My Shoe History

Before you start reading, I’m going to ask for a comment – at the end, please tell me about your current running/sports shoe(s), and what you like/dislike about them. Alternately, what’s your favourite shoe? Thanks!

My Shoe History

Until I started writing this post, I couldn’t even remember what shoes I was wearing when I started running back in 2009. I had to dig up old photos and search through Facebook to jog my memory (see what I did there?). The best I could come up with was a picture from 2010, and I’m wearing what appear to be Asics. With no disrespect to the brand, I recall them being a bit chunky and cumbersome.

*Mileage: maybe 300km over the course of several years*

Nike LunarGlide+

I bought my first pair of Nikes at Kintec, a local footwear and orthotics store. My interest in running had started to take hold, and I thought it was time to make a commitment. I had bought a Nike+ sensor that synced with my iPod Nano, and until this time it had been attached to my mystery Asics via a Velcro-enabled sensor pocket (yes, I’m sure that’s what it said on the box).

At Kintec, they did a gait analysis on their in-house treadmill. It was noted that I had some pronation, and they suggested a shoe to remedy that. The recommended pair was on sale, and I took the plunge.

This early (first?) edition LunarGlide were lauded for their use of ‘Lunarlite foam’ – apparently something the astronauts use. But at the time, I had little awareness of (or, frankly, interest in) the construction of my shoes. All I knew was that there was a little Nike+ iPod sensor-shaped cutout in the sole of this amazing shoe, so I could continue tracking my runs!

I will take this opportunity to admit that the ability to track my runs via Nike+ was a huge motivation in my continuing to exercise.

I believe I bought these shoes sometime in 2010, and I have photographic evidence of them from my BMO Half in 2012. They served me well. I still have these shoes, and use them for my lunchtime runs.

*Mileage: Possibly well over 700km*

Nike LunarGlide+ 4 

When my training really miles started to increase – and when I decided that a full marathon was in the cards – it was time to get some new shoes. I purchased them on Boxing Day 2012.

Figuring it was best to stick with what I knew, I leaned on the experts at Forerunners and upgraded to the newest version of the Nike LunarGlide.

I loved these shoes instantly. First of all, the colours – black and neon green! How could you go wrong?

Secondly, they’ve got great reflectively qualities – particularly the ‘swoosh’, but also everything under the mesh is kind of shiny.

Finally, they are water resistant. The shiny bit under the mesh – apparently a ‘shield’ – has actually kept my toes dry on many occasions.

Yes – they have Lunarlon and Flywire technology, too. But I will leave these technical aspects to the experts (honestly, until I started writing this post, I had never ever heard of Lunarlon…) – I like this review.

These shoes carried me through training in 2013 and 2014…including my first marathon. And they matched my wardrobe (i.e. my neon green/yellow jacket) perfectly. They’re pretty worn out, with cracks in the sole – but they still make it into rotation from time to time.

*Mileage: Eek – might even have exceeded 1000km*

Nike Air Pegasus+ 30

Boxing Day 2013. I wanted to take advantage of the sales. They were out of size 9 1/2 but I convinced myself that a 9 was fine. I also convinced myself that I was fine with the colour – that panels of blue, red and pink ‘Gym Red, Armory Navy, Atomic Red’ suited me.  They didn’t. They went back to the store (mostly because they really didn’t fit well, but the colour might well have been a factor…)

…and I replaced them with a larger size of the same model, but this time in ‘Armory Blue’. These shoes carried me through a couple of races, but ultimately I decided the fit just wasn’t right. They were just too snug, and the toe box (is that the right phrase?) to narrow. They were subsequently ‘retired’.

This disappointed me, because the Pegasus has been around for about 30 years and is reported to be an incredibly reliable shoe. Not so in my case, unfortunately.

*Mileage: Probably not more than 100km*

Mizuno Wave Rider 17 

The Mizuno guy came to Forerunners one day, allowing us to try out a pair in a long training run.  After completing about 20km and feeling invincible, I bought a pair. The shoes were lightweight and comfortable. They could do no wrong. And I loved the colours: ‘Barbados Cherry/Silver/Green Flash’.

Once I finished Honolulu, however, I realized that the Wave lacked the support I needed. The outside edge of my foot started to hurt, and I ended up going to physio. After recovery, I tried the shoes on again and the pain returned (it was like someone had slipped a little dull blade into the side of the sole), I gave up. These shoes were retired.

*Mileage: Maybe around 250km*

Nike Linarglide+ 6

My current shoes will get a full review in a future post. Let’s see how they perform in my next few races…

How has your shoe history been? Do you stick to favourites or switch things up? What’s your number one shoe?