Anyone here got the Asics Speedstar or Innov8 Road X 255 shoes

spurscormac

Just looking for some info on either of these from anyone who has them.

I'm looking at getting a new pair of shoes - I mentioned this a couple of months ago, but put it off for the time being.
Currently use the DS Trainers, and am toying with getting them again, or changing to something else.

I tried on the Innov8 Road X 255 and had a little run in them - have to say they are a different feel to a normal runner, deffo more feedback to your foot, and I am tempted.

Another option is the Asics Speedstar, which is not available in Ire or UK, but is in the rest of Europe & the USA ?
Seems to be a neutral version of the DS Trainer, and I like the sound of that. Can't get it in the shops, but could find it online.

Also tempted by the Brooks ST5, which while designated a Race shoe, generally seems to have potential as a training shoe. Tried it on and it does seem to be a pretty comfy shoe.

My main concern with the Innov8 is the crossover to this type of shoe with its lack of cushioning.
Does it result in more blisters (my feet are soft and at times can blister quite easily) ???
Has anyone tried putting in thicker insoles to improve cushioning slightly until you're more used to them.

I do like the idea of moving to a more minimal shoe, just wondering if I do make the change, am I looking @ two pairs of shoes to do it properly?
(My DS Trainers are on their last legs, so don't think they'd last the crossover)

Also, it seems that the DS Trainers are hard to come by at the moment, not available til early December I'm told.

For the record, my gait analysis tells me I'm neutral, though I suspect I overpronate a little the more tired I get, hence why the DS Trainers seem to have worked really nicely for me, have that little bit of support for later in my runs.
I bought a pair of Mizuno Wave Riders, but its out of the question, just doesn't agree with my foot shape, so having stretched the DS Trainers as far as they could, I need to go buy again.
Any insights or recommendations are welcome.

TFBubendorfer

spurscormac wrote: »

Another option is the Asics Speedstar, which is not available in Ire or UK, but is in the rest of Europe & the USA ? Seems to be a neutral version of the DS Trainer, and I like the sound of that.

I had a pair of Speedstars; not the present version but the one before that. I'd heard they were a neutral version of the DS trainer as well, but to be honest they felt completely different.

I run most of my miles in lightweight, neutral shoes and I thought I'd like them but I did not. I never felt comfortable in them at all, but I could never point a finger at one particular thing that bothered me. If you can find a pair in a shop you might be able to try them out first, but I've never seen them in any shoe shop.

RacoonQueen

I have the road-x 155, have had no blistering issues but I never really blister anyway.

What shoes are you wearing at the moment? The road-x are a big change from your average running shoe.

thirstywork2

The skyspeed is actually a ds trainer without the posting/duomax.
other shoes you might like are the mizuno elixers....

HelenAnne

I am nearly sure I saw the Asics Speedstars in the Asics shop in Kildare Village today and they were on sale (can't remember the price 50-60 euro?). Maybe ring them & check?

spurscormac

Thanks for the replies.

RacoonQueen - I'm in DS Trainers now, and it seems the 255 has the same heel to toe drop as they do.
How do you find the 255s - what did you change from to them & how much do you use them now?

Considering them as an option, but wondering how long I should take to crossover to them and how long I could go in them.

HelenAnne - Afraid I won't be anywhere near Kildare, so wouldn't be able to pick them up anyway if they had them.

thirstywork2 - I had a bad experience with Mizuno, shape doesn't seem to suit my feet and causes me niggles, so won't be going back to them.

jeffontour

spurscormac wrote: »

My main concern with the Innov8 is the crossover to this type of shoe with its lack of cushioning.
Does it result in more blisters (my feet are soft and at times can blister quite easily) ???
Has anyone tried putting in thicker insoles to improve cushioning slightly until you're more used to them.

I wear road x 233s, have about 700km in mine. Initially they tore the heels off me, but I think I have very odd shaped and boney heels! Fine after a couple of hundred km. Have had zero blistering on the rest of my feet.

Takes a while to get used to them, I was running my road runs in Wave Riders prior to the Road x. So the transition took a lot of work for me, to adjust to a more mid/fore foot strike. Can't see myself returning to a more cushioned shoe any time soon having made the move though.

Never tried thicker insoles but I believe they offer 6 & 3 mm options.

spurscormac

jeffontour wrote: »

I wear road x 233s, have about 700km in mine. Initially they tore the heels off me, but I think I have very odd shaped and boney heels! Fine after a couple of hundred km. Have had zero blistering on the rest of my feet.

Takes a while to get used to them, I was running my road runs in Wave Riders prior to the Road x. So the transition took a lot of work for me, to adjust to a more mid/fore foot strike. Can't see myself returning to a more cushioned shoe any time soon having made the move though.

Never tried thicker insoles but I believe they offer 6 & 3 mm options.

Thanks for that - the 233s are lower to the ground than the 255s, so maybe the transition won't be as bad with them.
I guess from your mileage that you use them as a training shoe ?

The Wave Riders are the ones that gave me trouble funnily enough, so I'll be making a similar transition from the DS Trainer - though looking at the stats, I'll be going from 10 to 9mm, as compared to your 12 to 6.

Must admit, I'm very tempted by them, but having suffered with the last new pair, am still a little wary of the move.

jeffontour

Yes I use them in training.

One thing to bear in mind is the 233s offer very little in line of traction, not sure how the 255s compare.

On wet leaves, any kind of mud or wet grass you work hard to stay upright. That said I did 20k on the Wicklow Way in them a few weeks back but had to go very gently at points to stay upright. That said I also hit the deck twice. So many I should stop talking and adding to your confusion.

spurscormac

jeffontour wrote: »

Yes I use them in training.

One thing to bear in mind is the 233s offer very little in line of traction, not sure how the 255s compare.

On wet leaves, any kind of mud or wet grass you work hard to stay upright. That said I did 20k on the Wicklow Way in them a few weeks back but had to go very gently at points to stay upright. That said I also hit the deck twice. So many I should stop talking and adding to your confusion.

I tried on the 255s and they are very slick soled, obviously geared towards roads/footpaths - though I know at this time of year we'll get plenty of wet leaves on the ground.

Gotta say though, going off-road in the Road-X series is asking for trouble - that's what their other product lines are for.

jeffontour

spurscormac wrote: »

Gotta say though, going off-road in the Road-X series is asking for trouble - that's what their other product lines are for.

The problem is I favour them so much now I find it hard to wear anything else!

Seriously, they are great. I have plenty of other shoes I could have worn on the run above, I just fancied giving the 233s a go on the day. They are fine on dry trail.

I've a pair of f-lite 230s I plan to use for wet trails and snow/ice if it arrives. The roadx are grand on wet tarmac.

spurscormac

Taken the plunge on the 255s
Needed a new pair of runners and the DS Trainers are in short supply.
I'll see how it goes over the next few weeks and report back on how they fare.

jeffontour

spurscormac wrote: »

Taken the plunge on the 255s
Needed a new pair of runners and the DS Trainers are in short supply.
I'll see how it goes over the next few weeks and report back on how they fare.

Interested to see what you think of them. Hope it goes well.

ollietrex

I don't know anything about the Asics but I trained and completed the Dublin Marathon in a pair of Road X-255. I pretty much brought a pair the day they were released as I had been running in a pair of minimalist shoes but wanted something that would allow me to "transition" while still keeping up the longer distances.

I used to run as a heal striker but over time moved to forefoot running for various reasons but I was struggling to find a good shoe to transition. These shoes have been the perfect transition for me, I have done about 500km in them now and they have certainly served me well. They are different to your average shoes as they have a lower heal compared to a lot of trainers but that I suppose is the purpose of them.

When you pick them up they do look strange as they have zero grip on them but regularly run on trails (Not hill runs) in the wet with them and have no problem and I have never once slipped or fallen in them running. If you are looking for a shoe to start forefoot running I can highly recommend them, Mine are slowly coming to the end of there life and I am planning to get the road x-233 as the next step.

spurscormac

Ok, two runs down, here's the verdict of the Inov8 255s so far...

Sunday - 3.75 miles. Had my work party on Friday night, so Saturday was a total write-off. Felt like I had to do something on Sunday & thought I may as well start to break them in.
Nice easy run, brought the dog with me - though he still hasn't learned to pace himself yet - he's like those folks in the GAA jerseys at the 10k.
I tried to concentrate on form, but with the dog tugging on the lead it wasn't easy.
Anyway, as I got home, I felt a little tightness in my left arch, but this is something I've felt before with other runners so I wasn't too worried. Did a reasonably extensive stretching session just in case. After a shower and a while relaxing around the house there was no sign of it.

Monday night - 5.3 miles. After work, off to my regular training session. It was bucketing down, so I knew this would test out the grip under such severe conditions. It would also see how the shoes fared regarding blistering as with any wet conditions I have a tendency to quite easily get small blisters. Well I shouldn't have worried on either front, the grip was excellent, never felt unstable or slippy - given the conditions last night, that was some feat, and not a sign of a hotspot or blister, so happy days. We set off at a pretty fast pace, and was slightly worried again halfway through as I felt my left arch again, but I pushed on and this cleared after a while - maybe the wind at our backs on the way home helped
Also finished the run with surprisingly refreshed feeling feet, the shoes felt very comfy, and even though they were soaked through, they didn't feel like sodden lumps of lead.

Overall I'm very impressed with the shoes so far. They definitely encourage more of a mid to forefoot strike, as if you heel strike on a step or two, you do notice the lack of cushioning in the heel compared to normal runners.
This isn't painful though, and you automatically concentrate once more on a proper gait.
I'm also seriously impressed with the fit, as I said above, I have a tendency to blister quite easily, whether that's due to the wet, or the heat, or any other number of reasons, but I never once felt any stitching, insole, or other part of the shoe was in the wrong place and causing me trouble.

Definitely happy with the shoes so far, lets see how they cope as the mileage increases.

jeffontour

ollietrex wrote: »

Mine are slowly coming to the end of there life and I am planning to get the road x-233 as the next step.

I just checked and I've 890km clocked on my 233s. No sign of needing to change them. I've put the toe out in one of them but I only care about the sole which is all good.

With 500 km I would guess you have a while yet in them.

spurscormac

Just to provide an update on the 255s...

Been doing a run almost every couple of days while on hols in Sydney. Really like the shoes, no issues to report. Been mixing it up between 30-60 min runs and some speed work down the park, all good.

The only problem is the extremely uneven footpaths here, hard to believe the state they're left in. Oh, that and the heat.