- What's up Traniacs?
You wanted a review of the brand new On Running Cloudace.
You get a review of the new On Running Cloudace.
(upbeat techno music)
So, the On Running Cloudace just came out
right at the beginning of July.
And, On Running send this out to me.
This isn't paid,
but they did send this out for free to give it a shot.
However, they did that with the caveat that
this On Running shoe is unlike all
of the other On Running shoes.
They've explained it as like a stability cushioned,
heavier kinda trainer.
Something for somebody that enjoys
more like a ASICS GEL-Kayano
Like that 10 ounce plus kinda really beefy trainer
with a lot of structure kinda shoe.
And that, from my standpoint, is
something that is totally foreign.
I tend to like something that's
more in like the seven to nine ounce range.
Something that has a lot of flexibility.
Something that has a fair bit of pop off the ground.
And, some cushioning, but is certainly
more along the lines of a racing flat.
This is not that.
However, I surprisingly liked it.
For starters, it was a lot smoother than I expected.
Normally, I tend not to like those more built up structured
shoes because it feels like my foot can't move naturally.
Like I'm running on bricks.
And that, basically there's just a lot more shoe
than there really needs to be.
The first few steps that I started running,
I was like whoa that is a heavy shoe.
But, once I started going
it felt kinda like an On Running shoe.
It was still nice and smooth.
It didn't restrict my foot from moving one way or the other.
So, as far as built up shoes go, I tolerated this one.
I actually enjoyed the half a dozen runs or so
that I have been testing this with.
It certainly is a heavier shoe
coming in at about 11.8 ounces.
And, it does have that heavy shoe kinda sound.
Kinda du, du, du.
On the ground as you're going.
And because of that, It is important to know
if you're thinking about buying this shoe what it's for.
It isn't for your speed work.
So, your temple runs on the road.
Your fast speed work on the track.
It's not gonna be very good for that.
Because, in those runs you want really light shoes
so that your feet can get the sensation
and build up the muscle memory
to be getting of the ground really quick.
This is more for those long steady runs,
where you want a little bit more structure.
You want more comfort, more cushioning
to take some of the load off your body.
That's what this is intended for.
Even if your into garbage miles,
I'm not a big fan of garbage mile,
but if you're just in the habit of getting in miles
each and every day for the sake of getting in miles,
and you want for those garbage miles a shoe
that's gonna take the load of your body, this will do that.
Let's get into the design and why it ends
up feeling the way it does.
Now, for one, it's got a fairly decent push forward.
It's not like the Nike Zoom Flys,
where it just propels you forward,
but it has this bar of plastic
in between the footbed and the sole of the shoe
that gives it that little bit of press forward
that encourages you to start running forward.
Instead of, having to muscle your way through the shoe.
The sole of the shoe is the first On Running shoe
that has the zero gravity clouds on the heel
and then the On Running pods on the fore foot.
And, what that results in is a nice bit of cushioning
as you land on either your mid foot or your heel.
But, those pods on the front give you that
nice on feeling of a firm toe off.
It also has the V shape down the center of the shoe
that all of the 2018 On Running shoes have
and that resulted in no gravel getting stuck
in all these pods like the 2016s,
the 2017 On Running shoes have.
That wasn't the case with this.
As far as traction goes, really good on the road
as you would expect with a road designed shoe.
Fine on grass, which you might not expect
from a road designed shoe.
And, actually, I went on the trails with this
over the last couple of days
and it was surprisingly really good.
I think that all of the different edges along the bottom
make for a decent trail running shoe
because there's more edges to grab on.
Now, I wouldn't use this for really
serious technical trail running,
but as far as road, grass, little bit of gravel,
little bit of technical trail running goes, did fine.
There is a seven millimeter heel to toe drop,
but it doesn't feel like it's really plush or cushy,
it's more of a firm sole without a ton of flexibility.
And, just in general
that's kinda the flavor of the overall shoe.
There's more squishy tongue.
There's more padding on the inside.
There's more heel cup.
There's just more, more.
However, in sizing, there's probably just a little bit less.
Availability wise, all they had was a half size large
for me, so they sent it out anyway.
But, I was able to run in this
quite comfortably over the last few weeks.
Now, the key thing here when it comes right down to it is,
do I like them and recommend them.
Well, I you were somebody who likes structured shoes, yes.
I think you'll like them.
I am not somebody who likes structures shoes,
so while I did enjoy running in them,
it's just not something that I gravitate towards.
I almost always was reaching for something
other than these shoes just because it's not my jam.
But, if you're somebody who is into those ASICS GEL-Kayano,
these are very good option.
They feel nice and smooth as I mentioned.
They are a fair bit warm.
So, my foot got a little bit sweaty,
and because of that I probably wouldn't be
going out barefoot in these.
But, with main trainers, that's not really the point.
And like a lot of ONn, they've got that really big
heel cups, so probably gonna dig into your heel
for the first 52 to 100 K.
Now, let's get into the deal breaker in these shoes
that precludes me from being able to say yes,
absolutely go out and buy these.
These cost $200 US.
That is one of the most expensive
running shoes out there right now.
And, granted On has a lot of programs
if you search around on their website
or you listen to some podcast that they sponsor,
where you've got a 30 day try it for free period.
However, I always come down to
what is the dollar per mile in this shoe.
So, in the case of something like Sketchers,
where it only costs about a $100,
but you get only 200 K out of it.
Dollar per mile, probably works out to about the same as
a $150 shoe where you get closer to three
or 400 kilometers, or a Hoka,
where it costs more like a $170,
but you get three to four or 500 kilometers out of it.
For this to get that same dollar per mile out of it
at 200 bucks, you got to be getting upwards of
five, six, 700 clicks in this shoe,
and by that time, I think you're going to be tired of it.
And, will that foot bed hold up to that type of mileage?
It's hard to say.
So, who this is for is somebody who loves On,
has a fair bit of cheddar,
likes a really structured shoe,
and trusts that it's gonna be able to last them for
a long time or really they just don't care
if it lasts for a long time.
They wanna try on this shoe.
So, there you go, give it a shot.
Thanks for sending it out On, I like you guys.
You made a good shoe.
Damn, you pricey.
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