Day 2: The Star's Debut...

By Frank

After walking around the house in the adidas adistar Cushion 6 for half a day, it's finally time to introduce it to the road surface. I have intended to do a 10KM run with it initially, but the weather just like yesterday wasn't kind enough. It started showing signs of pouring after I ran about 5KM. So I guess calling it a day after a 5KM run in a new pair of shoe will be reasonably good enough.

So, how did the shoe fair? First feeling after slipping both my feet into the shoe is, it is wide! My toes were comfortable with enough moving space in it. And the second feeling is that the material is so soft and I felt no poking and stuff that usually comes from a new shoe! I guess it's thanks to the noseam architecture. And as I ran with it, I felt the cushioning was excellent thanks to the thick and shock absorbent sole. Toe-off was good too as there wasn't any discomfort with my metatarsals. I think adidas did a great job by putting together the adiPRENE and adiPRENE + combining with the width of the shoe. The FORMOTION system works very well too and I didn't experience any discomfort with my heel nor arch. Plenty of outsole on the shoe for me to land on the road surface without any of my feet twitching from side to side. My ligaments and tendons will be grateful!

A look on the comfortable inner section...

The outsoles...

Notice the thickness of the sole at the heel area...

However, as good as anything else, it isn't perfect. Some downsides I've noticed, as mentioned yesterday is the weight of the shoe. Being a feature and technology rich shoe, it is pretty heavy. Although I just ran 5KM with it, I felt that my legs are actually being dragged back by the weight of the shoe. Imagine if quickstrike wasn't implemented, the shoe will be even heavier! Next, the tongue of the shoe kept sliding to the side. I never experience this with other adidas shoe. Not sure the reason why but it can be quite irritating with a piece of the tongue at one side of the feet. And finally, I found that the geoFiT isn't as "hugging" as it should be. I felt better in my adidas Supernova Cushion 6. I'm not sure of the reason but I guess it might be due to the shoe size as both are of different size. But still, this is very subjective.

Although I have a few positive and negative views on the shoe right now, I guess it is still too early to tell. It is after all just my first run with it. Never know how will it perform once it is "season". Now that leaves me with something to think about. Should I scale the KL Tower in this weekend's Towerthon Challenge in this shoe?

Day 1: A Seed And A Star...

By Frank

I missed the adidas Seeding Shoe Program last year as I just started my running career and didn’t know too much about it. But come this year, after being in running for a steady slightly more than a year, it’s no way that I’m going to miss it again. And so it came when I learnt of it from der_pacemakers network site and decided that it is just too important for me. I quickly e-mailed Krishnan and made an appointment with him. Below is the announcement he made for the program.

I have some good news for runners who blogs or having their own webpage.

adidas had brought in some very high performance technical running shoes to be given away to runners to wear-test them & given us their very frank & unprejudiced opinion about the shoes after 30 days of usage. The sizes are limited and I have them in size UK 5.5 , 7.5 , 8.5 & 10.5.

Those wishing to possess these shoes will have to comply with the following terms & condition :
1 ) Come to the adidas office to fit the shoes.
2 ) Undertake to give comment about the shoes after 30 days of usage.
3 ) Must be a blogger or has his/her own website.

If you are interested pls make an appointment with me or my partners Mori Hiroshi as detailed below :

Office address:
adidas Malaysia Sdn Bhd
Block B , Level 4, Plaza Damansara
45 Media Setia 1 Bukit Damansara, Kuala Lumpur
Tel Office : 03 - 20804843 / 20804876

Contact Person ( 1 )Krishnan Karuppan - Mobile : 012 - 3503668
E-Mail : krishnan.karuppan@adidas.com

Contact Person ( 2 )Mori Hiroshi
E-mail : Hiroshi.mori@adidas.com

This offer expires on 22nd February 2008

Best Regards
Krishnan Karuppan
Head of Running adidas Malaysia

And just this morning, I met the man. Krishnan was very kind to present me with a variety of shoes ranging from year 2007 to some of the newly released year 2008 models. Not only did he presented them to me, he even explained each shoes and it's technolgy to me which further deepen my knowledge. I brought him my foot scan report I obtained from Foot Solutions and he did some explanations which was very valuable. And after trying out a few models he selected for me, my feet finally decided that the adidas adistar Cushion 6th edition is the one. It was launched back in early year 2007 so it isn’t a new model as the 7th edition is already out now. Nevertheless, I didn’t mind as long the shoe suits me and it is comfortable. It is still now available at an adidas store near you retailing at RM529. The shoe is almost entirely white in colour as the lime green colour is very light. To give it a more futuristic look, hints of silver were used together with the reflective materials. And here's a few picture of it.

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The shoe tag...

Although a sample, there is no difference with the real shoe...

The name says it all...

The adidas adistar Cushion 6...

With the weather being unkind today, I couldn’t train and so I can’t debut the adidas adistar Cushion 6 on the road yet. So, I decided to wear it and walk around in the house. Therefore, here’s an early impression I have on the shoe.

Pros
1) Feels great with lots of cushioning provided.
2) Lots of reflective material making the shoe suitable for running in dark areas.
3) Laces are just of the correct length unlike the short ones on the adidas adizero Tempo.

Cons
1) A bit heavy as I am used to the adidas Supernova Cushion 6 and adidas adizero Tempo.

And here’s the technology that was used in the adidas adistar Cushion 6 as explained by Krishnan.
adiPRENE: Acts as the main absorber to absorb the impact on the heel, thus preventing it from travelling up the leg muscles.
adiPRENE +: Just like the adiPRENE, this material is used to protect the forefoot instead and to provide toe-off.
adiWEAR: A durable outsole used at high impact areas.
FORMOTION: Acts as a suspension system and has 2 plates that moves around, adapting to the ground to improve on the feet’s movement. And with 2 plates, wear and tear is kept to a minimum.
geoFiT: A padding around the ankle area that enhances fit and comfort.
quickstrike: A material used on the shoe base to provide a light yet durable outsole.
TORSION SYSTEM: Acts as a foot stabilizer by providing arch support.
noseam: Instead of stitching, the upper is molded together thus eliminating the chances of blisters and also to provide a “in-socks” feel.

The adiPRENE material at the heel area...

The 2 FORMOTION plates...

Look, no stitching...

The adidas adistar Cushion 6 is a categorised as a Serious Competition and Training shoe, in between both my adidas Supernova Cushion 6 and adidas adizero Tempo. But no matter how serious it is, it all comes down to my run. And it's just 30 days to find out.

And finally, a very BIG THANK YOU to Krishnan and adidas for making all this possible.

Great Eastern Pacesetters 30KM 2008...

Event: Great Eastern Pacesetters 30KM 2008
Venue: Tapak A, Lake Gardens, Kuala Lumpur
Date: 20 January 2008
Time: 6.00am
Distance: 30KM
Shoe: adidas Supernova Cushion 6
By Frank

The 2008 running season kick started today with the Great Eastern Pacesetters 30KM 2008 held at Tapak A, Tasik Perdana otherwise known as Lake Gardens. I couldn't sleep yesterday and only managed an hour's sleep before waking up preparing for the run. I arrived at 5.30am and the place was jam packed with people. I had to walk a little to reach to the starting area. Upon reporting myself, I made myself to the starting point and waited with all the runners. I was pretty near the front. The 30KM run will start at 6am and so it did but without any signs. To my suprise, the deputy CEO from Great Eastern Life just blew the air horn. Most of the runners just went into shock and started running.

It was a small hill climb out of Lake Gardens at the start. And to add matters worst, it was very dark. My heart rate was high at around 85% at that time. Too early to go that high, but I just couldn't keep it down. The hill was taking it's toll on me. As I exited Lake Gardens, I made myself to Bukit Tungku. Another dark area but at least there were plenty of trees around. But this is where I started to feel my ACL and ITB on my left knee at around the 4KM mark. It's the same pain that I felt during my first practice run after my Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2007. I told myself that it's too early to take a break. I ran with the pain hoping that it will go away and it did. Then came the ultimate challege at 5KM. The double uphill climb. Suprisingly, I didn't struggle here and successfully made it all the way to the end without any pain.

At the 10KM mark, I was back at the entrance of Lake Gardens. I needed to do another loop before proceeding on the 15KM and beyond. It's the 15KM mark where runners have to cross the busy street of Jalan Duta. And busy it was and imagine the fumes emitted by the vehicles. I quickly race across the street and made myself to traffic free area. Then at the 18KM mark, it's where I took my first break. It was a short one before my next at the 20KM mark. This is where I started to struggle. Both my ankle started to ache. I can't move it around so I just have to run with it. I still had 1 hour to spare before the end of the qualifying time of 3.5 hours. Technically, I should be able to do it. But as the pain grew more severe, I had to stop numerous times. I kept thinking positive hoping that I will be able to do it. But everything collapsed when I was at the 29KM mark. The time was already up. Nevertheless, I still ran all the way to the finish line and raise both my hands for a photo shot as I crossed the finish line at position 525 clocking 03:39:00.

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The finisher's medal...

Despite not making the qualifying time, I was still presented a finisher's medal. Overall, I regretted that I didn't push myself a little further as I was very close in making it within the qualifying time. I blame myself for my insomia and also my lack of training since my last race last year at Singapore thanks to a crack heel and pulled leg muscles. Nevertheless, it was still a successful run and there is no point looking back at it now. It's just the first race of 2008 and there will be more to come.

Approach To Great Eastern Pacesetters 30KM 2008...

By Frank

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After ending year 2007 with a high profile event at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2007, it’s time to kick start the year 2008 running season with yet another high profile event, this time being the Great Eastern Pacesetters 30KM 2008.

The race is just 5 days away from now, and my training has seized today. It’s now rest time. Honestly, the training I had this time isn’t as fruitful as I had wished it could have been as I had suffered a cracked heel after the race at Singapore. The cracked heel eventually tore into my skin which prevented me from running for a while. And to add matters worst, I suspected that I pulled my ACL or my Iliotibial Band during my first run after the Singapore event before the crack heel got worst. It did go away after a week though but till today, the crack heel remains but not as serious as it may have been. At least there isn’t any open wound.

Basically what I had after Singapore, building up to the Great Eastern Pacesetters 30KM 2008 was most of it, strength and rehab exercises. I spend time building strength on the upper body and also the legs. And also that I am doing some rehab exercises as I am slightly bow-legged on my right leg. It’s only around 2 weeks ago that I started running more intense after the wound on my heel fully healed up. Too little, too late? I am not sure but I am still feeling good without any fatigue kicking in during my runs.

I have run this 30KM route before. It was a tough route with hills, not to mention the ever popular double uphill climb. I’m sure I will be able to finish the race, but the thing that worries me is the qualifying time as it is set to 3 hours 30 minutes which is just about my standard during my feel good day. Just keeping my fingers and toes cross for now and run my best. Till then, stay tune for the event report next.