Excuse me if this post comes across as haphazard...feeling a bit tired from today's activities!
I just wanted to show you guys my fancy new shoes. Yes, it's another pair of shoes. Yes, I have a lot of shoes. No, I did not neeeeeed them, but I wanted some fresh foam under the ol' feet for the race. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if I'm sold on these.
So what did I get? The Odyssey 2! I actually really wanted the Odyssey 1 again (why mess with a good thing?) but I couldn't find them for sale in my size anywhere. :( Jon is also a huge Odyssey fan and really enjoys the new ones. He thinks they are the best Hoka's to date.
First of all, I grabbed these for $130 at Running Warehouse. I couldn't decide between the ELECTRIC BLINDING PINK or the SHOCKING NEON BLUE, and unfortunately the classy dark gray ones didn't have my size in stock. Since all of my current shoes are blue I reluctantly reached for the pink. No, I don't have anything against pink but these shoes are just soooo pink.
The Odyssey runs true to size. For reference, my street shoe size is 6.5, my flat size is 6 and my running shoe size is 7. For running noobs, you generally want to size up since your feet have a tendency to swell a little during exercise.
They are probably most comparable to the Clifton2 since they have very similar heights. The offset for the Odyssey 2 is 5mm, and is 23mm in the forefoot and 28mm in the back, whereas the Clifton2 is also a 5mm offset with 24mm in the forefoot and 29mm in the back. Both are neutral but the Odyssey2 is supposed to be more responsive and weighs a little more at 7.3oz for a women's size 9, vs the 6.6 oz of the Clifton2. I would have gotten the Clifton2 but I heard a lot of mixed reviews on it, particularly that they narrowed the toe box even more which is one of my biggest issues with Hoka shoes in the first place.
Out of the box they were pretty comfortable. I was disappointed with the tongue. While I like the fact that it's not just the papery flap like the old one, this one is thick and very stiff. The plastic material on the top is difficult to bend.
I also didn't like the laces as much as the first ones. They were pretty short and I don't know how much confidence I have in them to stay tied.
It LOOKED like the forefoot was wider, but when I measured them they ended up being exactly the same as the 1's. The height seems about the same, and the only really noticeable difference in the structure was that the heel tapers in and hugs the foot more. This is one feature that I liked since the Odyssey 1's were a little loose in the heel. I can't say that it ever bothered me but there's no sense in having the extra material.
The bottom of the shoe looks quite different. It seems like they added a little more of the harder rubber.
Side note, did you notice my fancy new socks? They are from Stance. I love the socks that I got from them for free at an event, and I really wanted to try their knee high ones out. They are a little too long for my stubby short-person legs, but they're fun and were my race treat to pump me up for Modesto.
What better way to test a shoe than to run 20 miles in them from the box? I've gotten away with this kind of shenanagins with almost every pair of Hoka's I've owned. I've even been so daring as to wear brand new ones for a race the next day.
Not that I would suggest such an outrageous and impulsive thing.
I am not sure, but I feel like these run a little bit stiffer than the 1's. They didn't feel as plush as the 1's, and I had a hard time getting into a good rhythm. This could be because of the additional firmer rubber at the bottom. I also noticed on the left side of my foot that I could feel the tongue kind of digging into my ankle. Such a weird issue to have! It eventually went away and didn't leave a mark but did annoy me.
Ten miles in and I started to feel a blister brewing in the usual spot for Hoka shoes. For me, this spot is on the inside of the fattest part of my forefoot by my big toe. It was abnormally warm, so I wasn't really surprised, but I almost turned back to the comforting embrace of my old blue ones. I didn't though, because I really didn't want to stop. Another thing that I don't really recommend doing. And yeah, there's a blister there now. :(
In the end, I think I'm going to keep hunting for another pair of the Odyssey 1's and return the 2's. They were okay and did the trick but I did come away with a blister and didn't have the same feel as the first ones that I really liked. The hunt continues!!!
In other news, I have been running a lot lately! I've got a couple of interesting speed runs under my belt that I want to talk about, but I'll save that for another day. :D For the rest of this week and next...it's TAPER TIME!
UPDATE!!! GOOD NEWS! I found the Odyssey 1's (I guess I didn't search very hard at first) for a super low price at sports chalet. With their current coupon code they come to a whopping total of $69.91 (including taxes and free shipping)!
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