ON-Running athletes racing in Nike

ON doesn't even make a spike lol

On is one of the worst running shoe and clothing companies to ever exist.

They raced and have been training in ON spikes

i will keep this to the point wrote:

On is one of the worst running shoe and clothing companies to ever exist.

Their clothes are fantastic quality. I don’t really like the cuts, but they are top notch. They’ve been developing a spike for what seems like at least 3 years. Idk what’s taking them.

A rep from On came to a a weekly run that my local running club does a couple years ago, and let people try the shoes on for their run. I tried a pair...did not like them. They felt really hard on the ground (though I know some people might like a more "responsive" shoe than I do).

It would be interesting to try them again in a year or so after they continue product development with their elite athletes.

Disko Eric wrote:

i will keep this to the point wrote:

On is one of the worst running shoe and clothing companies to ever exist.

Their clothes are fantastic quality. I don’t really like the cuts, but they are top notch. They’ve been developing a spike for what seems like at least 3 years. Idk what’s taking them.

If by ‘fantastic quality l’ you actually mean ‘grossly over priced and over designed’ then yeah.

nice spikes wrote:

They raced and have been training in ON spikes

Yeah, obviously it's not a close look, but they appear to be ON spikes from what I could tell on Klecker and Hoare's Instagrams.

I've just got one of the ON shirts, but I love it. Haven't tried the shoes yet, but all this talk reminds me of when folks were disparaging Hoka, Skechers, ....2 of my fav 3 shoe brands.

Maybe the ON spikes are just so good everyone thinks they’re Nike.

lol

high hopes wrote:

Hoare and Klecker appeared to be wearing Nike Dragonflys at NBGP. Great runs nevertheless, but how does ON-Running go for this? It just seems to be completely counter to good brand marketing. What’s the plan here? Let’s sponsor a team and have them wear our competitor’s spikes?

All it shows is that the very athletes they sponsor don’t believe in the product themselves. It’s absurd. Can you imagine BTC athletes racing in adidas spikes?

Hoka did the same thing early on with their athletes racing in Nikes.

ON has two spikes, the Cloudspike Shinka and the Cloudspike Tohka. Believe one is mid-D and one is LD but not sure which.

Although I'm not a fan of current ON shoes (I just think they're uncomfortable), I think where they make their money is not in innovation but in materials and looks. Which is why they're the fastest growing brand (not a shill): people love something that's in-between weird and cool and has a "gimmick" that they think offers some edge over their competitors. I do think they look great but that's not what I'm after when I'm looking at shoes.

I do think the upcoming Cyclon looks like a solid workout shoe and is also a very cool concept that takes the whole recycled material concept a step further. And it gets rid of the stupid Cloud "technology."

They make a decent cap

I didn’t intend this thread to bash ON products. Seems to me that people like the shoes and apparel. That’s not my point. I just find it odd that any marketing department would ever allow for a paid spokesperson (sponsored athlete or team in this case) to willfully wear a product that is a direct competitor or disparage the company they represent by refusing to use the product. It just makes no sense whatsoever. If the OAC represents the brand then they should represent the brand. Warts and all. ON has track spikes. Wearing a covered up Nike spike, especially when those said athletes are running great, simply just makes ON look foolish and second rate.

ON is a running shoe company after all. Either stand behind your product or don’t.

nice spikes wrote:

They raced and have been training in ON spikes

not true, they raced in Dragonflys with some sleeve around it en the switched the white laces to black ones , this gives more the new ON-spike look but both had dragonflys on the feet. saw some good close ups to prove it.

On explicitly acknowledged that Nike had made game changing racing shoes, and it said that its athletes can wear them until it comes up with something competitive.

Sort of like when Nike let Tiger use his Titleist driver because it was clear that Nike hadn't made something comparable yet.

This is embarrassing. I'd fire them if I was On. This is what happens when you sponsor people who have never worn a non-Nike shoe. Most decent American runners at college graduation are in this category. Look how old Ritz was the first time he had another brand on his feet. It was the end of his career. Although it's not always a contractual violation, i.e. Oiselle sponsored runners, Americans who went through the high school and college systems will wear the swoosh if there's no impediment to doing so. It's what they wore as teenagers, after all. In fact, I might be hesitant to hire/sponsor someone if I snooped around and didn't see anything else besides Nike in their collections. I'd be concerned they'd pull this stunt. These jokers are ripping off their employer!

800 dude wrote:

On explicitly acknowledged that Nike had made game changing racing shoes, and it said that its athletes can wear them until it comes up with something competitive.

Sort of like when Nike let Tiger use his Titleist driver because it was clear that Nike hadn't made something comparable yet.

I don’t believe the Tiger example is a fair comparison. Nike is a shoe and apparel company first and foremost and Tiger was wearing the swoosh shoes and apparel long before Nike ever got into the golf club business.

A better comparison example would be a Callaway sponsored golfer playing with Ping clubs. It wouldn’t happen, and if it did, it would be embarrassing to Callaway.

On let their athletes in the trials race in Nikes. I don’t doubt they’re allowing the same until they can put out a competitive spike.

The average track fan is not over analyzing what shoe athletes are racing in. The have ON singlets and are showing people ON is in the running market. Which is what they are paid to do. Selling track distance spikes is not a money maker anyway.

shark1112 wrote:

The average track fan is not over analyzing what shoe athletes are racing in. The have ON singlets and are showing people ON is in the running market. Which is what they are paid to do. Selling track distance spikes is not a money maker anyway.

This makes some sense. Maybe there's something to this school of thought. I guess Tracksmith clad runners are wearing something on their feet, usually Nike I assume (just since US high school = Nike so you're used to them and all). Until Kara put on Skechers, I was under the impression all or most Oiselle athletes were in the swoosh.

But those are just apparel. On is mainly shoes, isn't it? I thought that was their whole idea, right? So maybe they're looking at it like you said, but I still think this is a disgrace. I don't see myself ever even trying the brand now. They think they suck. It appears that they don't even allow their own pros to wear their product. If the owners and management are about as bullish about their stuff as I am about running in Crocs, I believe them. They must be bad if On is this sure they are!