Adidas adidas adizero Adios Professional Evo 1 Introduction
Each every now and then, a working shoe is launched which moulds the way forward for working shoe design and dictates how future footwear will carry out. The Nike Vaporfly 4% was one in all these examples and the Adios Professional Evo 1 is now one other.
There was a time when elite marathon runners would put on racing flats as a result of they believed {that a} lighter shoe meant a sooner time. However with a view to use these racing flats for lengthy distances, you wanted to have beautiful working kind and ft that are robust as nails. Most non-elite runners weren’t capable of race a marathon in flats.
Then got here the extra forgiving Nike Vaporfly 4% with its stiff carbon plate inside a thick 31 mm/21 mm, soft midsole. It supplied rather more cushioning, safety and pace help.
As midsoles received thicker and foams turned extra responsive, race document occasions dropped decrease and decrease. World Athletics then set guidelines for competitors footwear. The midsole can’t be above 40 mm in stack top and there can solely be 1 stiffening gadget within the midsole.
Manufacturers now must suppose exterior the field about how they’ll make their tremendous footwear sooner with out breaking the foundations. 1 of the methods is to lower the burden of the shoe.
Adidas has beforehand toyed with the thought of tremendous mild racing footwear. They used to have a racing flat referred to as the Adizero Sub 2 which weighed solely 5.6 oz (160 g). This shoe was designed to assist athletes race a marathon in underneath 2 hours, however that by no means occurred.
The Sub 2 racer had a flat experience, didn’t have a lot cushioning and didn’t present a lot pace help. Adidas’ newest innovation, the Adios Professional Evo 1 combines the advantages of a super-light racing flat weight with the pace help of a maximalist carbon-plated tremendous shoe.
The Evo Professional 1 is an idea shoe which is made out there for the general public to purchase. This not solely creates hype for Adidas but in addition offers the shoe credibility as a result of non-elite runners are capable of try it out for themselves to see that it’s the actual deal. That is one thing that extra manufacturers ought to do.
There have been solely 1025 pairs of the footwear made- mine is quantity 910. I managed to purchase the Evo 1 by a raffle on Working Warehouse and on the time of the writing of this evaluate, there may be nonetheless inventory out there on the Working Warehouse web site for buy.
The Adios Professional Evo 1 weighs simply 4.87 oz (138 g) in a males’s US9. That is a complete 3 oz (85 g) lower than the Adidas Adios Professional 3. It has a 39/33 mm stack top with a 6 mm drop. It prices $500, double the value of the “extra reasonably priced” and extra extensively out there Adios Professional 3.
So why is it so costly? Adidas carves every Evo Professional 1 midsole out of a block of froth utilizing a method referred to as CNC (pc numerical management) milling. To do that takes a whole lot of time, ability and extra materials waste. Adidas most likely makes little or no revenue, if any, on this shoe.
Adidas adidas adizero Adios Professional Evo 1 First Impressions
My first run within the Evo 1 was a 10K race on a hilly course. I hadn’t achieved any coaching runs in it earlier than that as a result of I needed to reserve it for race day so it was a bit dangerous to race in it.
I can keep in mind strolling to the beginning line and feeling like I used to be forgetting one thing as a result of it felt like I wasn’t carrying any footwear as a consequence of its weight. The higher additionally felt actually comfy and the dimensions was good: cosy however safe.
It wanted no break-in interval and inside the first 500 metres, I may inform that the Evo 1 had a softer experience than the Adios Professional 3. I may additionally inform that their rockers had been totally different; the Adios Professional 3’s rocker felt extra outstanding whereas the Evo 1’s rocker felt extra subdued.
I used to be actually amazed with the way it carried out throughout that race. My time was 40:27. It wasn’t a PB as a result of the route had 135 m (443 f) of elevation achieve however through the late levels of the race, from kilometres 7-10, the featherweight construct made my legs really feel a lot brisker than they normally would really feel. The light-weight construct additionally made tackling the steep hills a lot simpler.
Adidas adidas adizero Adios Professional Evo 1 Higher
That is the thinnest, most minimal higher I’ve ever put my ft into. The plastic-feeling mesh feels thinner than some ziplock baggage and I really feel like I’ve to be light with it in order that I don’t tear a gap in it. Breathability is great and it doesn’t take up sweat.
There isn’t as a lot padding within the collar and heel tab as within the Adios Professional 3 so the Evo 1 doesn’t have excellent heel lockdown. There’s additionally no heel counter so even utilizing a runner’s knot, my heel feels unfastened however there isn’t any heel slippage.
The Evo 1 is true to dimension with the normal Adidas slim final. It has a cosy, racing match with a low toe-box top. It’s finest suited to slim, low-volume ft.
Adidas adidas adizero Adios Professional Evo 1 Sole Unit
My top is 170 cm, my weight is 60 kilograms and I’m a heel striker. These are necessary stats as a result of I’ve achieved 80 kilometres within the Evo 1 and it exhibits completely no indicators of degradation. The cushioning now could be simply as responsive as my first run in it.
Adidas says that it’s designed to carry out optimally for just one marathon race however that can rely in your weight and working kind. I estimate that I can run not less than 2-3 marathons in it, along with the 80 kilometres I’ve already placed on it.
Additionally they state on the cardboard that comes with it that it’s designed for runners who can run 3 hours half-hour or sooner for a full marathon. My PB is 3 hours so I ought to have the ability to get the total Evo 1 expertise.
My testing consisted of a 10K race, and two onerous 35 kilometre lengthy runs. The Evo 1 excelled at each distances and at a wide range of paces. Whereas a number of the different light-weight racers don’t have sufficient cushioning for a full marathon, the Evo 1 has greater than sufficient and I’ll undoubtedly be racing a marathon in it this yr. It additionally feels comfy at slower paces as a consequence of its forgiving, “pleasant” experience.
The Lightstrike Professional Evo foam that makes up the midsole of the Evo 1 is comprised of PEBA and it supplies a softer experience than common Lightstrike Professional. It feels fluffier and it has the next compression price. It feels as in the event that they’ve injected Nitrogen into it to make it lighter and fewer dense.
The vitality return isn’t as excessive because the common Lightstrike Professional due to how a lot your ft sink down into the froth each time you load it. The experience of the Evo 1 feels plusher than the Adios Professional 3 and plusher than most flagship tremendous footwear.
I discover the Evo 1 most spectacular within the late levels of runs when my legs start to tire. Usually it looks like I’m dragging my ft, however within the Evo 1, I can preserve my tempo and even pace up. It offers me the flexibility to “open fireplace” near the top.
The rocker of the Evo 1 is at 60% of the size of the shoe. The rocker of the Adios Professional 3 is at 70% as compared.
The longer rocker within the Evo leads to a gentler, rolling transition in comparison with the Adios Professional which has a extra aggressive, forward-tipping transition. I desire the Adios Professional 3’s rocker however I believe the Evo 1’s midsole is simply too gentle for that setup because the rods would poke into your ft by the gentle foam.
The Vitality Rods contained in the Evo 1’s midsole are tremendous stiff, similar to those within the Adios Professional 3 however they can transfer vertically independently. This leads to extremely environment friendly transitions and a extra forgiving experience (than a carbon plate) throughout gradual paces.
One of many massive variations between the Evo 1 and different racers is that the Evo doesn’t have an insole so there’s much less step-in consolation. Your ft sit straight on the strobel lining. Throughout runs, I don’t discover the absence of the insole besides in direction of the ends of lengthy runs.
Apart from offering extra cushioning, an insole additionally absorbs sweat out of your ft, however within the Evo Professional 1, the sweat doesn’t disappear down into the insole. Throughout the finish of lengthy runs, it feels as if my ft are utterly drenched which isn’t comfy.
The Evo 1 feels extra unstable than the Adios Professional 3. The perimeters of the Evo 1 midsole are a lot softer (30%) than a midsole which has been compression moulded so it has much less construction and is much less supportive. When cornering, I’ve to decelerate greater than I do within the Adios Professional. When you want a racer with stability, the Evo 1 won’t be appropriate for you.
The outsole sturdiness of the Evo 1 has impressed me essentially the most. Aside from some discolouring, the outsole nonetheless appears good after 80 kilometres with no dents, scratches or chips.
The Evo 1’s largest weak point is outsole traction. I used it when it was drizzling calmly and I discovered the street extraordinarily slippery the place there have been painted traces on the street. It is sensible now why the Adidas elite athletes used Evo 1’s with modified outsoles through the Berlin Marathon.
Adidas adidas adizero Adios Professional Evo 1 Conclusions
The Adidas Adios Professional Evo 1 is the quickest working shoe I’ve examined.
Whereas it doesn’t present as a lot pace help as different racers that are extra aggressive, its featherweight construct makes it really feel sooner and extra environment friendly than rivals.
Its midsole foam isn’t as explosive as different tremendous foams as a consequence of how squishy it’s however it doesn’t really feel sluggish or vitality sapping.
It’s definitely not a gimmick and if cash was no concern, that is the racer I’d purchase and lace up for all my races.
But when cash is a matter, I wouldn’t suggest the Evo Professional 1 as a result of it’s not value 2 pairs of Adios Professional 3, Edge Paris or Vaporfly 3.
The Evo 1 isn’t for many runners. It’s for skilled athletes to interrupt information and it’s for working shoe geeks who wish to expertise the head of racing footwear. For $500, you get to expertise the longer term.
The time period “game-changer” is thrown round fairly often as of late however it actually does aptly apply to the Evo Professional 1. In a yr from now, each main model may have a sub-5 oz marathon racer. There are already some Chinese language racers which weigh lower than the Evo 1.
That is excellent news not just for severe runners however for informal runners too as a result of these light-weight racing foams will ultimately filter all the way down to the extra reasonably priced footwear.
The upcoming Adios Professional 4 already has Lightstrike Professional Evo foam inserts in its midsole.
