Is the Nike Pegasus as great as everyone says it is?

PS: I am a mild overpronator (only over pronate in my left leg) looking for a neutral trainer

I've never looked at nor participated in the LR shoe review primarily because I am under the impression that it's mostly about this shoe. I always think to myself, I've never actually even seen a pair, so no way I'm joining the fan club.

Well, I saw one recently for the 1st time. Not a pair, just 1 shoe. I wouldn't be willing to try it on. So here's my theory about its popularity:

This may be changing, but in the recent past, high school mid distance running was almost exclusively done in Nike. I remember a picture in Running Times (so this is dating the info of course, but it was still well into this decade) of a high school race and the entire lineup was wearing them. Spiked shoes, not Pegasus, but 100% Nike. A later photo shoot showed a bunch of high school runners from across the country and there were maybe 3 wearing another brand. So, it was only around 99% at the time those pictures were taken.

I don't follow NCAA track super carefully but at last year's National meet, I saw a pair of New Balance. So we'll over 99% then, but noticed more than one pair of non-Nike this year, so significantly below 100% but still, it is rare for an American runner to go the school-affiliated route (and let's face it, does anyone young run on their own without school sanction these days?) and have worn anything else.

Maybe they tried something else briefly, but if you're 23, you may have run less than a 1000 miles in another brand. Maybe closer to 100. Likely none at all, as peer pressure is strong (why do you think these kids join the track team in the first place?) and their first pair is going to be what everyone else has.

How many of the MB poster does this describe? Changing to another brand later usually requires a pro contract. If someone else is paying you, that's a good enough reason to switch, otherwise, why not just stay with what you're used to.

Look at Ryan Hall. Well known for ASICS, but the day before that 1st contract was signed, guess what his closet was full of? Hint: he went to Stanford. If you're not Hall, switching to ASICS nor Jenny Barringer going to NB, and no one thinks you're good enough to pay, we'll, a lot of these folks just keep wearing Nike. It's all they've ever worn and why not stay with it?

Yes, I like it. am currently rotating the 35 and 36 as trainers

they are like the most bread and butter trainer ever produced. highly liked, no quirks, and they a can handle a ton of miles before they breakdown.

ive worn pegs since 2003 and haven't found anything better. for reference I tried some neutral Asics back in the day, those sucked. I moved to Mizunos neutral shoe, that one was great but I got significantly less mileage out of them.

Favorite trainers I ever had were Air Pegasus 1984, in silver-grey IIRC, with waffle outsole.

❤️❤️

Well that is good to hear. I am officially tired of wearing stability shoes like the brooks ravennas, even with what little stability they have it annoys me. I hope as a mild overpronator I can adapt to the Pegasus by gradually introducing them and doing ankle strengthening exercises.

why not go and try on a pair and see how they fit? anecdotally i went to a running store and asked them to recommend me some shoes, tried them on, and they seemed to fit/feel nice for me so i have been using them this season

They fit like a glove, I just hope my ankles will be able to adapt to them and I won’t start over pronating more.

I’ve worn the Pegasus since the 31s. Loved them until the 35s. Hate the new shoe, had all sorts of problems.

Bought 5 pairs of the 34 from an outlet site. Problem’s disappeared and back to running pain free.

Less structural support for the foot.

I’ve heard the newer pegasus models are better

How do the 35s compare to the 36s?

ForefootRunner177 wrote:

I’ve been running in nothing but brooks ravennas for the past couple years, looking for something new. I’m thinking about the Nike Pegasus as a daily trainer, are they good everyday training shoes for long runs and base mileage?

I’ve ran in the Pegasus for a few years & all I could say that the Pegasus Turbo is a lot better! Pegasus is definitely a trainer that will benefit everything in your daily training!

The Pegasus 29 were great. Bought as many pairs as I could. No bells and whistles. Similar to ones I wore in college in the early - mid 90's.

How’s the durability for mileage? I might buy a couple pairs to alternate.

pegs are a good shoe but not something amazing

I prefer the adidas boston boosts or the brooks ghosts as they are similar shoes but just work with ym feet better

For those asking about mileage, they have more durability than the ghosts and less than the bostons in my experience and I stretched them for 550 miles or so

Mostly, everyone, I know who ran in the 35's including myself experienced severe calf or tendon issues from running in them.

Yes the Nike Pegasus is great, I used to be asics 21 series in high school, then switched to Nike Vomero in college, and then Pegasus at end of college. I've tried a few others since Pegasus after college, but don't feel like any of them can match the Pegasus.

However I'm not a fan of the changes made to the Pegasus 36 this year, I think they tried to make it too lightweight and it has decreased its level of comfort. I don't need my trainer to be as lightweight as possible, I will wear a racing flat if I need something super lightweight. My trainers are for comfortably getting in all of the mileage without getting injured. I hope a Nike person patrols this board and reads my thoughts. HELLO NIKE PERSON!

Yes, I like them very much. They work for me.

I am currently running in the 36s, and after three weeks of mileage in the 70s, I am noticing some pilling and even small tearing in the mesh on the upper. This is on multiple spots on both shoes and doesn't appear to be due to anything in particular (like I got it caught on something, etc).

I have been wearing the Pegasus for decades and have never had this happen. Not sure whether to take back to store or not. I am wearing them a lot, and I don't expect them to last forever, but this is unusual. It's not that I want my money back, but I am more curious as to whether this is a faulty pair.