I’m hooked man.
Skechers.
Yes, Skechers!
The company that makes light-up shoes for kids and semi-dressy shoes for adults. Clunky looking running shoes.
But, out of nowhere, they grabbed my attention with a performance line that is pretty darn impressive.
I had purchased the Nike Vaporfly 4% at the hefty price of $250 because I thought that was going to be the end-all-be-all of marathon shoes. Blah. I was let down. Not a fan.
I kept reading about how great the new Skechers Razor 3 Hyper is and how light, springy and fast THEY are. Hell, they even say SPEED right on the side … which I thought was a cheesy design idea, further putting doubt in my mind that Skechers could step into the arena with the big boys. Finally though, I gave into the urge to try them. I am glad I did. Not only are they half the price of the 4% but they live up to the hype! And I have grown to not hate the “SPEED” graphic.
These shoes use a foam called Hyper Burst. The best way I can describe the cushioning in this shoe is like a pool noodle. Sturdy, yet light foam. Very springy. Like a very dense sponge, but not sponge-y. Soft, but responsive. The overall fit is a little narrow, but I have become used to Altra line of shoes that provide plenty of room in the toe box. The Skechers Razor 3 Hyper are still comfortable without being too constricting and the upper has not cause any hot spots. The rigid heel counter did not cause any rubbing on my heel or Achilles. I could run in these for hours with no worry of them bothering my feet.
I trained for a few months in the first pair I purchased and decided they were going to be my shoe of choice for the Erie marathon. So I ordered a second pair for race day. They were great for the 26.2 miles, even when I was not. But that’s another story.
Here are the tech specs:
Weight: 6.4 oz (size 9)
Stack Height: 24 mm (Heel); 20 mm (Forefoot)
I have been running in these two pairs of shoes for almost all of my runs recently. I like them that much.
Skechers has some really cool shoes rolling out. The Go Meb Speed 6 was just released and I test ran in them recently after hitting ORDER NOW the second they dropped. Oh, and I have a trail shoe on pre-order. In addition, there is a SPEED ELITE version of the Razor coming out in a few months with a carbon plate in the sole. (YES, I HAVE AN ADDICTION) Maybe this is the end-all-be-all marathon shoe I have been dreaming of. We will find out!
** UPDATE – I The Speed 6 were way too snug and the Speed Trail shoes were very strangely sized. The right shoe was significantly smaller than the left.
