Vaporfly 4% Buyers Remorse

Pretzel Man wrote:

So when Bowerman was making running shoes in his garage for his runners there time's really don't count ??

Their....

First off, the shoes are only $100 more than zoom streaks. So, is $100 worth a possible several minute PR? Yes. You put in months of training - why wouldn’t you spend this fractional amount to perform better? Plus you’ll wear them for several races so the incremental cost spread over those many races is very little.

Second, not sure what RW return policy is but if you buy direct from Nike you can run in the shoes and return them for full refund up to 30 days later.

Which marathon?

If it’s something this month, use them for your race and then return then for a full refund, because you get 30 days worn or not.

$250 is nothing for a shoe you wear only in races. Think of just the cost per mile in registration fees. What's an extra $1/mile in racing shoe cost?

Just PR'd my half running in them for the first time, no remorse here

Life is short . Running for most ,even shorter .

Enjoy the shoes !

Pretzel Man wrote:

So when Bowerman was making running shoes in his garage for his runners there time's really don't count ??

1. Pretty sure he wasn't putting kangaroo / pogo-stick spring mechanisms in them so not sure there's any analogy here...

2. Even if there was, the point was more geared towards hobbyjoggers like the OP. If you've been running for years and working hard for say a 10k / half / marathon pr, then run in Vaporflys and achieve your goal you've literally no way of telling if you performed better or not. What, therefore, would be the point? Yeah, sure you've got a new pr but it's worthless as a personal benchmark.

vaporflyremorse wrote:

Ordered a pair yesterday from Running Warehouse, but feel like it wasn't the best decision financially. I'm shooting for a 2:40ish marathon, so it's not like I'm even close to OTQ. Could I run a few minutes faster with them? Maybe, but for me it's not worth $100+ more over a pare of Streaks or something.

Should I just return them to RW or try to sell them somewhere? Not looking to make a profit. I'll try them on just for fun, but won't run outside with them.

What was the size of the shoes you bought? I run full time (and work part-time in exchange for free food) so can't afford these until my training gains kick in. Would be grateful to buy these. I'm serious.

Vaporfly Asterisk wrote:

Pretzel Man wrote:

So when Bowerman was making running shoes in his garage for his runners there time's really don't count ??

1. Pretty sure he wasn't putting kangaroo / pogo-stick spring mechanisms in them so not sure there's any analogy here...

2. Even if there was, the point was more geared towards hobbyjoggers like the OP. If you've been running for years and working hard for say a 10k / half / marathon pr, then run in Vaporflys and achieve your goal you've literally no way of telling if you performed better or not. What, therefore, would be the point? Yeah, sure you've got a new pr but it's worthless as a personal benchmark.

1. If he would have thought of it and made them it would be fine and no questions asked.

2. "Then run in Vaporfly and be achieve your goal you've literally no way of telling if you performed better or not." ???????????????

3. So when I jump into a trail run and wear a shoe with a aggressive bottom to get better grip , I shouldn't feel good with my time.

You peeps are being obtuse.

He's clearly looking for a buyer, but doesn't want to pay eBay fees.

He's trolling hoping someone says "Hey, I'll buy them from you. Then he'll stick to the $300 (or more) price tag

Good to see no one has fallen for it yet

tartarm wrote:

You peeps are being obtuse.

He's clearly looking for a buyer, but doesn't want to pay eBay fees.

He's trolling hoping someone says "Hey, I'll buy them from you. Then he'll stick to the $300 (or more) price tag

Good to see no one has fallen for it yet

Hey OP I'll but them from you. $150 since they are now used and tried on..Lemme know ,chief.

Don't understand your question marks re the second point? Vaporflys make you run faster due to the spring mechanism therefore you've absolutely no way to tell if YOU performed better or whether it was down to the shoes. You cheat yourself out out knowing if you ran the best you could.

As for the third - Yes, if you pr on some trail you should certainly feel good with your time. Especially if you've done it in muddy conditions so extreme that the lugs' performance is coming into play!

It’s a carbon plate, not a spring. It’s also in the Zoom Fly. Should both versions be banned?

Or is it the foam that’s the “spring”? So should the Pegasus Turbo be banned?

Is the Adidas boost not quite a “spring”.

You’re such a little bi-tch and butt hurt over these shoes.

Joe SMEGMA wrote:

tartarm wrote:

You peeps are being obtuse.

He's clearly looking for a buyer, but doesn't want to pay eBay fees.

He's trolling hoping someone says "Hey, I'll buy them from you. Then he'll stick to the $300 (or more) price tag

Good to see no one has fallen for it yet

Hey OP I'll but them from you. $150 since they are now used and tried on..Lemme know ,chief.

OP here. Shoes scheduled to be delivered tomorrow. Still planning to return them to RW. Not racing until Spring and wouldn't feel right returning them after a race even if the return policy "technically" allows it. I've seen some convincing arguments to just keep them, but not this time around. And no, I'm not going to try to profit off them. They have a pair of Streaks on sale right now for $80 I think I'll pick up instead. I've got at least a 5-10 years of good, PR potential running years ahead of me (I hope), so I'm in no rush to go all in yet for a last ditch effort.

Hate Nike Much wrote:

It’s a carbon plate, not a spring. It’s also in the Zoom Fly. Should both versions be banned?

Or is it the foam that’s the “spring”? So should the Pegasus Turbo be banned?

Is the Adidas boost not quite a “spring”.

You’re such a little bi-tch and butt hurt over these shoes.

Er, yeah it's the carbon plate that's the spring.

And given your use of "butt hurt" you're obviously too much of a Moran to get this but personally I don't care if they get banned, I never mentioned that at all - I said I (and I suspect many long term runners) wouldn't want to run in them because there is NO WAY of knowing if I'd performed better or whether it was the shoes. Yeah, sure I could wear them and get a pr but what's the point if I don't know if I improved or whether it just the spring?

Now maybe you don't agree and you just want to rock up to the water cooler on a Monday morning and casually drop in your new pr to Mike from accounts, who also runs, and you know what - good for you, I get that. But surely the converse holds and you could get - if you really try - that if I have been running for years trying to break 10 - Marathon times, I don't want to it to simply happen because I put on a spring loaded shoe.

Plus I love Nike and have been running in Pegs, Vomeros for years so your handle is as equally stupid as your post...

vaporflyremore wrote:

Let me get this right wrote:

You have buyers remorse about a product you haven't even tried out yet? A product that has the potential to shave time off your mary PB with literally no effort?

At least run in them first , you moran.

Yep, that's exactly what I said. For me, the cost vs. benefit isn't worth it. Is the value of a PR worth $250 to some? I'm sure it is. I was admittedly a sucker to the hype and marketing.

And running in them destroys the possibility of returning them for a full refund (to credit card). And yes, I'm worried if I run in them I won't want to :)

5 years from now, every manufacturer is bound to have a version of these at a lower price. I'll try them then.

OP has a Seattle IP address.

The shoes arrived today and while I didn’t run in them, they really do feel quite nice. The fit with FlyKnit is perfect. Man, I dont know if I can return these after all. Not a huge fan of the color - It screams “I’m wearing Vaporflys!!!”, but whatever.

I think we saw a lot of runners at Chicago wearing these, and they clearly can’t make up for a lack of training or a bad day. But they just might be able to make great training and a great race go even better.

Is setting a PR in them really any worse than claiming a PR in a negative slope course?

Yes, I overthink every decision in my life, and have done the same with a freaking pair of shoes.

Vaporfly Asterisk wrote:

Let me get this right wrote:

A product that has the potential to shave time off your mary PB with literally no effort?

Good decision by the OP. ^ This is exactly why you should return them.

If you're shooting for a pr, and have done the work in training, achieve it cleanly. Otherwise, years down the line:-

a) You'll always wonder what was actually legitimate and what was just the shoes.

b) When you tell someone your pr, it's going to reach a time when they'll then ask you what shoes you wore, and when you have to say vaporfly, there's going to be a questioning look of what that means you really would have ran.

Best to hit a real mark...

weird logic.

what if you wore some light flats.. did they make you faster than if you went barefoot? maybe all running shoes make times illegitimate?

Vaporflyremorse wrote:

The shoes arrived today and while I didn’t run in them, they really do feel quite nice. The fit with FlyKnit is perfect. Man, I dont know if I can return these after all. Not a huge fan of the color - It screams “I’m wearing Vaporflys!!!”, but whatever.

I think we saw a lot of runners at Chicago wearing these, and they clearly can’t make up for a lack of training or a bad day. But they just might be able to make great training and a great race go even better.

Is setting a PR in them really any worse than claiming a PR in a negative slope course?

Yes, I overthink every decision in my life, and have done the same with a freaking pair of shoes.

Ive run marathons in these and i have to say they are much easier on the legs so even if they don't make you run faster the faster recovery makes it worth it alone