Tag Archives: Clayton

Zante vs Clayton

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Being a running shoe junkie you become something of a shoe expert by default. You can’t help it! You see the good, the bad and the ugly of the shoe world real quick. Two of the premier running shoe makers are New Balance and Hoka. I happened to luck out and get the original versions of both the Zante and the Clayton pictured above. Originals are good to get because invariably shoe companies make a very good shoe and then muck it up with “improvements”. I have yet to find a shoe where V2 wasn’t heavier and harder than V1.

As far as weight, both the Zante and the Clayton come in at 7.8 ounces (in a men’s 9 1/2). Very good for shoes that are also nicely cushioned. For the casual runner they will take you as far as you want to go. I wasn’t particularly enamored with either shoe starting off. I’d been running in shoes that were a little more cushioned, in the 9.2 – 10.8 ounce range. Shoes like the Ghost, Clifton, Air Zoom Span, Glycerin, NB 1080.

Supposedly lightweight shoes like the Kinvara and Pure Flow turned out to be a waste of money. Hard, tight, uncomfortable shoes. The Zante and the Clayton came in lighter and infinitely more comfortable for the feet. By wearing the bad ones, I began to see the virtues of the good ones. The Zante has the most unique cushioning. Its outsole and insole do a wonderful job of protecting your foot from the pounding, but you retain incredible feel for the road.

The Clayton is nicely cushioned, but you lose feel for the road by being slightly more protected from sharp underfoot protrusions. I suppose I would give a slight edge to the Zante as it just feels nicer on the foot. There’s nothing wrong with switching between the two either! And perhaps best of all, by getting them after the new models were out, I got the Zante for $65 and the Clayton for $104! Arch support? Slight edge to Zante. Tongue padding? Slight edge to Zante. Collar padding? Edge to Zante.

None of this is to say that this pair of lightweight, nicely cushioned shoes are the only way to go. What I am saying is that in their class I can’t imagine a better shoe (for the neutral runner). For my tastes, I’m starting to think my feet prefer the maximum cushioned ride of the Ghost 10. I’m also waiting to try the Bondi 5. I’m willing to give up 2 1/2 ounces in shoe weight to pamper my feet. But for those other times…

 

 

New Balance Zante

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Through some bit of incredible luck I was able to obtain the original New Balance Zante off of EBay from a Canadian shoe store for $54 American. That color is the version I got. Sure its ugly, but who cares. Really. The version 3 was just coming out and how I was able to go back 2 generations was beyond me. I’d heard a lot about this shoe from YouTube reviews from a couple of years ago. They had made it sound like the lightest and cushiest shoe ever. I was kicking myself for not knowing about it then (I invariably come into things late in the game).

I took it out for the maiden voyage a couple of weeks ago and was decidedly underwhelmed. It wasn’t very cushy at all, and if it was 3 ounces lighter than my pet Ghost, it was hard to tell. I had weighed it myself right out of the box, 7.6 ounces, the lightest shoe I have. Point 2 ounces lighter than the Hoka Clayton even. But the Zante version 2 seems like the better shoe, even if it is an ounce heavier at 8.8. It comes with a very unusual insole. A thicker, perforated foam that is somewhat stiffer than usual. Light weight too, it comes in at a surprising .5 of an ounce, compared to a Hoka insole at .8 ounces.

It has that rubber outsole running the length of the shoe that I had first experienced a year ago on the New Balance 1080 v6. Its going to last forever. A lot of yahoo’s on the internet think the version 2 was a step backwards, I disagree. The version 2 is a soft shoe. I don’t understand how or why, but that’s what it seems to me. I took the original on a Sunday morning ‘long run’ earlier today. By the end of an hour I was okay with it, but boy for the first half it really felt like my feet, knees and legs were taking a pounding. I should do the same next week with the version 2 to compare. I would almost guarantee it will be softer.

I’m just waiting to see if I get past a “break in” period that causes me to fall in love with the Zante. Until then, its a good shoe, if not great.

[EBay is an interesting experience. I almost got a pair of the original Hoka Clifton. At $55 dollars I was outbid for this used shoe. I wasn’t going to pay more than that, even if it was “hardly used”. It is impossible to find a new/unused Clifton. That was a legendary shoe also. I was able to find the original Clayton at the Hoka site itself.]

Sunday morning with Kinvara 6!

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Interesting shoe. The lightest I have at 7.9 ounces. Beautiful morning for a test run. Saucony Kinvara fits tight on your feet. Every previous shoe I’ve ever had fits like a 9.5 American. This tight fit loosens up some with each mile. The snug fit is appreciated on corners especially, no perceived risk of sliding off your shoe base. You corner well. You also have to figure its going to expand a little with wear, like breaking in a new pair of gloves.

I hadn’t planned on getting a new pair of running shoes before winter, but when I saw these prior year shoes (Kinvara 7’s out now) on Amazon for $72.61, I couldn’t pass them up. A lightweight shoe is what I’m into. A Hoka One One Clayton purchase is planned for the spring. When you flip the shoe over and press on the heel with your thumb, it is definitely a firmer heel then the Clifton, Zante or Ghost. But then, few people have an actual ‘heel strike’. The rest of the sole is quite soft.

I’ll be curious to see how they feel as the miles accumulate. Right now it is a nice shoe, but the Clifton’s actually feel rejuvenating for your feet as you run. The Kinvara’s let you run forever! They are lightweight shoes built for running lots of miles! I also think the edge might go to the NB Zante for comfort ahead of the Kinvara. Also the New Balance supports American manufacturing more, though I’m not sure to what degree. I’m still searching for the shoe that takes 40 years off your legs.

[I ended up either throwing these away or giving them away. Hard and tight is not what you want for a running shoe. Ginger Runner on YouTube as an example just raves about Kinvara, all I can think is there’s a financial incentive. I’d be embarrassed to make something so bad. In over 20 pairs of running shoes its the only one that couldn’t get the size right, not to mention their sole was so hard it was a traction hazard.]

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Purchased from Salk Trading, 172 Trade Street, Lexington, Kentucky 40511

Hoka One One Clifton 3 !

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A recent trip to downtown Ames scored a pair of Clifton 3 running shoes from Brown’s Shoe Fit. The first thing I noticed handling this $140 shoe from Hoka One One was how light it was. Once I got it home and put it on the scale I found it came in at 9.2 ounces for a 9 1/2 size shoe. The same trip I had “bounced” a pair of Brooks and Asics in my hands and you could tell immediately how much heavier they were in your hands.

They were imbalanced heavy in the sole. The Clifton’s were “balanced” in the sense the uppers were the same felt weight as the soles. After the first mile they broke in and you got past the “clump, clump”, and each footfall brought a nice ‘cush’ feeling and spring in the step. During a Sunday morning run, they were as kind to old peoples feet as is possible in a shoe.

Now I want to get another Hoka, the Clayton to see how they compare. I’ve found out in my short time as a runner, that weight is a BIG factor in how enjoyable your running experience is. Another shoe I’ve heard a lot about is the Saucony Kinvara. Despite my sentimental attachment to the Brooks Ghost 6 that got me into running, they are just to heavy to justify. That’s one thing that bugs me about shoe reviews, don’t “describe” how heavy they feel, give us the ounces.

[5/29/17 update. I’ve noticed that after just 6 months of running in the Clifton 3, and those were over the less frequent running winter months, they are nearly worn out! I’ve noticed after looking at my New Balance that even though a year old, they are hardly worn! Same with the Nike. Hoka while making a very nice shoe, does not make a durable shoe. Its even less of a bargain when you consider their higher initial price. So no matter how nice a shoe they are, it’s ridiculous to pay $150 for a shoe you only get 6 months out of. The thin layer of rubber on the outsole they had to know wouldn’t last long. You are overpriced and under made Hoka.]