The shoe
How do you go about making a great super shoe even greater? ‘The problems to find are simple, the solutions are always complicated,’ Bret Schoolmeester, senior product manager at Nike, told us when we picked his brains about the new Nike AlphaFly 3.
‘women nike flex run 2018 igloo sale katy texas Alphafly has been a record-breaking shoe, in its first iteration, athlete adoption wasn't quite where we wanted it to be. So, we just went to the athletes and said, “What's preventing you from wearing the Alphafly?” And the answers were that we wanted to improve confidence in the shoe, comfort and stability.’
Three iterations later, and improved stability and comfort has remained a key focus in the Alphafly 3. Distinct from versions one and two, the latest version has a continuous outsole for stability. It’s also got an all-new last (shoe mould) – fleshed out around the midfoot – to improve arch comfort and reduce rubbing throughout the foot. There’s a new moulded sock liner to support the new lower profile arch and Flyknit heel pods offer padding in the heel and lower achilles.
‘Again, there was some irritation there for some athletes [previously] and it wasn’t quite as stable,’ says Schoolmeester. ‘Now, elite athletes are finding it to be more comfortable and more stable. And that’s going to help athletes that are running two and a half, three, four hours in the marathon even more.’
This is also the lightest Alphafly yet – some 15% lighter than the Alphafly 2. ‘If you can keep improving other things while reducing weight, we always know we’re onto something special,’ says Schoolmeester.
Durability has been been a big focus for Nike in the Alphafly 3, with the brand acknowledging that most runners need their £275 shoe to work hard for them race after race, and sometimes for multiple seasons.
‘I really think the magic is when you find the areas where there's no sacrifices,’ says Schoolmeester. ‘So durability is one of those examples. For a racing shoe, we want to make sure it’s the absolute fastest we can make it but it doesn’t wear out at all. You’re going to get more miles out of [the Alphafly 3], for sure, than some of our competitors.’
So how is Nike ensuring the latest iteration is the absolute fastest it can make it? According to Schoolmeester, it’s a case of fine tuning the technology they’ve already got. ‘I always use a cooking analogy,’ says Schoolmeester. ‘You've got ingredients, but then you’ve got the ratio of the ingredients. How long are you going to cook them for? How are you going to mix it to make an unbelievable meal?
‘We’re fortunate in that we have the greatest suite of ingredients with Zoom X foam, Flyplate technology and Flyknit Zoom Air. The story of the Alphafly 3 is really how we’ve optimised the recipe. So, you have stack heights, offsets, the way we compress foam – we can use different preforms and shapes to get even higher performance of it – the layups of the carbon and placement of the airbags. So even without a new ingredient, there's still a lot of different ways we can optimise the shoe to perform as well as this one does.’
nike huarache mens 2018 fashion week fragrance, Kelvin Kiptim, who tragically died earlier this month in a car accident, proved the shoe’s superior performance capability when he broke the marathon world record wearing a prototype of the shoe – the Nike Dev 163.
Nike Alphafly 3 review by Ali Ball, Ecommerce Editor
I should start by saying that the Alphafly 2 is my all-time favourite super shoe. Controversial? Perhaps. It’s not to everyone’s taste. But for me, the energy return is unrivalled and it’s seen me through marathons and half marathons – yeezy mens sneakers.
Fit wise, the shoe is pretty flawless. I opted for the same size that I wore in the Alphafly 2 (UK 8.5 – half a size up from my regular shoe size) and had no issues, with a decent amount of room in the toebox. Lockdown is impressive too – I’ve never felt like I’m slipping and sliding in these, even going round corners at speed – there’s no pressure coming from the laces on top of the foot, and the tongue stays firmly in place.
So, how does the ride fair? Unsurprisingly, the Alphafly 3 really is built for speed. I’ve been wearing these for the majority of my interval sessions over the past few weeks and you can feel that unrivalled propulsion and responsiveness coming from the ZoomAir pods in the forefoot. It feels slightly more aggressive than the Alphafly 2, with more of a 'tippy' sensation on each step, but I think this adds to the overall liveliness and enjoyment of the ride. At the same time, the ride feels smooth and the shoe is definitely more stable than its predecessor thanks to the one continuous midsole and tweaked plate design (although it hasn’t lost that distinctive ‘clip clop’ sound, some will be disappointed to hear).
nike air max navy gold dames shoes 2017 blistering on the medial side of the foot. So, I was intrigued to see whether changes to the comfort level of the Alphafly 3 would make a difference. So far, I’ve not experienced any hotspots in them and the additional padding around the heel collar brings welcome comfort to the achilles, too.
nike huarache mens 2018 fashion week fragrance | Nike Alphafly 3 review by Ben Hobson, Multiplatform Director
While my esteemed colleague is a fan of previous version of this shoe, I was not so convinced. It’s not that I didn’t think it was a very capable and fast shoe, that much is clearly evident, but it had its pitfalls. The first for me was fit and comfort and the other was the noise when running (oh, the noise!).
With the Alphafly 3, Nike have made some adjustments to the fit and that translates into less irritation on the instep of the foot, which was a big issue for me (and others). A lot of this was caused by a combination of the width of the shoe and some relatively severe contouring to the footbed to accommodate the footpod and plate combo. With a new continuous midsole, this has meant the fit has been adjusted, and though version 3 still has some familiar sensations when you pull the shoe on (the upper still has a sock-like quality and it feels tight), there isn’t that irritation, most notably on runs longer than half marathon distance.
I wholly agree with Ali in that the continuous midsole makes a big difference to how the shoe feels on the move; it feels more dialled in and connected – more propulsive, even. It also gives the Alphafly 3 more structure underfoot, which directly relates to ride quality and a more connected feeling to the shoe.
However, the changes haven't been so significant that it feels like a different shoe. The Zoom X foam still with the same soft feeling ride and there is no mistaking the sensation of having Airpods under the ball of the foot. It’s also still a slightly noisy beast, though that has been somewhat curtailed and is now bearable to fusspots like myself.
RW Verdict
Punchy, light and a lot more accommodating in the comfort department, the Alphafly 3 is certainly an improvement on its predecessor and will appeal to a wider audience. The bouncy and propulsive ride is an absolute joy, lockdown is near-perfect, and there’s the right level of comfort to help you sustain pace for an all-out half marathon or marathon effort. If you’re chasing down a PB in 2024, then the Alphafly 3 will be the first choice for many.
