Friday 17 June 2011

New Balance 1080

I was recently received a pair of NB1080 trainers, which are the first pair of NB's I have had since I ran in a pair of 851's in the 2001 London Marathon, so with the chance to see how they had progressed exactly 10 years on I set out testing!

Initially the shoes appeared very large and looked heavy, but on this occasion  looks proved to be deceptive (actually had to check my backpack when I took them to work, to run home, to make sure I still had them with me) and I was soon slipping them on for my first run (Testing mileage of 145 miles in 1 month - well, work has been hectic - as I build up for the Shotley 55 mile challenge in September!

The fit was perfect and initially, like all new trainers the cushioning was plush and ride very springy, but unlike others after a good month of running there was no reduced performance! The cushioning still felt new and although the heel is well supported the ride is still responsive and the shoe grips well in all but even the wettest road conditions (thanks to the rains finally arriving).

Although a road shoe it still gripped reasonably well on harder trails and tracks, but would not be good for proper off-roading - will be good to get an NB trail shoe and see how that compares!

In all a very good shoe for all but the severest of pronators, and one I would heartily recommend and one that has me believing that New Balance have not changed massively in the last 10 years, but stuck with the tradition of producing great running shoes across the running spectrum for runners of all abilities!