The Run Like An Animal Shoe review with Pearl Izumi & Boards

--amadeus--

"

Jingle bells, Jingle bells, Jingle all the way
Santas come, we're on teh run
Pearl Izumi on the Sleigh!

"

Hello and welcome to our third gear review, this one brought to you by Ger and Pearl Izumni. We've done tops, we've done compression gear so what could be the next item on the list?

What else but shoes?!

Ger has been working closely with Woddle on the whole Boards AC project and so it was decided that this review would be run in conjunction with BAC club members (not too late to join for teh 2010 season ).

The three lads picked have had thier shoes for a little while now and should have gone for some runs in them. As always they are expected (and have been asked) to give 100% honest reviews. If they think the shoes are great then they will say so. If they don't they will say why; and with reasons either way.

They should be on soon to give some first impressions - look of teh shoe, value, feel and fit and so on. They will probably also give some impressions of how the shoe has managed it's first few runs - comfort, first impressions of how well they'll wear, quality of teh shoe and "fitness for purpose".

Fire away with any questions and we'll do our best to give or get the answers for you.

Thanks again to Ger, whose been brilliant again.

Let the reviews begin!

Slogger Jogger

Here you go...

Pearl Izumi SynchoSeek III
First I’ll give the blurp according to the Pearl Izumi website (http://www.pearlizumi.com/product.php?mode=view&product_id=1319576) on these shoes…

The SyncroSEEK III is a lightweight trail shoe with excellent support, protection and traction. They summarise the features of the shoe as follows:-

• Syncroframe - Run Tuned Suspension System
• High abrasion seamless mesh construction
• High traction outsole for on and off road performance
• Abrasion resistant heel and toe
• High rebound forefoot foam for excellent energy return
• Forefoot stone bruise protection plate
• Forefoot Flex Grooves for a smooth, efficient ride
• High performance dual density EVA insole
• Full carbon rubber outsole for maximum traction and durability
• 360° degree reflectivity
• Weight: 13.0oz in size 9

Lots of jargon there but what does it all mean and are these a shoe that can be recommended?

Out of the box these are a nice looking shoe. The pair I received were a mainly silver colour with olive green trim (they call it ‘Martini & black’?). There are some reflective strips at various points which are useful for winter running as they’ll make you easier to see. At first inspection the heel appears high and chunky, but this is offset by nice comfort when you are wearing them. To give an honest review I decided to wear them on as many runs as possible in the time I had, so 16 runs in 2 and a half weeks, covering c. 140k, was giving them a thorough examination. I wore them on the treadmill (enforced by the weather), around the suburban pavements, along country road and trail, on track, and along wet and mucky trails – in all the weathers that god threw at us over the last 2 weeks. Some of these runs were during the evening by torchlight. And there were some ‘2 runs a day’ days in there too.
According to my weighing scale each shoe is nearly 400g which while it appears heavy, it doesn’t run heavy. They feel a lot lighter on the feet. Some shoes are light and you get very little support and cushioning. With these shoes you have great support and cushioning. On some of my runs I found myself almost bouncing along as the shoe gives a decent spring back on your step. Theres a ‘Rebound’ wording on the sole of each shoe and rebound is what you feel you get as you run along.

The grips do the required job and you can have confidence in your step. I ran in poor torchlight along muddy trails in the Glen of the Downs and I felt sure of my footstrike each time, despite not being able to see clearly where the foot was being placed! These are not open mountain shoes – the grips being too shallow for that, but they are fit for purpose for all sorts of road and trail conditions.
My longest run in them was a 16k run along road, then trail and hill with icy conditions thrown in too. They worked a treat. And whether my run was short or long, tempo or slower I felt comfortable in these shoes.

After the Glen of the Downs run the shoes were black with muck. I know you’re not supposed to do this.. but one quick washing machine cycle later and they were as clean as new. They had dried out for the next days run and were back to looking the part.
They are a quality shoe and they look like they will last the miles I shall run in them. I intend running a lot in them. While these are the first Pearl Izumi shoes I’ve ran in, I’ve had other PI gear, like the Boards vest and running shorts and I’ve always being struck by their quality. These shoes appear consistent to that theme. I’d be keen to try other Pearl Izumi running shoe range having tried these. If they entered the hill shoe market that might be interesting.

My overall opinion of the shoes is a very positive one. While they are described as a trail shoe, I would see them as being versatile as my runs have shown. Perhaps more versatile than anything else I have, so a very handy pair of shoes to have in the kitbag.
These retail from gersrunning for €125.

donothoponpop

Good review. What terrain are these best over? Trail? You've a heap of shoes to choose from, so what IMRA race would you choose to wear these ones for, or are they too heavy for racing?

Slogger Jogger

They'd work best on trail or trail/road, so something like the Wicklow way trail or other traily summer races. That said they did perform for me on muckier stuff, so they'd do the biz for most of us on winter or other summer league races. Everything really apart from open mountains where you would need the longer grips. Didn't find them heavy on the feet at all and was comfortable on all surfaces. I'm pretty light on my feet though so I'd be interested to see what a heavier runner thinks.

christeb

OK – so let’s see can if I match SJ’s beautiful prose.

The Pearl Izumi Cruise, billed as a high mileage trainer for neutral pronators. Out of the box? Hmmm, not impressed. They’re black. I would never buy black runners, they just don’t look good. However the upper material seems nice, comfortable and the “no stitches” inside lining means it has some serious no-chafing high mileage potential. The Back wedge looks quite awkward with the “pillars” on one side. The reflective areas are excellent however, which overrules any concerns nighttime runners may have about visibility.

The first test spin. What better way to break them in than a nice ~12 miler? They felt a lot different to my other LSR shoes, the adidas Supernova Glide / Cushion. A more stable, insulated feel. Not too much feedback, which is fine by me. They are slightly heavier on the foot than my adidas. I have also been trying to strike more towards my midfoot, which is something these shoes don’t really want you to do. The forefoot area isn’t as cushioned as the rear, which makes it preferable for heel strikers. Overall they felt really good, no stitches inside makes a big difference. My feet felt great after the run, something that can’t be said for recent runs in the adidas (including DCM).

The second testy run was a more varied affair, taking in softer ground and even some stark trail surfaces on the short sharp downhill from Howth summit to the lighthouse. Here they again felt surefooted, surprisingly agile and assured. Pace was good, and I seemed to have got used to (slight) added weight. After 14 hilly miles, the feet felt great again.

Overall I feel positive about the PI Cruise’s. They are stable, very cushioned and give the impression they will stay in good shape for many 100’s of miles. In black personally I don’t feel like they look great, but the design is well thought out and they would seem to be a superb option for the high-mileage – possibly slightly heavier – neutral runner.

misty floyd

christeb wrote: »

OK – so let’s see can if I match SJ’s beautiful prose.

The Pearl Izumi Cruise, .

I don't like the look of them in black either.

christeb

misty floyd wrote: »

I don't like the look of them in black either.

Agreed. Once you get over that though there are a huge amount of positives with the shoe

shels4ever

Pearl Izumi SynchoPace III (Moderate Stability shoe)

http://www.pearlizumi.com/product.php?mode=view&pc_id=31&product_id=1358686

Here is the tech stuff about the shoe that I usually don’t read but did this time.


MODERATE STABILITY. The perfect shoe for runners looking for moderate stability and pronation control combined with excellent cushioning.
•High Rebound SKYDEX® forefoot propulsion pad for long lasting cushioning
•New low profile SyncroFrame Stability Frame – Run Tuned Suspension System
•Seamless Race Upper
•SKYDEX® Heel crash pad – Some nice support for the forefoot as well as heel.
•Carbon rubber medial outsole increase stability performance
•Hybrid blown rubber and carbon rubber forefoot with carbon rubber heel crash pad
•Forefoot Flex Groves for a smooth efficient ride
•High performance dual density EVA insole for increased arch support
•360° degree reflectivity
•Weight - Size 10 - 13.5oz


Initial reaction to the shoe was surprise the colour was Water Blue and Shadow gray (look well with the boards singlet) most my previous shoes have been very plain white, so wondered if this fancy new pair would measure up to the running tests.

On trying on the show the initial feeling is that there is more support provided then my current shoe (Saucony ProGrid) with a slightly higher/ chunky heel. The weight of the shoe is slightly more than my current shoe but not noticeable. The Seamless Race Upper seem nice I have had some problems with holes in shoes before and my last couple of asics all went this way.

The shoe fit was very nice added to this was the lacing has a nice feature that the lace pull on bands that run down the side of the shoe allow for a 360degree tightening to adjust to your needs.

I’ve been running in these shoes for the last 10 days and have clocked up only about 50 miles in them so far. The initial feeling of the shoe is that this is a sturdy training shoe and they have performed well over both road and grass trails that I train on. At this time of the year the park has been very wet and I have found the grip in these conditions better then my current shoe. On my faster tempo runs the also performed well in wet conditions and the slightly extra weight was not noticeable and maybe counteracted by some extra spring that they seem to have.

The biggest test for the shoe so far was that they were called into action this weekend for a race. This was a 10k cross country race but after the warmup on a frozen course I decided that runners were a better option to spikes. The shoe handled this really well and has more than enough grip to deal with muddy parts as well as grip on the frozen sections.

So the feeling so far is that they are a sturdy training shoe with maybe a little more support than some of the other moderate stability shoes on the market. They are ideal for training and racing for those of us who do not own a pair of flats. For the more experienced runners they may be slightly too heavy for shorter races but do meet my needs at the moment. I would wear these for race form 10k up. I will update on these again when I have more runs done and see how the last.

Woddle

Really love these runners
The reasons being that since I started wearing these I've noticed that I hardly ever have a niggle anymore, the last niggle I had was when the shoes had reached their death and in this case it was close to 700 miles, I must be honest here though for some reason my next pair only got me 400 miles, still good though.

http://www.pearlizumi.com/product.php?mode=view&pc_id=31&product_id=1364230&outlet=

The shoes I wear are the surge+, they are a neutral shoe, fairly light and I just love them, you can check the link out for all the tech stuff.

When I bought my current pair I decided to buy a second pair of the same shoe and I now wear them on alternate days and I must say there holding up extremely well.

I've wore these for my last 2 marathons also as I felt they were light enough but that I was probably too heavy to chance racers and they did the job well. I used to wear the brooks gts8 but when they upgraded to the gts9 I decided it was time to change as I hated the gts9s. I tried a few shoes but just got stuck on these and I can't imagine myself ever changing.

misty floyd

Lads, thanks for the reviews. How do you find the fit with these PI runners? A normal fit or a bit tighter than your usual shoe? Cheers.

christeb

misty floyd wrote: »

Lads, thanks for the reviews. How do you find the fit with these PI runners? A normal fit or a bit tighter than your usual shoe? Cheers.

I think the fit is superb, because the uppers are all material (no plastic-y bits) they fit and are shaped to the foot very well. This is also helped by having more lace eyelets than normal, so it's easy to tighten the shoe just the right amount.

misty floyd

thanks Christeb, I'm going to get a pair of these I think. Did you have to use a slightly (half size) smaller or bigger shoe or was the size you always buy in shoes just right?

I really should try them on if I'm gonna buy a pair but I'm not sure where you can get these bad boys in a bricks and mortar shop. Thanks.

rainbow kirby

I think you can get quite a few of the Pearl Izumi shoes in Runways - might be worth a shot?

christeb

misty floyd wrote: »

thanks Christeb, I'm going to get a pair of these I think. Did you have to use a slightly (half size) smaller or bigger shoe or was the size you always buy in shoes just right?

I really should try them on if I'm gonna buy a pair but I'm not sure where you can get these bad boys in a bricks and mortar shop. Thanks.

To be honest the 11s are ever so slightly too large for me, I would try .5 smaller before you buy.

--amadeus--

Best bet might be to contact Ger through his website and ask him, you might be able to sort it out so that you can send them back if they are too big / small and get a replacement?

shels4ever

shels4ever wrote: »

Pearl Izumi SynchoPace III (Moderate Stability shoe)

http://www.pearlizumi.com/product.php?mode=view&pc_id=31&product_id=1358686

Here is the tech stuff about the shoe that I usually don’t read but did this time.


MODERATE STABILITY. The perfect shoe for runners looking for moderate stability and pronation control combined with excellent cushioning.
•High Rebound SKYDEX® forefoot propulsion pad for long lasting cushioning
•New low profile SyncroFrame Stability Frame – Run Tuned Suspension System
•Seamless Race Upper
•SKYDEX® Heel crash pad – Some nice support for the forefoot as well as heel.
•Carbon rubber medial outsole increase stability performance
•Hybrid blown rubber and carbon rubber forefoot with carbon rubber heel crash pad
•Forefoot Flex Groves for a smooth efficient ride
•High performance dual density EVA insole for increased arch support
•360° degree reflectivity
•Weight - Size 10 - 13.5oz


Initial reaction to the shoe was surprise the colour was Water Blue and Shadow gray (look well with the boards singlet) most my previous shoes have been very plain white, so wondered if this fancy new pair would measure up to the running tests.

On trying on the show the initial feeling is that there is more support provided then my current shoe (Saucony ProGrid) with a slightly higher/ chunky heel. The weight of the shoe is slightly more than my current shoe but not noticeable. The Seamless Race Upper seem nice I have had some problems with holes in shoes before and my last couple of asics all went this way.

The shoe fit was very nice added to this was the lacing has a nice feature that the lace pull on bands that run down the side of the shoe allow for a 360degree tightening to adjust to your needs.

I’ve been running in these shoes for the last 10 days and have clocked up only about 50 miles in them so far. The initial feeling of the shoe is that this is a sturdy training shoe and they have performed well over both road and grass trails that I train on. At this time of the year the park has been very wet and I have found the grip in these conditions better then my current shoe. On my faster tempo runs the also performed well in wet conditions and the slightly extra weight was not noticeable and maybe counteracted by some extra spring that they seem to have.

The biggest test for the shoe so far was that they were called into action this weekend for a race. This was a 10k cross country race but after the warmup on a frozen course I decided that runners were a better option to spikes. The shoe handled this really well and has more than enough grip to deal with muddy parts as well as grip on the frozen sections.

So the feeling so far is that they are a sturdy training shoe with maybe a little more support than some of the other moderate stability shoes on the market. They are ideal for training and racing for those of us who do not own a pair of flats. For the more experienced runners they may be slightly too heavy for shorter races but do meet my needs at the moment. I would wear these for race form 10k up. I will update on these again when I have more runs done and see how the last.

Just though I'd give another short update on these shoes as i've managed a few more miles in them . Its not ever day I get to test runners out in snow but these are doing really well no problem at all.

I've never had a pair of runners that stay so clean either, the material is great just a quick wipe and they are almost perfect again.

Starting to like these shoes a lot.

Slogger Jogger

I've used my shoes in the snowy / icy weather recently and they have come up trumps. I usually wear size 9s in asics and the size 9s in the PIs were an exact fit. Big fan.