Nike just announced
their first shoe with an all-foam sole powered by a new foam technology
called React.
The shoe is called the
Nike Epic React Flyknit and is a running shoe, which will release on February
22nd. The bottom is a solid piece of foam with a knitted upper, making it
lightweight for running. But looking beyond this shoe the technology is likely
the start of a new generation of Nike shoes with all-foam bottoms.
The foam technology
itself is called React and was launched last year in a Nike basketball shoe –
but that shoe encased the foam with an outer layer in order to provide the
traction and and stability that basketball players require on the court. This
new shoe is the first release where the bottom is a single piece of foam
without any encapsulation or casing – meaning you’re essentially running
directly on a giant cushion.
So what are the
benefits of a foam sole? It essentially gives each step a bounce, meaning the
foam literally is squeezed when your foot hits the ground then springs back toshape, propelling your foot up so you can take another step.
Of course foam shoes
are all the rage right now when it comes to performance (and style). Adidas
launch their foam sole technology called Boost a few years ago and now uses it
in shoes ranging from preference running shoes to Yeezys.
One other interestingaspect of the new shoe: Nike is also using proprietary algorithms to
create a unique surface geometry on the foam for each size shoe. Traditionally
shoe manufacturers will take one sample size (10 for men and 8 for woman) and
design that shoe for maximum performance, then have the manufacturer add or
subtract a little material to make different sizes.
This cuts down on
optimal performance since only someone who happens to be the sample size is
getting a shoe that’s perfectly designed to maximize performance; everyone
else’s size is being made slightly longer or shorter. But instead the foam in
the new React Flyknits are custom made for each size – meaning the geometry is
algorithmically and proportionally scaled up and down – so each size is
perfectly designed to maximize performance and no two sizes will have the same
sole texture and design.
Nike says that they
tested React technology in more than 17,000 miles of running. And it shows. The
shoe I tried was extremely bouncy, and gave a return that was at least as
bouncy as any Adidas Boost alternative, if not more so. Nike hasn’t given any
specific comparisons to other brands but does say that the React foam delivers
13 percent greater energy return when compared to their last version of Nike
Lunarlon foam, which is a foam core encased in a foam casing.
Pricing hasn’t been announcedbut expect the shoe to set you back somewhere between $150 and $200.
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