Greetings. I received a number of personal messages asking about lightweight adidas running shoes. Many of the questions came after the article about using lightweight shoes in your regular training week. I applaud Slowtwitch for the article. Not just because I’m a running shoe guy but more as a triathlete who loves running. To answer the questions I received I did some searching on our system to find out which of our lightweight shoes will be global products. I say global because if your really want to see all the lightweight running shoes on earth in one place, go to Japan. Nobody does lightweight like Japan. It’s where adizero was born in the first place. So I will not go into detail on why you should buy these shoes, I only offer them up and say if you are buying a lightweight shoe to run or race in and you don’t try on adizero you are not doing yourself justice.
All the shoes listed are available in January 2009.
adizero Tempo (Men’s and Women’s) - Stability Trainer
adizero Boston (men’s and Women’s) - Neutral Trainer
adizero adios (men’s sizing only) - Neutral Racing - The fastest marathon shoe on the market 2:03:59.
adizero Mana (Men’s and Women’s) - Stability Racing
Good luck to all those on the 100 day challenge. May your running jump to an entirely new level this year.
Just some more fun: On flowtracker there is a video of the McMillan Elite running team doing 5 X 1.1 miles at 7300 feet. You can notice many are running in the adizero shoes I suggested. It’s a crazy workout!
Whats your take on the adizero RC? Do they still make that one? I bought one some time ago and used it once (upper felt hard/abrasive) and haven’t used it since. It’s definately light weight though
Curious if you can tell me about the replacement shoe for the Adizero RC? I’ve been told by a friend who works for Adidas that it will be called the “Ace”
We running shoe companies like to make it difficult don’t we? As stated, it’s one of the reasons Slowman has stayed away from the world of running shoes. O.K. here you go:
adizero RC is still around in Spring 09. It will be replaced by a new shoe in Fall 09 but it’s too early to talk about it just yet.
The Ace which was referred to is a replacment to the adizero CS which was a very popular lightweight (lighter than the Boston) trainer.
The Adizeros have always been a highly respected racing shoe. I’ve been out of the sport for over a decade and was glad to see that the adizero line had expanded.
I bought a pair for last year’s racing season and like them a lot.
Good to hear the RCs will still be around. I never trust “replacement” shoes. More often than not they ruin what I love about a particular shoe.
As long as I have you here, let me ask a really trivial question:
Since I don’t trust replacements, I’ll probably stock up a on few pairs of RCs before they go away. They are my go-to shoe for racing and workouts right now. Any idea if there will be a different color scheme before they go away in Fall 09? Irrational as it is, I can’t stand the look of the the black on red. But I’ll buy them if that’s all there will be. But if something else is coming before Fall '09, I’ll wait.
I can’t blame you on the trust level. Hopefully we surprise any of you running in adidas right now with any of our replacements. We have a model of consistency working right now that should be in your favor. Don’t tell any of the other brands this. Just kidding.
The new color of the RC for 2009 will stay along the white/black/yellow theme you see in the other shoes. All of our athletes will be wearing these colors as Mr. World Record holder did in Berlin. This should include our triathletes unless they are wearing their country colors.
Really recommend the adizero. They are lightweight and stable. Worn mine racing everythign from 3km on the road to a marathon at IM level. They seem to do the trick , especially as i had never previously worn a racing flat running off teh bike at an IM. ran a 3.01 so it must have helped!
Thanks for posting! I’ve been using the Adizero Tempo for a while now (about to retire it this weekend actually) and I really liked it once I got used to the odd “forefmotion” forefoot posting. Love the “line” and the design philosophy - except the price. Been wanting to try out the Mana and I’ll likely be giving it a go.
Hey I’ve been running in the Ds trainers for a while and I was wondering how does the adizero cs compare, and how does the ACE compare to the CS?
In that line up your closest match will be Tempo. Tempo is a nice cushio to it as well but the heel is noticably higer than DS Trainer. If you go with mana, it is a pure racing flat like DS racer, however they run narrow so go halfa size larger i Asics fit is good for you.
I hate the weird tongue setup in Adizero line up, they must have a purpose to put them twisted but not a good thing if you are rushing to put the shoe on.
I run in DS Trainers, and the closest fit out of the adizero line I found was the Tempaya. It is a bit squooshier and taller, however, IMO. I wear it as a winter shoe.
