Comments on: On Cloudracer Running Shoe Review

By: Milou

Milou — Sat, 13 Jan 2018 14:28:00 +0000

Worst shoes I ever owned!
Parts of the sole broke after 40 kms (2 runs). I returned them but they had forgotten to give me a prepaid return waybill (they advertise easy, free return). I requested a waybill on their website and never had an answer. After more than 2 weeks waiting for an answer, I sent it back using the same delivery method. Samara, the Canadian’s customer service representative, told me she would take care of the bill in September, again in October, and in December. We currently are in January and my bill still has not been taken care of.

I would not recommend these shoes to any long distance runners

By: Swiss design award loop shoes - GenevaLunch News

Swiss design award loop shoes - GenevaLunch News — Thu, 13 Feb 2014 08:30:23 +0000

[…] shoes are behind the line of On CloudTec shoes which have received good reviews in the running world since they hit the market in 2010 and became more widely available in […]

By: Christopher Babb

Christopher Babb — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

This looks like an accident waiting to happen. I have had two running injuries in my life and they both happened when I tripped due to having too much sole beneath my feet. Due to the slowed rate of motion these shoes provide reaction times will also be slowed.

Heel striking and a low cadence slows reaction time anyways but now you have to deal with getting past pods and EVA. The ability to change directions to avoid potholes, rattle snakes, and the occasional used car salesmen will be greatly reduced.

What baffles me though is why would they give a shoe a minimal heel lift if it's only good for heel striking?

On a side note: I wouldn't be caught dead wearing these myself. (no offense to anyone who does) I'd feel like people would think I needed a cane just to get around.

By: Pete Larson

Pete Larson — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

In reply to Robert Osfield.

The more I watch that video, the more I think it's not so much that impact is different, but rather that the "traditional" shoe has a very pronounced foot slap and that it's the post impact heel-toe transition that differs.

By: Pete Larson

Pete Larson — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

In reply to Stephen Boulet.

I considered the training miles, but for 4-5 marathons we'd be talking maybe 2000+ miles if you include training. That would be a pretty bold claim!
Sent from my iPad

By: Fred Brossard

Fred Brossard — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Very interesting point of view. I was recently given a pair of CloudRacers by their French representative. I thought they might be compatible with my flat midfoot strike which wasn't the case at all. Instead of giving me an energy boost, they deadly slowed me. I gave them to a heel striker who immediatly became at ease with them and thought his performances were improved by the sole. Obviously you fully agree :-)

By: Peter

Peter — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I had a pair but gave them away after some ten runs because...

a) They're heavy and slowed me down.
b) When it's wet outside they're slippery.
c) They're totally useless in terrain, no traction, and again slippery.

d) On fire roads gravel gut stuck in the pods.

They were somewhat okey on the local 400 meter oval and for warm-ups and cool-downs on asphalt on hot, dry days though...

By: Sunny

Sunny — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Bought the cloudsurfer a few months back and totaled about 440 miles including several marathons. The shoes are at a point where one of the cloud pods is about to wear through so I am looking for new shoes. I am contemplating getting the cloud racer.
My experience with the surfer model (which should apply to the racer) has been positive. My previous shoes were mostly from Nike. The ON shoes are better ventilated and the "clouds" seem to offer better damping and got rid of shin splints, calf soreness and black toes I usually get with other brands.
They are reasonably light weight. The thicker heal pods saved me a few times on steep downhills. They did not get in the way when running sub 6 pace mid-foot.
Only issue was when I ran Paris on cobblestones. My forefoot was sore the second half. I certainly would consider buying them again provided I don't get bored with them. By the way, the price is all inclusive (tax and s/h). They arrived at my doorstep two days after ordering them. The surfer model seems to have gone up in price by $10. I think its a bit steep for those shoes.

By: Robert Osfield

Robert Osfield — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Looking at the slow motion video it shows that three things happen on the Cloud Races vs. the "traditional" trainer:

1) The pod compresses, but then so does EVA so I don't see
this is as being anything unusual.

2) The pod shears, which would give a small and brief reduction in
the moment about the ankle forcing the toes down due to a
small reduction in the horizontal force.

3) The initial loading point is shifted forward vs the "traditional"
trainer, so that the moment arm about the ankle is reduced,
which in turn there is less moment about the ankle on

landing.

I would expect these effects to be most prominent on heel strikers that land with there foot sill moving forward. For runners which land with their foot still moving forward then item 2 disappears.

For runners that land flat footed, mid foot or forefoot then item 3 will be totally irrelevant. As you found ;-)

For the downsides, well there is the weight, this is going to increase the cost of recovering the foot from toe off to landing, so runners are likely to run with a lower cadence, longer stride length and longer time on stance. The runner will be less efficient than they would be with a lighter shoe.

Where the claimed improved efficiency might come from... my guess it's the conditions of the tests done and what they were comparing against rather anything from the shoe. The only area where I think there might be an improvement is that if you are a heavy heel striker and use the shin muscles significantly then loading them less will result in less energy used in activating them on loading.

For a runner who has a healthy gait I would expect the pods to offer no advantages. For the a runner with a unhealthy gait (heavy heel strike) and used to running in heavy shoes it may help elevate some of the side effects of the problems in the gait.

Personally I think a low and undercut heel is a much simpler solution to reducing the side effects of a heavy heel strike in terms of moment about the heel. Cutting away material rather adding material will also reduce weight which provides other benefits to the overall gait in terms of cadence and stride length.

By: Pete Larson

Pete Larson — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

In reply to Peter.

I had wondered about gravel getting stuck in the pods, haven't experienced it myself, but seems like it could be an issue.

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By: Stephen Boulet

Stephen Boulet — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Doesn't seem like the shoe for me, since I no longer heel strike, but perhaps by 4-5 marathons they include training miles too?

By: Pete Larson

Pete Larson — Tue, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

In reply to Robert Osfield.

Well said!