New Balance Fresh Foam X Balos Reviews

About 25 miles, including a half-marathon long run, from a 200 lb runner. Impact protection and stability held up well at around marathon pace, the knit tongue and heel lockdown are excellent, and the shoe feels very light. The forefoot is thinner, so the ground shows through when going much slower or faster, and the mesh feels plasticky with little airflow. A very good shoe, but they find $200 too much and see it as a $165 shoe.

Two testers who both mention about 70 km in the shoe, over easy runs, a 90-minute long run, track reps and a run of up to two hours. They love the soft, bouncy, protective ride, find the fit true to size, and saw no real outsole wear. One finds top-end speed the weak spot while the other enjoyed it at interval pace, and the high price makes it a tricky buy unless softness and bounce are the priority.

Comparing it with the 1080v13 and Rebel v4, a runner finds the Balos the bounciest even at slow pace, with a sock-like upper and true-to-size fit.

Several runs, including multi-hour long runs. They find it bouncy, well cushioned, light for its size and true to size, suited to long runs with some strides or pace up to marathon effort. The big drawback is sharp pain under the pads of the right foot after about five miles, worsening on longer runs, which they link to the thick bouncy forefoot stack; other shoes did not cause it. They also call $200 a touch expensive.