Supershoe Market Expands Again: 361 Flame

Andrew A.

Pacer
This came up on my subs today:
Comes in at $160 MSRP, same price point as the Endorphin Speed yet with a carbon plate. Apparently it provides superior stability to most others currently on the market. I know RW dropped the brand, will 361 be brought back with this model? Incidentally, a local elite training group had a 361 sponsorship yet did not renew because there was no supershoe competitor in the pipeline at the time. I have never run in a 361 shoe yet the Flame would certainly tempt me to give them my business.

As an aside, is Mizuno going to bring any supershoes to market in the coming year, if ever?
 

imnothammer

Moderator
As an aside, is Mizuno going to bring any supershoes to market in the coming year, if ever?

MizEnerzy2.jpg


You rang?

More seriously, as a huge fan of the Wave Riders, I am sad that Mizuno isn't yet a part of this conversation. I don't know much about the product but is the Duel Neo SP their plateless attempt?

As for the 361 Flame, I am all for brands entering the super shoe market and chiseling away at the high-price-bar set by Nike. These might not hold up in a 1:1 comparison by they offer accessibility to someone on a budget or someone who may be just dipping their toe into racing and who might not be ready to drop $250+ on a shoe used only occasionally. The Endorphin Speed is of course king of this realm at the moment though! I don't suspect we will see a price drop with the Vaporfly NEXT% 2 on the horizon but at least there is some rational basis for the rumors that floating around out there.
 

Andrew A.

Pacer
I did see that one not long ago, looks more like an Ultraboost competitor by my guess.

More options can be a good thing for consumers, competing manufacturers increasing supply usually brings down prices. ?
 

Andrew A.

Pacer
Certainly true! It seems apparent that most plated shoes resulted from some level of reverse engineering of the VF 4%, with unique twists to expand on the original design. Which is much of the context for my question about Mizuno, rolling out these designs doesn't require huge R&D investment at this point.
 
20210514_091645.jpg
Quick try on before I returned it.
The midsole felt like a mix of the pwrunPB/boost. Upper almost exactly like the next%. Recommend going half size down. There's more volume in the toebox area. Strong chemical odor upon unboxing.
 
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