Shoes: Upgrading from NB 1220

Jesse Sheidlower said:

I've been getting much more serious about my running
lately, and coincidentally it's about the time to get a
new pair of shoes. Thus, I could use some advice.

I currently have the New Balance 1220's, which are fine; I
got them because I wasn't concerned about weight or speed
and figured they were the most highly cushioned and stable
shoes around, so why not. But now I think that perhaps I
should get something more appropriate. I do like the New
Balance shoes; I've had models before and they've been
comfortable. The running shops I've been do have done
little more than parrot the advertising lines.

Check out shoe reviews at the running times website.

Find a shoe store with a treadmill and gait analysis
service.

Be alert to the standard wear injuries that can occur if you
make a mistake, and cut your losses early.

Consider other brands, but test them. Beth at RRS,
18006628896 has been more helpful. If you join the RAC or
VIP club, you can have her ship you some "equivalents" and
variations. Check for fit, then test at the gym, then on the
road. Roadrunnersports.com.

Find a shoe salesman who actually likes to run in your
Brand, who is not a Mizuno bigot, or ASICS groupie.

In article said:

For now I just want a solid training shoe. Eventually I

Not sure I understand the question. You could just go with
the 1220 again. It is indeed a solid training shoe.

Quoted message said:

might be interested in a lightweight trainer for racing,
but I know I'm too big and too slow to ever want to get an
actual racing flat. So, I'd welcome any suggestions for
either one, particularly of NB models.

The obvious companion to the 1220 would be the 900 (it's a
lightweight stability shoe). But it can be tricky finding
the right shoe -- for example, I tried lightweight shoes
from NB (the 83x series) and none of them fit.

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi pegasus.rutgers.edu~elflordOpen ↗

In article <[email hidden]>,

Donovan Rebbechi said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Jesse

Sheidlower said:

For now I just want a solid training shoe. Eventually I

Not sure I understand the question. You could just go with
the 1220 again. It is indeed a solid training shoe.

True, but it's the most solid, heaviest, feature-full, and
expensive training shoe there is, and if I don't have any
freakish requirements and would thus be OK with something
somewhat lighter (while still being a real training shoe,
not a lightweight trainer), I'd be interested in considering
it. The RW site likes the NB 765, for example, but I don't
know anyone who's tried it.

Quoted message said:

The obvious companion to the 1220 would be the 900 (it's a
lightweight stability shoe). But it can be tricky finding
the right shoe -- for example, I tried lightweight shoes
from NB (the 83x series) and none of them fit.

Thanks.

Jesse Sheidlower

Quoted message said:

I'm now running 25-30 mpw, on paved roads or the
treadmill, with medium-term goals of breaking 40:00 for
the 10K and perhaps running a marathon. I'm about 6' and
185 pounds <pre-empt troll="macelroy">and thus know I'm
too heavy to ever set any WR's</pre-empt>, of which not
too much is excess. According to my podiatrist (toe
problems, nothing to affect running), I have more or less
normal pronation and normal arches.

I fit your profile also (except I'm doing a bit more mileage
at the moment and recently completed a marathon). My
favorite shoe is the NB 880, with the 1022 close behind.
(I'm also partial to the Saucony Grid Shadow but am sticking
with NBs for the foreseeable future). Neither is as pricey
as the 1220, and they're cushioned but not stability shoes,
but that may be all you need anyhow. For speedwork and races
I wear 831s (which are now 833s, I guess).

--
Brian P. Baresch Fort Worth, Texas, USA Professional editing
and proofreading

If you're going through hell, keep going. --Winston
Churchill

In article said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Donovan Rebbechi said:

In article <[email hidden]>, Jesse

Sheidlower said:

For now I just want a solid training shoe. Eventually I

Not sure I understand the question. You could just go with
the 1220 again. It is indeed a solid training shoe.

True, but it's the most solid, heaviest, feature-full, and
expensive training shoe there is, and if I don't have any
freakish requirements and would thus be OK with something
somewhat lighter (while still being a real training shoe,
not a lightweight trainer), I'd be interested in
considering
it. The RW site likes the NB 765, for example, but I don't
know anyone who's tried it.

One of the advantages of getting a different NB stability
shoe is that at least it will be built on the same last (in
this case it is anyway). This doesn't mean that it will fit,
but it's a really, really good start. Aside from the fact
that the upper is different, it will probably fit much the
same as the 1220.

If you're concerned about cost, the Asics 20xx is a highly
regarded midweight stability shoe that can be purchased
online for a very reasonable price. Places like
footlocker.com and finishline.com make returns pretty easy
(you can return to their retail stores)

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi pegasus.rutgers.edu~elflordOpen ↗

(Jesse Sheidlower) said:

Quoted message said:

Not sure I understand the question. You could just go with
the 1220 again. It is indeed a solid training shoe.

True, but it's the most solid, heaviest, feature-full, and
expensive training shoe there is, and if I don't have any
freakish requirements and would thus be OK with something
somewhat lighter (while still being a real training shoe,
not a lightweight trainer), I'd be interested in
considering
it. The RW site likes the NB 765, for example, but I don't
know anyone who's tried it.

Quoted message said:

Jesse Sheidlower

Also, the NB 1220 has been discontinued. It's been replaced
by the 1221 which has almost no cushioning.

M.T.