Adidas Adizero Boston11 Refuel. Quite a mouthful for a brand-name but it certainly counts as the most unusual pair of marathon shoes I have used so far.
Long ago when I stepped into the world of distance running, shoe-salesmen used to emphasise on flexibility. They would hold up a pair and twist and roll the running shoes, making the heels touch the toes, to show you how easily they would adapt to your feet. Over the years the sales-pitch has changed completely - now they make a big show of how inflexible the soles are. They now sing praises of shoes with rigid soles and claim that flexible, soft soles trigger injuries to your ankle and feet.
I have been using an Asics Amplifoam for a few years now and it has stood me in good stead. Its semi-rigid sole shows little signs of wear but the fabric upper had got torn in a couple places, so it was time to buy a new pair. I checked out a few new models in all the major brand-stores - Asics (old loyalties!), Nike, Puma, New Balance, and finally, Adidas. It is at the last store that the Boston11 caught my attention.
It was different. Even though it was relatively lightweight, the shoes felt quite sturdy. Being an older model it was also going for an attractive discount. Still, the compulsive skeptic in me had to step out of the shop to check the reviews, and confirm that it was not available cheaper online before deciding to make a purchase decision.
A few days later when I took out the Boston11 for my usual Sunday 10k run, I found my feet would not get in easily. Unlike any other pair of running shoes i had used so far, this one had a full fabric sleeve under the tongue which was meant to grip your ankles, but the broader part of the feet would not get in easily unless a shoe-horn was used. Once you managed to get the feet in, the shoes fit snugly on your arch, instep, heel and ankle.
The second problem came up after the 5k stage. The upper part of the sleeve would bite into the bridge - the part of your feet just under the shoelaces - every time the ankle flexed while running. At first I thought the laces were too tight but no amount of adjusting would ease that biting pain in the upper ligament. I looked it up on the web and found that the pain point was exactly at the junction of the superior and inferior extensor retinaculum. Ultimately, I figured that if the extra-long shoe-tongue on the Boston11 was folded inwards the bite would be eased to a large extent.
Was this a common problem for runners using Boston11?
So far I have not come across any review specifically highlighting this problem. Many of them do indicate that this particular model has a longer break-in period.
Apart from this glitch the new Adidas Boston11 has been absolutely solid for road-running. Rigid soles have their uses i guess :)
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REFERENCES & LINKS
Boston 11 - https://www.adidas.co.in/adizero-boston-11-refuel-shoes/HQ3701.html
Review - https://runrepeat.com/adidas-adizero-boston-11
https://sportsmedalabama.com/contents/patient-education/foot-and-ankle/
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