Do they???
Do they???
Yes. They help nike and letsrun earn additional revenue.
I think the high drop and tall stack height might throw off their form.
I just read something on my Facebook page from a guy who used to be one of the better race walkers in the UK. He said that the best shoes for maintaining form are minimalist racing shoes.
High heel lifts and stack heights would be absolutely terrible for race walking, even worse than they are for running.
Michael Rohl here
College Coach and former U.S. World Cup Team Member in Raewalking.
I have to look into it more but here is what I do know. I have a guy on the team who bought them. He used them in a 3k and it seemed like they helped.
Examining my thoughts are the heel is too high and it would mess up the form. Now if that heel wasn't so high and you could get the toe up I think those carbon plates might help. I also think if you put a carbon plate in a spike it would help. I have thought about buying a pair and taking them to a cobbler and having him switch out the outer soles. Incidentally Nike makes Javelin shoes with a carbon plate and my bike shoes have a carbon plate.
Michael: what about the new Hoka Carbon X, seems like a lower-heel version of the VF?
I would think that a fatter shoe would make foot-fouling a thing of the past.
Michael Rohl wrote:
Michael Rohl here
College Coach and former U.S. World Cup Team Member in Raewalking.
I have to look into it more but here is what I do know. I have a guy on the team who bought them. He used them in a 3k and it seemed like they helped.
Examining my thoughts are the heel is too high and it would mess up the form. Now if that heel wasn't so high and you could get the toe up I think those carbon plates might help. I also think if you put a carbon plate in a spike it would help. I have thought about buying a pair and taking them to a cobbler and having him switch out the outer soles. Incidentally Nike makes Javelin shoes with a carbon plate and my bike shoes have a carbon plate.
Hello Michael. Maybe the New Balance Fuel Cell 5280 is more appropriate for Race walking?
Take a look at them below and tell me your first impressions. Thanks in advance!
https://www.runnersworld.com/gear/a27507064/new-balance-fuelcell-5280-mile-race-shoe/i hope this helps. i found that vapor fly enables me to shop 10% faster, however at checkout, there was no extra discount.
As a race walker, I would not want to try them. Walking motion is very different from running as race walkers hit heel first and then roll off the toe. The way the midsole extends way past the heel counter would act almost like a brake and slow you down. Plus from what I read, they are not very stable and allow a lateral rolling motion which also would not assist in race walking.
No they don’t help. They still look like idiots.
testing 1 2 3 wrote:
No they don’t help. They still look like idiots.
And you sound like an idiot.
As for the NB 5280s, they are designed for the road mile. Not the most comfortable shoe to run in, so I assume they would be awful for an hours long walking race. That said, I've never race walked, and I haven't worn the 5280s for anything but a few short workouts. I stopped using them for workouts because they were so uncomfortable on turns, but I will use them for the few road races I run per year.
If you happen to have the perfectly shaped foot for the 5280s, maybe they would be tolerable, but they aren't designed for comfort. Maybe some good insoles could correct for this??
If it were me, I might consider taking a band saw to the vaporflys. Plenty of videos online to know where to avoid damaging the carbon plate. Expensive project though.
in theory, there is supposed to be no airborne/flight phase while walking, and the impact forces are less than in running. So any boing boing trampoline/energy return the VFs supply would not be as beneficial as during running. And the shock absorption and cush of all that form would be of little benefit.
Given that a large percentage of running shoes are purchased by people that do not run in them, I am waiting for the shoe companies to start finding ways to market and sell lighter, thicker more responsive midsole shoes with carbon fiber plates in them to the masses as leisure shoes. With a higher price tag of course.
VFs and Kipchoge are too obscure and geeky to come close to Jordan marketing, but I bet Nike marketing will find a way to try.
Has anyone seen VFs being worn as leisure shoes yet??? Perhaps by professionals that can afford them and might enjoy a perceived boost in status?
Don't think so. Racewalkers use special shoes. I believe the carbon plate in the Vaporflys needs a certain amount of force to flex and walking wouldn't provide enough.
Interesting thought about the trampoline effect, but I'm 100% positive there's a lot of horizontal force being created, plus plenty of foot flexion and downward force when the foot lands, which would lead me to believe the carbon plate would definitely help.
Maybe at the lower level where they're walking at 12 minute pace or something you'd be seeing minimal returns, but at the highest levels they're walking in the 7 minute pace range for the women and in the 6s for the men, so I think there's plenty of force production.
Hello Michael. Maybe the New Balance Fuel Cell 5280 is more appropriate for Race walking?
Take a look at them below and tell me your first impressions. Thanks in advance!
https://www.runnersworld.com/gear/a27507064/new-balance-fuelcell-5280-mile-race-shoe/
My two cents worth on the NB 5280 for Racewalking.
I was a pretty serious racewalker in the 1970s to early 1980s, I competed a lot: locally, nationally, and internationally. Fast forward...
Now I run (mile on up to the half mar). I just wore my 5280s last Friday night in a road mile in South Carolina. I wore Nike 4% Vaps the next day in the half marathon. Both races went very well.
The 5280s are designed for midfoot to forefoot strikers. Great for an open road mile, but IMO they would be an absolute disaster for RWing . The heel section is very narrow. Landing on your heel in these would be at best unstable.
To get the maximum benefit from the 5280s you need to stay up on your toes as much as possible. I managed to do that for most of the race. When just walking at the start and warming up (except for the strides) the 5280s felt weird and unnatural.