So, what do you guys think the best spikes are? It'd be really cool to get the opinions of current coaches too, since you have a good grasp of current and older spikes. There have been a few threads like this before, but I definitely think the game has majorly changed since.
Personally, my vote is with the Nike Victory 1s. Never felt more light and aggressive for a mile, even if they hardly lasted a season.
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I presume you mean running spikes, anyone older than 25 will tell you that the Nike Jasari was best followed by the Eldoret. Personally the Ventulus 2 and the Adidas Avanti 2 are my favorite.
Jasari upper with eldoret plate was easily the best spike ever created- re: komen in '96 in white. I recently saw a picture of an eldoret upper with a jasari plate on another track website. That's a close second.
The original Puma Harambee. Had the tan, red, and black ones from like 2000. Hands down the best spike ever made.
Subway Surfers Addiction wrote:
I presume you mean running spikes, anyone older than 25 will tell you that the Nike Jasari was best followed by the Eldoret.
I'm older than 25 and I'll tell you I absolutely hated my the original Eldorets. Hated them. I wore the Zoom V and Zoom D the previous 2-3 years and loved them. Then I got stuck with the garbage Eldorets. No arch support and I always felt like my toes were curling upward or pigeon toed. Hard to describe.
As an athlete myself I really like the Nike JaFly 2 for hurdles—I have a very narrow foot, especially in the heel, and it grips perfectly. Which brings me, as a coach, to what I always stress to athletes: the foremost concern (other than the spike in general being appropriate to the event) should be how it fits your foot. That the JaFly 2 is awesome doesn't negate that the Celar 5 by Nike is as well, but it's cut wider—so if you have a wide foot, check it out.
In contrast, I found the Nike Zoom Rival XC 3 from 2014 (I think) far superior to their 2015 edition of the same shoe. It fit better and had better flex in the forefoot. The Victory XC, their top-end XC spike, in contrast has too much flex and kind of pinches—my experience and that of several other athletes.
All the newer New Balance spikes I saw at Nationals last year seemed impressive. Athletes who bought them at Nationals and wore them in events that day or the next day (and yes, plenty of people seemed to do this) seemed to feel they broke in immediately and were comfortable and effective. Saucony, which I have limited experience with myself, seems good at making very durable spikes, something Nike's falls short at at times.
I really, really, really want to stress however is that the best spike is the one that fits you personally best. If it fits poorly, I don't care how good its tech is.
The pumas are the same thing as the Jasari upper/eldoret plate. Eldoret upper was nothing special.
Jasari plate is the best ever. Stick the original victory upper on that plate with modern plastic stuff on the bottom rather than the felt stuff on the jasari and you'd have the ultimate spike.