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Saucony Mirage 4 Running Shoe Review: Good Choice if You Like a Firm Shoe

Saucony Mirage 4I’ve been struggling a bit with how to approach this review of the Saucony Mirage 4. On the one hand, there is a lot that I love about this shoe. On the other hand, it’s simply not been a good match for me. As such, this is going to be a review in which I’ll be very honest in describing what I personally did not like about the shoe, but I also feel that a lot of people will probably like it a lot. I’ll do my best to clearly describe the pros and cons so you can decide if it might be a good fit. (Disclosure: these shoes were a media sample provided free of charge by Saucony)

Let’s first walk through three things that I really like about the Saucony Mirage 4.

1. Appearance

When I first saw the Mirage 4 I was immediately impressed by it’s appearance – it’s a really great looking shoe. It’s rare that I would buy a shoe solely due to its appearance, but if I were not a runner and I walked into a store to buy a casual sneaker, this is one that would immediately catch my eye. Saucony has done a great job of improving the aesthetics of the Mirage from version 3.

Saucony Mirage 4 side

Saucony Mirage 4 red

2. Fit

The Mirage 4 fits my foot perfectly. I sized up to a 10.5 as I do in almost all Saucony shoes, and the fit is like it was made for my foot. I had major issues with the fit of the Saucony Kinvara 4 (too tight at the front of the toebox), and the Mirage 4 is spacious by comparison – plenty of toe wiggle room. Let’s just say if the Kinvara 5 shares a similar fit to this iteration of the Mirage I’ll be a very happy guy.

Saucony Mirage 4 top

3. Upper Construction

The upper of this shoe is really, really nice. Lots of flex-film overlays to provide structure without being overbearing, a non-abrasive internal lining, and I like the mesh they used (with one exception, which I’ll get to in a minute). I particularly like the material they used to line the ankle collar – super soft and comfortable.

I should point out that this shoe has a substantial and pretty stiff heel counter. Didn’t bother me any, but some people have trouble with heel counters so it is worth mentioning.

I have had one issue with the upper – I think it’s mainly cosmetic, but I’m curious if others have noticed this. I noticed after not too many wears that the upper on the inner side of the foot just in front of the arch seemed to have some abrasion/fraying (happening on both left and right shoes).

2014-03-13 15.24.462014-03-13 15.24.58

It got progressively worse over the course of a few weeks (used the shoes for casual wear a bunch in addition to runs). I think what is happening is that the welded overlay just behind the site of abrasion causes the upper to pucker in this area when the shoe flexes. This has frayed the white thread woven into the upper, but the actual black structural upper mesh seems to be fully intact. It may be that this is just cosmetic since the white thread is very fine, but it’s something to keep an eye on.

Sole Construction

Now for the negative for me, and this saddens me because I really want to love this shoe – it looks great and is super comfortable. Unfortunately, the sole and I just aren’t getting along.

Saucony Mirage 4 sole

The Mirage is the “stability” model in Saucony’s “natural running” collection of footwear, and stable is indeed a good word to describe it. The sole of the Mirage 4 is very, very firm, and pretty stiff. Stiff, firm soles and I don’t generally get along unless the shoe is a racing flat with a small stack. The stack height of the Mirage 4 is 24mm heel, 20mm forefoot, so not terribly thick, but thick enough that combined with a firm feel it just does not work with my stride. I prefer a shoe with a bit more cush and my runs in the Mirage have felt jarring. So much so that after 5-6 runs in them I decided to pull the plug on further runs and admit defeat (strangely, my hamstrings were sore after a few of my runs in them, still trying to figure that out…).

At first I thought maybe the soles were just hard because of the cold weather in NH. EVA foam firms up in the cold, so this seemed like a reasonable possibility. To test this theory, I brought the Mirage 4 with me to Florida and ran several times in the summer-like warmth. Did not help. I wondered if maybe they needed to be broken in a bit so I wore them most days at the parks while at Disney – maybe 20-30 miles of walking. No difference. I’ve concluded that this is just a firm shoe, and it’s not a good match for me.

As far as stability elements go, the Mirage has a plastic arch built into the arch. Not sure how effective it is, and can’t say I noticed it. The shoe is firm enough that I don’t think I compressed the medial midsole much.

Saucony Mirage 4 medial

Conclusion

I want to be very clear that a lot of people will probably love this shoe for its firmness. I had similar issues with the Mizuno Sayonara for example and a lot of people I know love that shoe. Some runners on the Gear Institute forum also commented on the firmness of this shoe, but some of them really liked it for that reason. We all have slightly different body types and strides, and our reaction to a given shoe is highly variable. If you like a firm shoe, I’d very much recommend that you try this one as in almost every other respect I have found it to be fantastic.

If you’re looking for a firm, stable, roomy shoe to eat up miles the Saucony Mirage 4 is a great choice. Just keep an eye on the upper in the medial forefoot. It’s a bit too firm for me as a running shoe, but I’ll likely keep my pair for causal wear since it’s a slick-looking shoe.

The Saucony Mirage is available for purchase at Running Warehouse, Zappos, and Amazon.com. Outside of the USA it can be purchased at Sportsshoes.com.

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Recent Posts By Category: Running Shoe Reviews | Running Gear Reviews | Running Science
About Peter Larson

This post was authored by Peter Larson. Pete is a biology teacher, track/soccer coach, and dad (x3) with a passion for running, soccer, and science. If you'd like to learn a little bit more about who I am and what I do, click here, or visit petermlarson.com.

Comments

  1. steve szakal says:

    pete,
    You really need to try the new adidas supernova boost. I personally think it is a perfect trainer(for me anyway). It got the editors choice in runners world. Adidas made the shoe with a combination of eva and boost material. It really is something. If you can give it a spin i would like to know what you think about it.

  2. Joe Bowen says:

    Pete, how does the stiff sole compare against the mirage 3. I love this shoe for longer runs. Is the mirage 4 similar?

    • The sole is the same as v3 with the exception of a swapping out Progrid Lite for a Powergrid insert in the heel. Didn’t run much in the v3 so not sure how much difference that makes.

    • I found the Mirage 4 to be WAY more stiff than the Mirage 3. I couldn’t even run normally in it (I tried…I really wanted to like it as much as I had liked the 3’s). The 3’s we’re nimble and flexible, yet had enough cushion for longer runs. The 4’s felt. Omelette lay inflexible and caused me to “clomp” along rather than run quietly.

  3. Hi Pete,
    I had the Mirage 1 and I really enjoyed running with it. It’s a great match for me. I’m surprised that you say that Mirage 4 has firm chusion, I thought Mirage 1 was chusy and soft. Have you tried the Mirage 1? If so, can you tell me if it feels the same?

    Thanks!

  4. Oh man, the red colorways on the women’s version are fantastic. I really don’t need new shoes now, and I love my Altras (Provisioness) but I like a firmer ride and it is somewhat hard to find the combination of low offset, stability, and moderate firmness.

    It’s wrong to up one’s mileage just to have an excuse for new shoes, right?

  5. Hi

    I got the issue than you about the upper on my Mirage 4 (after 1 month).
    After investigate, it seems that is not a big issue.
    It’s more cosmetic like you said.
    It’s like an abrasion outside but inside there is nothing wrong.

  6. Hi!

    How is the forefoot and midfoot fit of the Kinvara 5 compared with the Mirage 4? Kinvara 4 (and especially Adidas Adistar boost) is too tight fit for me. Mirage 4 fit is very good, but sole is too firm i thing. Thank you!

    • Much closer to the Mirage 4 than to the Kinvara 4. I think it’s reasonable to say that the Kinvara 5 is like the Mirage 4 with a much softer sole. I hated the sole on the Mirage 4, way too firm!

  7. Totally agree with you. These shoes are too stiff, and I am giving them up. I have been using them for racing and repetitions, and I have ended up hurt. Precisely in the hamstring just like you, and my calfs. Sorry, this shoe and I are not getting along either.

    • I bought these as an replacement for my old
      (..and worn) Asics GT!
      -The Saucony Mirage IV is really a fast,nice looking,superlight model, but after five weeks on the pavement,they damaged my right knee! ..Sorry, I really can`t use them! (to low drop for me) I`ll bet they suit best “fore-feet-strike-runners”? Anyway,today I`m running happy again with Mizuno Wave Inspire 10 ! (“overpronate-model”)

  8. Hi PEte
    I am a little bit worried about your comment that the Mirage 4 is too hard. I plan to buy these shoes as i ran a marathon in the Mirage 3; can you comment on the difference between the hardness of the sole of the mirage 3 and mirage 4 if possible; just wondering whats your opinion on that; i also was wondering how it is possible that just the hardness of a sole makes an over the average performance runner so uncomfortable that he does not want to run in a shoe; i mean the kind of shoes matter but only to some extent; i think that there must be something else that you don’t want to run in a shoe like the mirage; on the selection of the suacony running shoes the mirage is between the kinvara and the saucony ride; some may say that the sacony ride is too cushy and the kinvara is to hard so the mirage is in between; it can be possible that the Mirage 4 is designed that it feels hard to run on it;. Fritz

    • I think the sole is the same as in the Mirage 3. Everyone is different in the perception of shoe feel, and for me the Mirage is way too firm. Might be just fine for someone else though.

  9. Hi

    I’ve got the Mirage 2 and Mirage 4 – I would say the Mirage 4 is significantly softer than the Mirage 2. I’ve found the Mirage 2 to be too firm for anything more that a 5km speed run.

    I’d actually say the Mirage 4 is moderately cushioned – but that may be just because compared to the Mirage 2.

    I would say the Mirage 4 is half way between the Guide 6 and the Mirage 2 in terms of cushion.

    I had no issues racing a 14km road race in the Mirage 4.

  10. Jennifer Bryant says:

    Hello, I was kind of shocked when I noticed the fraying in the fabric in the area you pointed out. Was kind of disappointed that after only about 20 miles this start happening. Not sure what thats about; but Saucony needs to fix this issue.

    Thanks,

    Jennifer

    • Kevin Zanker says:

      I had the same issue with the fabric fraying in the exact same spot on both shoes. This was only after 24 miles. I took them back to the store and they thought that the 4’s were too big. (not too long) I also had some collapse in the toe area. I previously ran with the 2’s. Liked them except for the tongue slipping down. I’m trying the Zealots now.

  11. Erwin Berends says:

    Hi Peter,

    I fully agree om the the stiff sole. I run multiple 1/2 Marathons on the Virrata which I really love. I wanted to try a different shoe and bought the Mirage IV. During the first fit in the store i noticed the stiffnes of the sole, but I had the idea that with a real run outside it wouldn’t disturb me so much. Boy was I disapointed after a 10K run. I felt like running on a wooden board with cushoning. Next after the 10K the Upper Mesh was already showing damage. Wires of the mesh we’re broking on the spot’s were the shoe needs to bend. This was the second diapointment with the Mirage.
    I went back to the shoe store and they helped me out with great service. You can gues what I bought. yes he Virrata 2.

    I’m a happy runner again.

    regards Erwin

  12. David Burns says:

    I really like a firm shoe. I bought the Kinvara, and my calves and feet hurt after only short runs in them. I bought the Mirage 4s, and am very happy with them.

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