Spring Gear Review

It is time to review some gear! In this post I will review Nike Dri-FIT Tempo Two-In-One Men’s Running Shorts, Skull Candy “Smokin Buds” earphones, New Balance 1063, Sole Sport Flip, and CLIF shot bloks electrolyte chews.

Nike Shorts

Nike Dri-Fit 2-in-1 Short

I will start with my favorite item, the Nike Dri-FIT Tempo Two-In-One Men’s Running Shorts. The shorts are light weight even though they have the full spandex short liner. I typically will wear a pair of Under Armour compression shorts under my running shorts. The Nike short eliminates the need to do that. The length of the short is perfect. My favorite feature of the short has to be the sweat proof pocket on the back of the waist band. It is the ideal place to put your iPod while running. Even during high humidity and sweat, the shorts stayed light and comfortable.

New Balance 1063

New Balance 1063

I have put 173 miles on the New Balance 1063’s. The best compliment I can give any shoe is that I have had no injuries or foot problems while running in the shoe. I have had no plantar faciitis flare ups since I put the 1063 on. I thought that having less cushioning then my previous shoes, I might run into some joint problems, I was wrong. My legs from toes to hips feel great. The shoe has an exceptional fit and has maintained the great fit after the 170+ miles. The rubber on the sole of the shoe has held up well, just as well as the Nikes. Which up to this point, had held up better than Saucony, Brooks, Asics, and Mizuno soles. The Mizuno shoes fared the worst of all. I wore the bottoms of the Mizunos down in 150 miles. I am 5’11” and 178 lbs., rubber should not wear that much that fast. The 1063 is a work horse shoe. I wore them for all my city running and my feet never felt “banged up”. The styling of the shoe could use some work, but other than that I would give the shoe high marks. I look forward to the next 170 miles in the shoes, I think they will hold up nicely.

Sole Sport Flip

Sole Sport Flips

On to the Sole Sport Flips… After my trouble with plantar faciitis, I thought I would be giving up Flip Flops. The company that makes my favorite foot bed insert Sole, also makes the Sport Flip. I decided to give them a try. At first I did not feel a huge difference between the Sport Flip and your run of the mill flip flop; it took time for me to appreciate the Sport Flip. It is what you don’t feel after wearing the Sport Flip for hours that will amaze you. I did not feel any foot fatigue after wearing the Sport Flips all day. My arch was supported and the cushioning softened the blows of walking on concrete surfaces. They are more expensive than what I normally would spend on a flip flop but, I will say I think they are worth it. It is early in the season so I will see how they hold up for an entire summer. So far so good.

“@sirisaac @neudesigns Nice gear review Thomas. The SOLE Sport Flips are my favorite post run footwear!” – Newton Running

Shot Bloks

Shot Bloks

I usually eat GU or Hammer Nutrition gels during my longer runs. After years of them I was ready to try something else. I picked up the CLIF Shot Bloks. I find them to be a great substitute for the gels. I run with some people that don’t like the consistency of the gels, the Bloks can take care of that problem.

Skull Candy FAIL

Skull Candy Smokin' Buds

My only FAIL this review is for the Skull Candy Smokin’ Buds earphones. The sound quality was ok. The base over powered the treble a bit. The volume control on the cord weighted the cord making it a little jerky during runs. I found myself holding the cord to avoid the swinging and bouncing of the volume control. The biggest problem was that the cord snapped after three weeks of running with the headphones. The weight of the cord felt “chincy” when I first took them out of the packaging. Turns out the impression was right, they are not strong enough for running. On the bright side, my local running store (Charm City Run) was able to exchange them for me with no hassle.

Four out of five ain’t to shabby!

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