Shoe Reviews

This is our second ever review for Under Armour, not a brand that many runners consider in their daily line-up, but they make legit shoes, and seem to busting some big moves. In the USA recently, they have announced the sponsorship of a new distance training squad, the ‘UA Dark Sky Distance Team’. Let’s hope the same programs roll out across Australia as well. Cash UA, our athletes’ need cash.The UA HOVR Phantom 2 is a high mileage everyday training shoe. Think Pegasus, Nimbus, Clifton, Triumph etc. This shoe feels good, looks good, and rivals all of those.We took our pair through 140km of road and trails.

We are back with the one of the most successful daily trainers of all-time, the Nike Pegasus. Nike’s Peg 37 comes with some significant changes from the 36. Namely, the use of React Foam throughout, instead of Nike’s Cushlon foam used in the 36. There is also an extra 2mm of cushioning, and changes made to the outsole. We took our pair through 160km of road and trails.

Hoka's Bondi 7 encapsulates all that the brand Hoka One One is about, better than perhaps any other shoe.  High stack heights, metarocker midsole geometry and oh so soft midsole foam.  Runner's Tribe took the Bondi 7's through about 150km of road and light trails, below is our unpaid for review.

HOKA took all the good traits from the original Carbon X and stuck with them, while replacing the things that needed some work.  The upper is high-end, providing a snug sock like fit with an in-built mesh bootie.  In terms of improvements from the original Carbon X; the heel pull tab is way better, and the heel cup seems to provide a better lockdown.

If a higher stack height is correlated to more speed, then ON must have another theory in mind. The Cloudboom is more of a traditional racing flat. There is ample ground feel, and the cushioning feels mild. A vastly different feeling to the Vaporfly road racing shoes so many are used to. Horses for courses.

The Hoka One One Torrent 2 is a neutral, lightweight trail shoe with aggressive outsole lugs. It is designed for trail runners who want to run fast on varied terrain. It’s a shoe with a modest amount of underfoot cushion,  no where near as much as say the Hoka Speedgoat or EVO Mafaete shoes.  The Torrent 2 is much more like a ‘traditional’ shoe that one of the ‘old school’ brands would release, but with the unique Hoka touches like a 5mm drop, soft foam, and a rocker bottom.

Nike are the kings at marketing, among other things. And few shoes exemplify this more than the Infinity React. Nike’s marketing machine had people spinning with talk about injury risk reduction. They cited an external study by the British Columbia Sports Medicine Research Foundation (BCSMRF) on 226 runners using the Nike React Infinity Run as well as the Nike Structure 22. It indicated that runners using the former had a 52% lower injury rate. It’s an area in which more research is required. So, is this all complete BS, or are the shoes legit? Runner’s Tribe took them through 310kms and below is our unpaid for review.

The oldest running shoe company of them all, Saucony, have landed their latest high mileage trainer, and it does not, repeat, does not, disappoint. Saucony states the following about the Triumph 17: ‘First-class long runs are lighter than ever. For those who crave the ultimate in protective cushioning, the Triumph 17 is our most cushioned shoe, giving you everything you need to cruise through the longest of runs. Make running hangovers a thing of the past.’ So, are Saucony’s claims accurate, is this shoe worth the $250 investment? Runner’s Tribe took the Triumph through the paces, and below is our unpaid for review.

Nike has announced a new shoe called the Nike React Infinity, set to be released January 2020. The shoe is designed to prevent running injuries by adding extra cushioning to the midsole. It will mark the arrival of Nike’s first real ‘maximalist’ shoe to their line-up. The Nike React Infinity (let’s just call it the Infinity) is similar to the Nike Epic React (models 1 and 2), but with significant extra cushioning under foot. 

Encompassing the best qualities of the Nike Zoom Vaporfly 4% and the Nike React, with a foam offering game-changing cushioning and energy return, the Nike React Infinity Run is a fine-tuned blend of efficacy and cushioning. This breakthrough shoe provides a soft, responsive platform with a widened midsole and a rocker-like bottom for a more fluid-transition from foot strike to toe off.