FOOTWEAR FOCUS ROAD TEST
Henry Harington road tests the Saucony ProGrid Kinvara 2 - Saucony’s thoroughbred camel
A
camel is always said to be a horse designed by a committee. I have always felt that this was very unkind to the camel. They may not be the friendliest of creatures – but would you be if you had to carry cargo miles and miles and miles
over the blistering heat over the Arabian sands and not offered a drink for days on end. But camels are tough and will get you from A to B, despite the terrain. There is always a risk when something is designed to
do more than one thing that it ends up doing neither very well. But on the other hand when people who breed animals marry two breeds the products of the unions are said to benefit from “hybrid vigour.”
Sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me I am in my element when I run on the moors and for that I need a robust shoe that can withstand not just running though bogs and streams but has sufficient protection from under foot unevenness and sharp stones. I dislike running in town because the roads and pavements are so
unforgiving to my back and my knees. When I am in London I live in quite a green part, between Richmond Park and the River Thames. When one is going for a run one’s thoughts turn to “hopping in the car” and going somewhere nice to run. But, this is London that sometimes seems to have more cars than people.
This is London that can take you two hours of stop go to find a nice place to have a 30 minute run – and another two hours to get back! Saucony have come up with the solution. The Saucony ProGrid Kinvara 2
is a hybrid – that is my conclusion, Saucony call it “a brand new neutral running shoe.” Which they also describe as, “very light weight.” Now firms like Saucony like to appeal to the “serious runner” and if you
are going to speak to the “serious runner” you need a version of gobbledegook that makes your product sound geeky. So Saucony say, “The Saucony Kinvara is designed to have a more level midsole than other running shoes, meant to stimulate the mid-to-forefoot strike which means there is less difference in height between heel and forefoot.”
14 • FOOTWEAR TODAY • OCTOBER 2011 Now that doesn’t mean a lot to me. For me running is
exercise, fun, healthy it is not a metaphysical experience. So I hope they won’t mind me calling the shoe a hybrid. Because it works exceptionally well as a hybrid. Instead of hopping into the car to go running I use the Kinvara to run to where I want to run. It is very…I mean very lightweight, but also very well cushioned for my knees to
withstand the London streets. But, when I get to where I want to run, in the park or along the river the
sole has a tread that, with the cushioning provides the protection I need on rougher surfaces. I joke when I say it is a camel with a mosquito net. But that is what the
mesh over the shoe seemed to be and which baffled me when I took them out of the box. But it’s actually very neat. In marketing terminology, the mesh is a “mono filament mesh that is light and breathable,” but the crucial phrase is that it, “keeps out a lot of the dirt and stones.” It does just that, especially in the dusty conditions we have had to run during the spring of 2011. It means there is good ventilation of the feet without the risk of unwanted rubble. At its best the hybrid provides the best qualities of both breeds from which it is hatched. The Saucony Kivara is a road running shoe combined with an off road shoe and in my book gives the best of both worlds.
ProGrid Kinvara2 • More breathable and durable mono mesh. • Greater coverage with the endoskeleton synthetic. • Aesthetically faster and richer looking. • For the runner who is looking for a minimal training shoe that will allow them to run uninhibited.
• 4mm heel drop for a more midfootstrike. • Upper is soft on the foot and fits like a glove. • Trade price: £46.90 - Retail: £90.00
01794 537537
info@saucony.co.uk www.saucony.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40