Not sure I get your point but I will say we runners hav it so, SO good these days.
If you're willing to be patient, you can pick up a pair of supershoes from nearly any brand for right around 100 (and sometimes cheaper). AP3 was 135 last week straight from Adidas. AF and Tempo Next for 92 at Nike Outlet. Bostons for 50 at Ross. Endorphin Pro 2 for 99 at Amazon today. This is nuts.
The trick is to just purchase last year’s modes on clearance. That is what I have always done and will always do. I usually get my shoes for $60-70.
Recently I splurged for a couple more expensive pairs… &110 for Zoom Fly 5s and $108 for Takumi Sen 9s. I actually regret paying that much for the Zoom Flys, though am OK with paying that much for the Takumis.
But I will never pay the ridiculous prices I see for the latest models ($150+). I can afford that price point no problem , but it is the principal of the matter.
Interesting to see Runners World talking about shoe prices and saying theyre too expensive. They said the new adidas shoe would drive up the price of everything even more.
Hot take: No non-super shoe is actually worth more than $100. There's no real reason you have to have the most recent version of a shoe, just the buy the previous version on discount or hell even off ebay or another resale site. If you know what to look for you have a pretty low chance of getting scammed and there are plenty new or like new shoes out there.
Not sure how serious you are but of course the youtube shoe reviewers do not affect the price point.
Shoes now are more expensive than they were 10 years ago for sure but there are plenty of factors behind that. Inflation is up about 40% from 2010, so that right there would take a shoe that was 100 dollars in 2010 and make it 140 dollars today. I would say we are also generally getting MORE shoe today than even 10 years ago with higher stacks the norm today not to mention the costlier foams/other materials.
While i would not spend 250 dollars on a pair of shoes, plenty of people do. In a sport that is generally very cheap compared to other endurance sports (looking at you cycling), i am ok with the shoe prices. As others have said, you can always get last years model for cheap and companies like atreyu have very affordable offerings. Most of the major companies also have cheaper options available (saucony axiom, brooks has a model too, hoka rincon is fairly cheap). I have found quality to be quite good these days anyway. I dont run a ton (40 miles per week) but shoes typically last me 6 months to a year.
I find myself remembering what a former manager told me when i was looking at buying my first house. He said his colleagues were shocked when he had a mortgage of $350 on his first home. They told him he was crazy for spending so much on a house. That was back in the 80s. And i was looking at a mortgage of $1600 which i thought was reasonable but my fellow colleagues balked at.
So basically, i think the price increase is reasonable compared to inflation but super shoes are a bit steep.
Interesting to see Runners World talking about shoe prices and saying theyre too expensive. They said the new adidas shoe would drive up the price of everything even more.
Here is my beef. Not trying to talk us into buying all these shoes that they got for free. I understand that. I just don't like some aspects of the modern review. Minor complaint:
The memorized 'disclosure' about getting free shoes. They all burn a minute on this. "All opinions are my own." Are they told to say those exact words?
Major complaint:
Gussetted. Lockdown.
I have worn a lot of shoes. I am old and was running before starting high school. A lot of miles in a lot of different shoes. I wore 2 pair on this morning's workout. Moreover, I was a teenager in the pre-Nike era. They existed, but they had not taken over the high school sports market. So unlike later generations, no choice was made for me and enforced by peer pressure. I had to actually decide between a bunch of choices. There was no default that everyone wore. I'd go into a shop and check out a bunch.
I still do. And you know what I have never thought of? Gussetted tongue. Lockdown. I tried in a couple things I'd never worn before in a store just yesterday. Those things never came to mind. I do not care about, and have never thought about, gusseted tongues other than while watching a video. Lockdown has never occurred to me. I am aware of the word only from ShoeTubers. I have never said it. I have never heard anyone say it in real life. I also have never the word gussetted before or since.
Removing these 2 non-issues could cut minutes off these things.
Kofuzi’s disclosures (which seem to impress the teenagers on the board) are meaningless. The guy gets flown around the world by ASICS and gets them to pay for his shakeout runs (free Kofuzi x ASICS tees and food).
With that being said, lockdown is very important to me.
I have to admit, the only time I've ever heard the words 'gussetted' and 'lockdown' was in these videos. I've never spoken, or even thought about, either word. Now this poster is saying lockdown is important. This is a joke, right?
Kofuzi and SJD just seem like 2 running addicts who care more about filming videos and traveling to run than their own children and spouses. It’s extremely weird and cringey. Seth is unhinged but at least he’s fast. Kofuzi is logical, overly so, but his non elite persona is so silly and the dude is slow af
Kofuzi’s disclosures (which seem to impress the teenagers on the board) are meaningless. The guy gets flown around the world by ASICS and gets them to pay for his shakeout runs (free Kofuzi x ASICS tees and food).
With that being said, lockdown is very important to me.
I have to admit, the only time I've ever heard the words 'gussetted' and 'lockdown' was in these videos. I've never spoken, or even thought about, either word. Now this poster is saying lockdown is important. This is a joke, right?
To me, lockdown is how well the upper fits — a lack of floating around feeling in the upper.
Kofuzi and SJD just seem like 2 running addicts who care more about filming videos and traveling to run than their own children and spouses. It’s extremely weird and cringey. Seth is unhinged but at least he’s fast. Kofuzi is logical, overly so, but his non elite persona is so silly and the dude is slow af
big facts here. its pretty weird. seth popped out tons of babies and leaves his wife alone to care for all of them. i think they put on a 'show' for the camera. its very cringeworthy to see as a viewer and theres no way its healthy. kofuzi seems disconnected from his kids as well and is obsessed with traveling the world to run races with other slow people. what a dream to always be in a 'runner's weekend'. at least they're living out their fantasies but i wonder how their home lives actaully are lol
