The Best Running Shoes of 2015

A Run Specialty Sales Associate's Opinion
By Aaron Monier

It's an exciting time to be a runner. Never before has the running shoe industry been so saturated with variety. It's a confusing and competitive landscape that encourages people to seek advice at their local run specialty shop to help navigate the dense mass of options. Helping to match runners with running shoes is something I do for 35-40 hours a week. I fancy myself a professional and take pride in being knowledgable on product, biomechanics, and how the two coincide.

First of all, I would like to say that everybody has a running gait that is completely unique to their skeletal and muscular structure. Have you ever seen a good friend running down the road and identified them from a mile away? We are all different in our technique and shoes today come in a wide spectrum of support, cushioning, and fit to accommodate these discrepancies. So just because these are shoes that I think are the greatest of the year does not necessarily mean they will be the best running shoes for you.

What makes a great running shoe? There are so many factors to consider. Some folks like to pour over shoe specs to find the "right" shoe but I think the single most important element is unquantifiable. It's something I refer to as "the ride." This basically boils down to how enjoyable the shoe is to run in. Consider that different shoes are meant to preform for different runs. Race day, everyday, and recovery run shoes will look and "ride" much different. I personally prefer a lighter weight running shoe but I also don't want to feel like I'm pounding away 60 miles a week in an ultra minimal trainer. I like to feel the ground not get beat up by it. Fortunately, in the post-minimal landscape there are a plethora of light weight and modestly cushioned shoes to choose from. I prefer shoes that are flatter and balanced in construction and don't have a significant amount of bulk in the heel. Flexibility is an important factor influencing the overall feel of a shoe. I like shoes that allow for
natural movement of the foot but are stable enough to offer support as the miles add up. Lastly, a great running shoe fits well and disappears on your feet while running. Secure in the heel and arch with a roomy toe box for your feet to splay and absorb shock. These elements combined result in shoes that I enjoy logging miles in. My advice would be to try different things and discover what works for you. Never feel like you need a certain type of shoe. You are going to find things that work and things that don't. Most importantly, just run enjoy being active.

A few other words of caution: There is no perfect shoe. It doesn't exist. Stop chasing the unicorn. All you can do is decide what is most important to you and what areas you are willing to sacrifice. That being said all these shoes will have a pros and cons section. Also, there is no shoe that is going to fix you. You need to help yourself. Don't decide one week to triple your typical mileage or run 10 miles when the furthest you've run is 5k and blame the shoes. If your form is terrible and you are constantly injured it's not the wand... It's the magician.

Let's take a look at my Best Running Shoes of 2015. Yes, people run in shoes... Not "sneakers" so please stop calling them that.

1. The Everyday Trainer

Saucony Kinvara 6 $100

The Kinvara has yet to be killed. I'm a late bloomer to the shoe but started wearing the Kinvara 5 last year in the fall. My first run in them was a local 10 miler and it was love at first sight. The Kinvara 6 made some minor tweaks to the TPU overlays, known as FlexFilm, to improve the overall fit of the upper. No more weird folding of the material by the pinky toe. Saucony also claims the integration of the arch wrapping mechanism called Pro-Lock was improved in the K6. The outsole and midsole
configuration was left untouched and the characteristic "ride" of the Kinvara remains consistent. Saucony managed to slightly improve the somewhat "baggy" fit in this years version. The result: the
best running shoe of 2015 in my opinion. I've gone through 4 pairs this year, run 3 marathons in
them, and will most likely get another before the 3/1/2016 release of the Kinvara 7 that gets a major update this spring with a new outsole configuration and Saucony's Boost-like midsole Everun.

The Hits:

Lightweight construction makes you feel very efficient and fast.

The right amount of cushioning. The Kinvara is a very versatile shoe in the sense that you can run a snappy 5k in it but gives you enough cushion to run marathon distance comfortably.

Soft in the back and responsive upfront. I thought that it would make more sense to have the premium cushioning in the forefoot of a shoe that is meant to promote a forefoot strike. I was totally wrong. The heel is a loose adaptor and if you must land heel first it nice to have something soft and forgiving. However, as you stabilize and toe off you want to push off on a denser more stable material. That's why running on beach sand is so difficult. You waste so much energy pushing off on an unstable surface.

Smooth and flexible transition. Moving from initial contact to toe off feels really natural and fluid in the Kinvara. Some of the maximal cushioned shoes are very awkward and clunky in this regard due to the immense stack height and lack of proprioception.

The Misses:

Durability is the biggest draw back of the Kinvara. I wouldn't expect them to hold their form for more than 350 miles. You start by wearing down what precious rubber outsole there is but more importantly the deep flex grooves get worked beyond capacity and the shoe becomes a dish rag.

Bootie construction. Dat booty! In a few of my K6s the gussets were folded over and dug into the keystone of my arch, the navicular bone, and caused irritation.

Conclusions: The Kinvara is the GOAT and continues to evolve and thrive despite whatever trends emerge in the industry. Don't believe me? Just wait until Hoka One One releases a shoe with near identical specs called the Tracer. Also, Sketchers makes a very comparable shoe in the GoRun4... but then everybody would make fun of you for wearing Sketchers. #shapeups

2. The Sports Car: When You Want to Pick Up The Pace

New Balance Vazee Pace $110

Zante? Never heard of her. Let me start by saying I was a huge fan of the New Balance 890 and the v2 held a special place in my heart. It helped me transition into a lower drop and improved my form due to it's sleek profile. I owned at least 5 pairs of the v2 and also logged miles in the v4 and v5. However, the shoe evolved into more of a moderately cushioned trainer than a true hybrid and the midsole seemed to be getting softer in the process. I still enjoyed running in them for their cushy ride and was sad to learn that New Balance was discontinuing the model. I asked my New Balance rep,
"What gives?" and he assured me there would be new options of performance trainers in the New Balance lineup. So I patiantly waited until the spring when the much anticipated Fresh Foam Zante came out. After being hailed the "Best Running Shoe of 2015" by Competitor Magizine I was very excited to see what the hype was about. Plus, they just looked awesome. Unfortunately, I was fairly underwhelmed by the fit and felt my arches aching after longer runs due to a significant and awkward lump in the mid foot. This was a fatal flaw for me. I wanted to love this shoe but I wasn't getting what I needed out of the relationship and left. I was about to break up with New Balance completely after failed attempts at the Fresh Foam 980, 1080, and Fresh Foam  Zante. I thought it was over until one day at work our New Balance rep stopped by with some demos of a new shoe. I had read it was built on the same last as the Zante and my expectations were low. However, after a short little jog around Main Street I noticed that the fit was way better  and the ride was less "mushy" soft and more "peppy" firm... err... "responsive" as they say in the industry. I decided to give New Balance another shot and ordered a pair. I'm really glad I did.

The Hits:

Light and flexible construction that feel like your not wearing shoes at all.

Toe spring that turns your strides over very quickly and increases average cadence.

Smooth heel to toe transition and a energetic ride that really responds when picking up the pace for a tempo workout but isn't so harsh you can't slog through some recovery miles in them.

Durability is pretty phenomenal for such a light shoe. The Vazee Pace actually feels better the more
you run in it. With well over 50 miles I see no signs of this shoe slowing down.

The upper. New Balance designed one of the best uppers I've ever run in. The mesh is a secure but pliable material that feels wonderful. The heel counter is "deconstructed" and an accordion like design makes this the most comfortable and secure heel counter in the game.

RevLite midsole. The stuff of legends. Such a versatile and smooth EVA foam that is only rivaled by Saucony's PowerGrid. RevLite strikes a great balance of being cushioned and responsive. Take your hippy Fresh Foam, put it in a pipe, and smoke it. Seriously though... Don't do that.

More outsole coverage ensures grip and durability of the shoe. The podular design makes the shoe
stable in the heel and flexible in the mid and forefoot.

The Misses:

The tight knit mesh can make the shoe a little warm on hot days. I'm not sure if it was the mesh, the disgusting New England humidity, or the fact I sweat like a bank robber in court, but after a few summer runs I noticed the shoe was completely saturated in sweat.

The thick rubber can be pretty clunky and make the shoes sound very loud.

The last is very curved and significantly cutaway underneath the arch. This causes a sensation of arch support that I'm not crazy about but makes sense for the overall design of the shoe.

Conclusions:

New Balance has really invested in the Vazee line which also includes a fitness model, the Vazee Rush, and a price point model the Vazee Coast.

New Balance will be offering the Vazee Pace in a highly visible and reflective version called the Vazee Pace Beacon, and a more breathable version, the Vazee Pace Breathe. In 2016 look out for a trail version in the Vazee line called the Vazee Summit, and a mild stability version called the Vazee Prism. This entire lineup looks awesome and should have a shoe for just about everybody. Vazee. Let's go!

3. The Luxury SUV

Saucony Zealot ISO $130

The Saucony Triumph ISO gets all the attention in the ISO series but the Zealot is the real star of the show. Think of the Zealot as the Kinvara's cousin whose family genetics have more cushion in their DNA. The Zealot replaces the similar Virrata in the Saucony line and was the 3rd version of the ISO series when it dropped in the Spring of 2015. The initial reaction wasn't incredibly positive. People were commenting on how "firm" the shoe felt. I'm not sure if it's because the shoe was tested during one of the nastiest winters on record here in New England (wicked hash wintah guy) but most folks I talked to were less than impressed and expected a softer riding shoe like a Hoka Clifton. This summer I noticed a need for a well cushioned trainer for some of my recovery and longer runs since all my 890s were starting to wear down. I own other high cushioned trainers like the Adidas Energy Boost, Hoka Huaka, and the Saucony Triumph ISO but they all felt kind of awkward and clunky on runs. I decided to give the Zealot a go and was really impressed with how the shoe fit and felt right out of the box. The shoe rides very plush but not so soft you loose your feel for the ground. The Zealot is a slow cruiser that really dampens the impact forces of striking the pavement for over an hour on longer runs. The stack height is not quite maximal and not exactly everyday trainer territory. It fits somewhere in between and strikes a really nice balance between well cushioned and ground feel.

The Hits:

The ISO Fit upper. This floating cage that wraps the arch and mid foot allows the upper a one piece, bootie construction. It fits snug in the arch and the toe box is not cramped but not sloppy either.

4mm Offset. The amount of cushion in the heel and the mid foot usually differs. This difference is sometimes referred to as "the drop." Traditional shoes have a build up of 10-15mm more cushion in the heel than the mid foot . Thanks to the minimal movement we are seeing more companies offer shoes at a variety of "drops" or "offsets" and that is a good thing. To me, the lower drop shoes promote better balance and landing underneath your body's center of gravity. Usually I run in shoes with a 2-8mm offset but I wouldn't be opposed to higher or lower if the ride was smooth. This is just what seems to work best for me.

The PowerGrid Plus midsole. Think of a compound that is slightly more resilient and more bouncy ball than airy froth.

iBR rubber outsole coverage. Another reason people may feel this shoe has a firm feel despite the ample cushion is the point of contact with the ground has a high amount of durable rubber. iBR stands for injection blown rubber which makes it lighter and less durable than most rubber compounds. It wears quicker but it's light weight. Saucony also strategically places a heavier, more durable rubber, XT900, in high abrasion areas of the lateral heel and at point of toe off. These are the sacrifices you make when purchasing a shoe. To me, shoes wear out quick because I run 40-60 miles a week and I know better than to expect the shoe to get me any more than 3-5 months of training even when put in a rotation. Having a light weight shoe is more important to me than a shoe that holds it's form. Usually durable shoes take so long to break in that the amount of quality running you get out of them is comparable.

The Misses:

The midsole material is very affected by temperature. This is something I've noticed in both extremes. The shoe can feel very soft and mushy in the heat and very firm and unforgiving in the cold.

Stiff heel counter. The heel counter is fairly structured in the Zealot and well padded. Sometimes this can cause a minor irritation.

Conclusion:

If you've ever wished that the the Kinvara had more cushion or you want a cushier ride and your foot doesn't fit into a Hoka's cramped toe box the Zealot really finds a sweet spot for you. I find this to be the closest riding shoe to the 890 and offers a slightly cleaner feel than the Saucony Ride.