Saucony Ride Iso Thoughts

intro

Alright so these aren't really my first impressions of this shoe I've put quite a few miles here on them in the first week I've had em. We're probably right around 50 miles in the Ride and so this post will be my impressions of the Saucony Ride Iso over those first 50 miles.  

fit

The fit of this shoe is much improved over last years Ride. Saucony includes a layer of EverRun (similar to Adidas Boost) underneath the insole of the shoe. Last year the Ride fit much closer to the foot and that layer of EverRun made it much shallower. This year I feel like they got some feedback and took that into account the forefoot is much more forgiving and the new Iso-fit upper makes the fit a bit more dynamic.  By dynamic I mean you can dial in the fit a bit more, the iso-fit upper is essentially a sock with a cage around it and it makes the Ride fit really, really well. 

initial feel

These days it feels like all shoes are built to feel like you're running on a bunch of marshmallows. Think Hoka. They took a huge share of the running market over the past few years and it seems like all the brands are chasing em down. Even Mizunos shoes are bit softer now a days. The Ride does a pretty good job, of being soft but not too soft. My thought is that the added layer of EverRun adds a bit of firmness and responsiveness underfoot. Some folks enjoy that marshmallow feel underfoot, I am not one of em. So I enjoy the feel of the Ride. 

the run

I always tell customers at the Rhode that you want to get yourself a set of shoes that disappears. You have enough to worry about when you're out there on a run and shoes should not be one of them. The Saucony Ride Iso is that shoe for me. It fits, it feels light but still substantial, it gives something back to me and just disappears. My first run in them was an easy five miler and the first few miles went smoothly, I got the usual hot spots running in a brand new shoe but over the next few days those went away. I ran an 11.5 mile run a few days ago and it went swimmingly, I ran on the road and some easy trails and the Ride Iso took everything I threw at it.

final thoughts

The Saucony Ride Iso is a great set of kicks and I would recommend trying it on for anyone who has a neutral gait. Its not for those over-pronators amongst us, but for those neutral runners it is definitely a shoe to try out!