Shoes for Ultra

Pondering this one.....so thought I would I put it out there.

Those of you who have or are doing ultras.....did your choice of footwear change,make brand, type of shoe change?.

I am using saucony kinvara 2's and they have been suitable for marathons but just wondering if you changed and why, or indeed if I should.

I appreciate the mileage increase and high turn over of shoe etc.

Any thoughts guys & girls image

 

Comments

  • Ive been having this dilemma too as I wear fairly minimal shoes! I've done 50k in them and was fine but will they still be fine for 100 miles! Decisions, decisions!!!
  • I wore my usual road shoes - Asics Cumulus - for my first two ultras. Got on fine with one and struggled a bit with the other as the terrain was a bit wet and muddy and I'd have been much better in trail shoes. But if you're running ultras that are similar terrain to your marathons, probably better to stick with what you know and like.

    I was reading a great blog recently, British guy called James Adams, amazing ultra runner, ran across America from LA to New York and did it in fairly minimal Newtons. Not just the one pair though, obviously. LOL!

  • See my road shoes are Newtons but they wouldn't be my first choice for an ultra just because they aren't great for walking in! For any races where you intend on running it all they are great, the action reaction technology really does work!!! image they are pretty pants on soft ground too as the lugs cant work properly!

  • As WiB says but also consider fresh socks if 50 mile +
  • Ah Newtons... They burnt a hole!...as they didn't do what I hoped even

    The neutral version was a recommendation by Profeet!.



    Depends on terrain etc like you say... But I am assuming

    My first ultra will be fairly flat and the desire to get the first

    Under my belt !! image .



    So much to think about and on a Friday night !! Lol



    But thank you all for your time and input



    image x
  • im doing a two day Ultra next year. I intend to use two pairs but should I have two identical pairs or should I have two slighltly different styles?

  • Just changing to minimal shoes. Going to do a trail ultra of 45 miles in April, don't know whether to ditch minimals now or what.......
  • Clare - why are you aiming to do a fairly flat ultra as your first? In my personal experience they're harder as you have to concentrate a lot more on feeding, drinking and forced walk breaks - if you find one with some nice hills in it you get built in walk breaks up the hills, which is when you can also think about eating and drinking, and you get nicer views to inspire you to keep going... Just a thought...

    Karen - if you're now changing to minimals then you've got 6-7 months to be used to them, and that's 6-7 months of running in bad weather, bad terrain etc, so by April you should be completely at ease with them.

    Graeme - try it and see.... Seriously, the whole point of ultras is that there is no right, and no wrong answers. As the quote goes "we are all an experiment of one" - what suits you probably won't suit me, and vice versa. Also, and interestingly/frustratingly depending on your point of view - what works this time MAY not work next time.... I've no doubt you'll be doing B2B training runs to get used to the idea of 2 long runs in a row - so try one B2B with the same trainers, and then try another with different pairs, see how you react, see how you feel... To be honest, it will depend on the day. If you get through day one unscathed then you'll probably want to stick to the same pair for day two. If you've got blisters etc then changing may well relieve the pressure?

  • I just run in my road shoes. They are comfortable and they don't give me blisters.
  • Karen: I ran NDW50 in minimalist shoes - Neo Trail - and was fine.  Like ultrarocker says, you've got 6-7 months more to get used to your shoes, so you should be fine for the distance by then [I find it helpful to massage my calves night and morning after a run].

    Clare: If your shoes are comfortable for you, why change just because you'll be running in them for a bit (or even a lot) longer? The one thing I would start thinking about is whether and to what extent your feet swell on longer runs (everyone is different): if you find your shoes are getting tight by the end of a marathon in warmer weather then you might want a pair of the same shoes in a half or full size larger for summer ultras.

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