Shoe Review: Adidas Adizero Boston Ekiden

PREVIEW: 

LIGHTWEIGHT TRAINER: 

• Recommended for biomechanically efficient runners who wants a responsive, lightweight trainer with some stability
• Good second shoe for fast work-outs or as a well cushioned second shoe
• Weight: 10.6 oz.

Making a thorough evaluation on how a shoe performs entails comprehensive test runs: getting its feel by running slowly for a few kilometers; logging short, fast tempo runs to feel how they respond; racing them occasionally on short races or doing Long, Slow Distance (LSD) runs to test their comfort and durability. Only then would you have a fair assessment it it’s the right shoe for you or not. 

 

I’m going to make an exception here as i’ve bypassed most of the tests above except for an LSD run i did last Wednesday. My purpose then was to break-in the new Adidas Adizero Boston Ekiden for a few minutes to check how they responded with my feet. However, those few minutes test-run turned out to become  four and a half (4&1/2) hours of running in various tempos covering a distance of 32 kilometers! Whew! How’s that for a baptism of fire on a new shoe that’s just on the street for testing? So, allow me to indulge a little bit on the shoe. 

CONSTRUCTION 

The first thing i noticed about the shoe after taking it out of the box is its unique art design on the upper. The term “Ekiden” is derived from a popular long distance relay race in Japan. The Adizero Ekiden series draws inspiration from Japanese culture and they are special edition shoes which is going to be released in North America in late September or early October 2010. 

The difference between the Adizero Ekiden and the “regular” Adizero shoes is the cosmetic art design of the upper. However, the Ekidens do not have the wider air mesh/breathing holes of the regular Adizero and the former ventilation zone is on the shank area. Nevertheless, i did not feel any over-heating inside the Ekiden even when running under the heat of the sun. 

The Adizero innovations are in place here: 

• Torsion system adds midfoot stability
• Adiprene offers ample cushioning
• Adiprene + maintains forefoot propulsion and efficiency
• Adiwear outsole gives best durability in high wear areas

FIT & FEEL 

The fit seems somewhat narrower than what i’m used to (it’s a regular D size and i wear a 2E width). However, i always get a shoe which is half-size bigger if a 2E width is not available and that’s fine with me. When i put the shoes on, my feet seemed to mesh with the inside, almost as if locked perfectly from the forefoot to the ankle and i immediately felt the grip. I always tend to measure the top of my toe with my thumb from the shoes’ top and feel the space between it and there was a full inch of space. So far, so good. There was no discomfort, rubbing or slipping– it actually fitted like a glove! 

The initial positive feel was further re-inforced when i took it out for a few strides. It felt snug, like my Saucony Progrid RIDE as it was responsive and comfortable. But the most glaring difference of all was its weight. It was so light that it felt like a racing flat! Nice! 

PERFORMANCE 

The Adizero Boston Ekiden lived up to its expectation. They are billed as performance shoes, a lightweight monster and those were evident. The most important trait of the shoe was its responsiveness. The slight bounce and the propulsion was palpable and did not compromise any stability issue even when i ran accidentally on potholes and uneven surfaces. My heel-toe off style of running just went smoothly, no irritations, no rubbing. The flexibility is just superb when i charged up the hills. 

Running a 32k to test run on a new shoe may be punishment enough (for the shoe:-)) but i felt that i was wearing one of my old, used regular shoe like i could run on it in any distance i want. 

BEST USE 

The highest and best use for this shoe are tempo runs, fast running in general and they are excellent too for races because of its lightweight and responsiveness. 

VERDICT 

Passed–with flying colors!

"Sorry shoe, for the long break-in"