Nike Air Zoom Trail S+ Shoe

I bought myself a new pair of trail shoes this week. After Gnaw Bone 50K, I thought I deserved a treat! Those old Teva X-1 shoes were on their last legs anyway, and the extra mud caked all over them after the race gave me the extra incentive I needed to find a replacement (see those old muddy shoes in blog post below). These have been one of my favorite shoes for a couple years. Unfortunately, they have been replaced with two new models (guess it took TWO new shoes to replace this ONE old model). The Teva X-1 is now either the X-1 Racer (racing trail shoe) or X-1C (control/stability shoe). Uncomfortable with either option (and they rarely go on sale so I'm hesitant to spend the full $95), I started looking at other shoes. Then my darn Outside magazine shows up in the mailbox. It was accompanied by their annual "gear guide." I eagerly turned to the trail running section and saw their picks in various categories. One shoe caught my eye...the Nike Air Zoom Trail S+. It was listed as "versatile and fast." At only 10 ounces, it seemed to fit with my current philosophy of lightweight trail shoes. I searched around the web and found them for a reasonable price ($75) at Running Warehouse. Couple clicks and they were on the way (they arrived quickly, with free 2-day shipping).

I haven't tested them on the trails yet, but they fit well right out of the box and seem to have a snug heel and fairly wide and roomy toe box. I'll update this post after I run in them a couple times this weekend. The traction/grip looks good, but not crazy (could still work on short road segments). It has a rock guard underfoot, but almost no toe protection. Cushioning seems rather plush (at least more than I expect). They ride low to the ground (although not as low as my NB 790s) and flex nicely at the forefoot. The shoe is compatible with the Apple-Nike Sport Kit that allows an iPod Nano to sync up with a shoe sensor and provide running data. If anyone has used that feature, let me know if it's worthwhile.