 Initial Video Review: Much Lighter, Softer, Smoother! A/B Run Compare to Novablast 2.

Video by Sam Winebaum

ASICS Novablast 3 ($140) 

In the video I review the Novablast 3 and compare during an A/B run to the Novablast 2.

The Novablast 3 gets a Flyte Foam Blast + midsole which is about 20% softer and lighter than Flyte Foam Blast leading to a massive 1.3 oz / 36g  drop in weight (average of shoes) in my US8.5 on a platform I measure at 5mm wider. The differences are felt!

Full Multi Tester Review soon! 

Available Sept 1st. $140 including at our partners below.

WATCH THE NOVABLAST 3 INITIAL VIDEO REVIEW (9:09)

Samples were provided at no charge for review purposes by ASICS with no compensation for writing this review. RoadTrail Run has affiliate partnerships and may earn commission on products purchased through affiliate links in this article. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content. The opinions herein are entirely the authors'

Comments and Questions Welcome Below!

Please let us know mileage, paces, race distances, and current preferred shoes

RoadTrailRun receives a commission on purchases at the stores below.

Your purchases help support RoadTrailRun. Thanks!

 AMAZON  

Novablast 3 available now!

Men's SHOP HERE

RUNNING WAREHOUSE

Novablast 3 available pre order now

USA  Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

FREE 2 Day Shipping EASY No Sweat Returns

EUROPE 

Novablast 3 available now!

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

Europe only: use RTR code RTR5ALL for 5% off all products, even sale products 

ROADRUNNERSPORTS

Men's and Women's SHOP HERE

Join RRS VIP

FLEET FEET

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

REI 

Men's & Women's  SHOP HERE

BACKCOUNTRY

Men's & Women's  SHOP HERE

TOP4RUNNING EUROPE

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

Use RTR code RTRTOP4 for 5% off all products, even sale products

MOOSEJAW

Men's & Women's  SHOP HERE

HOLABIRD SPORTS

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

FREE Shipping on most orders over $40

NEW BALANCE

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

SAUCONY

Men's & Women's SHOP HERE

WATCH OUR YOUTUBE REVIEWS ON THE ROADTRAILRUN CHANNEL

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by Following RoadTrailRun News Feed

Please Like and Follow RoadTrailRun

Facebook: RoadTrailRun.com  Instagram: @roadtrailrun

Twitter: @RoadTrailRun You Tube: @RoadTrailRun

On the Road to the Chicago Marathon: Joost's Training, 2022 Run Shoes Long Term Durability, and Apparel Report

Article by Joost de Raeymaeker

Editor's Note: RTR Contributor Joost is one of the top over 50 marathoners in the world with a 2:26:10 all time PR at the 2019 Berlin Marathon at age 51 followed by a 2:28:16 at New York a few weeks later. He lives and trains in Angola, Africa.

Joost:

Being part of a shoe and apparel review team has great perks, the two main ones being getting to know some great people and getting shoe samples for testing. I’ll admit that not all apparel and shoes I test keep on being used beyond testing, mostly due to the quantity of stuff that comes in, but I coach a group of local athletes through my coaching service Kufukula who can’t afford to buy their own stuff, so there’s always a keen clientele to offer anything to that would otherwise be gathering dust. 

But then, there’s the stuff that enters my rotation even after review. This is a small list of shoes and apparel that I’ve been using in my Chicago marathon training block, with a durability assessment. Some of it wasn’t offered for review, but my own personal purchase. I’ll indicate where this is the case.

Komperdell Running and Trekking Poles Review: Carbon FXP Team Green , Carbon Approach FXP , Carbon C3 Pro

 By Jeff Valliere

Komperdell Poles:

Carbon FXP Team Green ($200), Carbon Approach FXP ($170) , Carbon C3 Pro ($150)

Back in June, I attended the Outdoor Retailer show and had a nice conversation with the fine folks at the Komperdell booth, extolling the virtues of their wide range of high quality poles and subsequently have been fortunate to have the opportunity to test.

Komperdell has been making poles in Austria for 100 years, focusing on innovation, environmental sustainability, customer service and maintaining the highest quality standards for their products.  They even offer no questions asked, speedy and free 3 years repairs for their touring/trekking poles (as well as snowshoes) if purchased after 2019.

I tested and reviewed the Komperdell Carbon Ultralite Vario Compact back in 2017 RTR Review and they have been my go to poles for just about everything ever since, be it running, hiking or snowshoeing, so I was very excited to test these new models which have advanced significantly in the past five years. I was excited to test their latest running and trekking poles putting them to the test in Colorado this summer.

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4: Is Yet More Too Much?

Article by Peter Stuart, Dominique and Sam Winebaum

New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4 ($150)

Introduction

The Fresh Foam More is aptly named. We said so for the prior version and for sure we can say it again here in v4 and then some.. 

It gains 2mm more stack height of cushion/outsole, about 5mm more platform width on the ground, and as a result about 0.74 oz / 22g in my US8.5 to come in at about 10.74 oz /305g. 

New Balance tells us the midsole has  “80% more displacement (cushioning).” Not sure how they calculate this but there is a lot of cushioning here!

In the mix is a softer yet Fresh Foam X, a new more flexible easier transitioning geometry and a new and roomy engineered mesh upper. For sure deep plush cushion, easy fit and mellow ride were in the product brief. 

There is clearly a method to the super sizing as the shoe is now clearly positioned as the big and soft slower paces mellow trainer (and walking shoe) in the New Balance line up with the yet higher stacked, carbon plated and lighter superb new SuperComp Trainer (RTR Multi Tester Review) as the "faster" option. Did New Balance go too far? Let’s find out. 

Pros:

High stacked, broad and soft midsole for those who seek ultimate protection & a plush ride Sam

Improved slower paces transitions, more front flex: Sam

50% or more of upper is recycled materials: Sam/Dominique/Peter

Comfortable and secure fit, on the roomy high volume side even in regular width Sam/Peter

Great walking shoe Sam/Dominique

Cons:

How much more is too much more? Sam/Dominique/Peter

On the heavier side for a trainer Dominique/Sam/Peter

Width of the shoe on the ground helps with stability but is cumbersome Dominique/Sam

Outsole with its soft rubber front pads dulls the toe off feel  Dominique/Sam/Peter

Stats

Estimated Weight: men's oz 11.05 / g (US9)  /  women's oz / g (US8)

  Samples: 

      men’s 10.79 oz  /  g US8.5 (left: 10.64 oz  right: 10.93 oz) v3 10.2 oz/289 US8.5

      women’s 9.6 oz / 272g US9 

Stack Height: men’s 35mm heel (measured) / 31 mm forefoot (spec), 4mm drop

+2 mm stack height over v3, +5mm more platform width

$150. Available now including at our partners including Running Warehouse HERE