GEAR » RUNNING SHOES
ew running shoes hit the market
all the time, which can be
confusing for triathletes looking
to find the perfect fit. So what are the
new shoe technologies and how can they
assist triathletes?
First, let’s first consider whether
there are triathlon-specific shoes. To be
honest, I don’t believe shoe companies
design shoes specifically for the triathlon
market. They may take similar tech from
lightweight shoes and racing flats, tweak
the closure system, give them a radically
different colourway and say they’re tri
shoes, but the reality is these shoes use
much the same technology as normal
road shoes. I have tried the Rubix, and the control
the shoe exerts into the foot is obvious,
making it a very impressive stability
shoe. It feels exactly as if I had designed
an orthotic to do that. So, if you are
looking for a stability shoe, then this new
tech is one I would suggest trying.
WHAT ARE THE NEW
SHOE TECHNOLOGIES? Salomon Predict
The only other shoe designed like this
is the new Salomon Predict, launched
at the New York Marathon in 2018. It
sadly won’t be coming to South Africa,
but by all accounts, it has huge potential
to assist runners with some knee
pathologies. It is also designed with
decoupled pods in the midsole, with the
direction of the decoupling lines aligned
to the major joint lines of the skeleton of
the foot. I have only heard good things
about this shoe.
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The new technologies that are really
making waves are:
• A maximalist, thick-stack cushion of
lightweight, energy-returning foams
• Deep but linked decoupling grooves
in the midsole
• A rocker outsole
• Carbon plates in the midsole
(not yet mainstream)
All of these technologies are researched
not only by the companies but also by
independent laboratories, so the claims
made are based on some solid science.
New Balance Rubix
In the world of stability shoes, the dual
density (harder inside plug) design
seemed to be on the way out. Until New
Balance introduced the Rubix, which
uses a technology that looks unlike any
other stability shoe you have seen. It has
a softer midsole closer to the foot and a
harder one closer to the ground. The big
difference in design is that both densities
are over the full foot, not just medially. In
addition, the angle between materials in
each pod is different to the others. New
Balance say this is based on the physics
of a bobsled going around an ice track.
Asics Metaride
Ankle equinus is a condition in the ankle
where the foot is in a toes-down position,
like a horse’s foot. It can be in different
joints or segments of the foot, and can
come from many different causes, with
the most common cause being tight/
short calf muscles. Riding a bike or
wearing high-heeled shoes will create an
ankle equinus.
The biggest amount of movement
needed in human gait occurs in the
ankle joint and restriction of movement
in this plane can cause compensatory
changes into other planes of movement,
and the compensation can be visible as
overpronation and often felt as fatigue
in hamstrings and calves. We used to
manage this movement restriction with
traditional drop shoes and adding heel
raises to help the leg and body move
over from the heel onto the forefoot. The
downside of higher heel drops can be
that it can cause pain in front of the knee
or fatigue in front of the shin, so it’s a
delicate balancing game.
But welcome the Asics Metaride, a
very different shoe all round. It looks like
the love child of a Hoka, Masai barefoot
technology and an Altra. It has a zero
drop, it has a big stack height, and a
firm rocking outsole that allows an
assisted transition from heel strike into
the midfoot and toe off. Asics reports
that the ‘ride’ of the Metaride assists
movement in the ankle joint by 20%
(validated by a third party laboratory
in the UK). When you wear this shoe,
the first feeling is that it’s odd. You feel
the zero drop under your heels, but as
soon as you move forward, it feels like
an 8mm drop, and the assistance of the
firm rocker underfoot is obvious as you
go into toe off. Again, the technology is
dual density, with the softest closest to
the foot so it is well cushioned, and the
hardest closest to the floor – and again,
both materials run the full length of the
foot. There is a 3D guidance groove
inside the shoe to decouple the medial
and lateral sides, as well as forefoot and
hindfoot, with a gripsole outsole.
Hoka Carbon X
As I write this, the 50-mile record has
been broken in the new Hoka Carbon
X. The shoe apparently has a specially
engineered carbon plate and an
aggressive metarocker that is said to
assist in the transition through the gait
cycle. The use of ‘a unique combination
of foams’ with the trademark Hoka
geometry has created a shoe that is said
to be stable and responsive, with lots of
cushioning and very low weight. Sound
familiar?
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