We’ve tested a lot of kit over the course of 2024, from the latest watches and headphones to dozens of road and trail shoes. At the end of each year, we go through the full list of everything we’ve run in to pick our best options from a range of categories.
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JUMP STRAIGHT IN:
00:00 – Intro
02:35 – The Best Running Watch
07:44 – The Best Running Headphones
12:22 – Our Favourite Trail Shoe
17:44 – The Best Allrounder/Daily Shoe
24:21 – The Best Cushioned Shoe
29:06 – The Best Race Shoe
33:32 – Running Brand of the Year
36:40 – The Audience Award for Best Running Shoe
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Best Carbon Plate Running Shoes 2023:
Salomon S/Lab Phantasm CF Review:
Adidas Adizero Prime X 2 Strung Review:
Best Super Trainers 2023:
Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro Review:
Asics Superblast Review:
Nike Vaporfly 3 Multi-Tester Review:
Hoka Rocket X2 Review:
Nike Alphafly NEXT% 2 Review After 230km:
Hey there Tommy from the Run testers This video is our annual run testers Awards where we pick our top picks for a Range of categories including running Headphones running watches and a series Of categories covering different types Of running shoe this is also available As a podcast so if you want to listen to This then maybe don't watch this video Uh and listen to the podcast version Right let's dive in and see what we Picked this year Guys welcome back to another Awards the Uh rers Awards 2024 um it's been quite a big year for Running kit we've trusted a lot of shoes This year um and some really really Impressive ones I think you said Nick That 2024 is is probably your favorite Year for R shoe releases for quite some Time yeah I I think it's been a great Year like we we're doing are trying to Think about our favorite individual five Shoes of the year and I it's going to be A nightmare for me there's so many shoes I've Loved this year yeah you're going To you're going to be back and forth With that aren't you that's quite easy For me I did it earlier um but uh okay So the the awards um just for people who Are new to this uh we do this every year And it is um we pick a number of Categories um and we'll go through all These in order um but the way that we
Judge the best shoes best watches and Best um headphones is that we each vote On the products we think uh are in the Top three of those across each category And then I tally up all the numbers and They will get um assigned a different Point value and I work out what the Actual top three list is of um all of The different uh categories that we've Got in the awards uh and we also very Open to corruption this system Tom just Turns out Results well well you'll see that not It's not corrupted this year because None of my shoes are winning or Um and then we also have the audience Award which is where we gave uh all of You an opportunity to um vote on what You thought was the best running shoe of 2024 uh now the when we're talking about The awards 2024 we're talking about Things that were released in 2024 so There were some people that commented And saying um picks of shoes that were About six years old um which i' I've Discounted from this um but uh yeah so Some interesting uh Awards to come up so Let let's dive in and do the first Category okay so the first one is best Running watch um so Nick do you want to Talk us through what how we pick the Best running Watch ah didn't expect Tom to come with Me with the
Watch you can swap it with Mike if you Want mik Mike doesn't watch usually yeah Mike go on mik you do it running watch Okay well I mean so I think first and Foremost if you've looked at any of our Reviews that we've done on the channel There's some very kind of clear areas What we kind of focus on in terms of What we would say would stand out for us In terms of being a great watch for Running and you kind of look at it from A kind of design point of view and that Can be everything from kind of materials In terms of that Comfort um you know Whether you're wearing when you're Running and outside of running as well Too then you're kind of looking at the Feature sets and it's you know primarily It's about performance in terms of Accuracy but it's also we're looking at There's any kind of innovation in those Features as well too if you know certain Brands are pushing the boundaries in Terms of what's expected from those Types of features as well and then those Kind of things that we you know we kind Of expect and maybe potentially take for Granted but things like battery life as Well to you know we want something we're Not necessarily going to be charging a Regular basis or if we are having to do That there's something to kind of you Know make uh you're not making such a Big compromise in terms of getting that
Kind of good level of batch life to keep You tracking your run Um over a week or longer so you know We're looking across uh price ranges We're looking at Value as well too so There's a lot of things that come into Play in terms of picking the overall Ones and that's kind of hopefully that's How it'll be represented in our Choices very good much better than Nick Would have done 100% yeah uh okay so uh In this category we've actually this is Going to be a recurring theme in the W Uh we've actually got two winners uh With this year's best running watch Those are the Garmin Phoenix 8 and the Choros pace Pro uh so uh who any of you Pick this up Mike probably want to be The one that picked this up uh why have We picked Those well I think uh soly the Gin Phoenix8 was quite a late launch in 2024 And and the big deal or the big kind of Headline story here was that this was Fundamentally gin kind of bringing its Epics and Phoenix range and one kind of Range ultimately so now with the Phoenix8 you're getting the option of AMOLED or the solar charging display Option obviously you're getting multiple Sizes as well here too it's also Offering the latest in Garing software As well so you're going to see changes In terms of user interface that's going
To impact on features like mapping and Navigation support you're also looking At how that's going to you know bring You know the software together and make Apps and workout tracking feel closer Together now I think first and foremost I think we'd all kind of agree from a Design point of view in terms of having That optional AMOLED display in a Phoenix watch and bringing in those kind Of epics um kind of um Hardware elements I think it's you know first it's a Really nice watch to wear you got those Size options ultimately it's got those Key things you want from a gun what's The best of what it offers in terms of Sports tracking and it's also trying to Kind of further bridge that gap between Being a smartwatch and a sports watch as Well to so you've got these kind of Voice enabled features now crucially I Think what we'd say is what you know Those features been brought in haven't Made a massive compromise in terms of Battery life that's always been the kind Of biggest concern I think ultimately When you are introducing am displays is It going to impact on that battery Performance I think what we've seen in The versions that we've tested that that Battery life still very much is there And you're not making those big Compromises so I think the G Phoenix a That you know despite launching later in
The year it's definitely been the one That's kind of stood out for us uh in Testing and you know the reason why we Picked it as one um of our favorite Running watches or our best running Watch 2024 and then cars Pace Pro I think you Know again we've seen a lot of watches Launch later in 20124 this is a Mid-range watch corus's first AMOLED Watch as well too and I think you know I Think it would have been you know it was Very competitive I think in terms of That mid-range space now but I think in Terms of what you're getting from the The coros pace Pro you're really Building what we've got on the pace Three it's obviously not as small and Kind of dinky as that watch but it's Kind of upgrading a lot of the features That we saw there you've getting that AMOLED display as I said you're getting That kind of very good battery life Performance and that kind of core Tracking performance is very good you Maybe not getting the best in terms of Smart watch and Sport sports watch Experience or running watch experience But I think ultimately there's a good uh Kind of trade-off in what you're getting Overall and you know crucially that Price what it's more expensive than the Pace 3 I think the price jump and the Features you're getting in return really
Kind of I think are justifying in terms Of what you get overall as a running Watch wonderful um so uh other other Watches that we cover we talked about Within this uh short list included the Uh Garmin ino3 the sunto race s uh the G 4Runner and the poll up Vantage M3 uh right let's uh go on to the next One that is best running Headphones Kieran do you want to do you Want to explain running headphones yeah I mean essentially what we look for in Running headphones I think top ofmost We're talking about good quality sound That's good fit so it's got to be fit Secure we don't want them dropping out On the floor when we're running good Battery life we want good durability and Then we're kind of looking at things Like bells and whistles you know if You've got find my buds or you've got Customization of the the sound uh you Know some people I think in this team Will look ATC active noise cancellation And the transparency modes and kind of Rate those higher among some headphones Than others and yeah we're just looking At a good sort of all round package that Comes in at a price that offers Value okay so there's a there was a very Clear winner in this category and that Was the Jabra Elite 8 active twos um why Why did we pick that one I haven't Tested it so I don't I don't know why we
Pick this one so we've we've tested them But I don't think we've put a review up But We the same as last year's yeah they They I mean they are they offer the same Kind of fully well-rounded package as we Got last year and that's you know they Won the award last year for a very good Reason they've got you know for me Personally they've got great fit Security they stay in really tight They're really comfortable to wear There's a good competitive battery life As well in them you're getting kind Around 14 hours I think without ANC that Drops to eight hours withc it's an extra 32 in the case so the overall kind of Package of battery life there is really Solid there's I think the app experience And the features and the customization Is up there with any headphones you can Get so there's just lots of tools to Change the uh sound profiles personalize The sound profiles to sort of tweak and Store your own sort of sound profile Settings uh the sound quality it's nice And balanced you know you get kind a Good Rich sound for me packs a lot of Big kind of big punch it's got that kind Of top volume loudness that you look for In a good set of you know motivational Running headphones uh the durability is Good of the buds and the case as well You get durability in the case which
Means it's super portable if you want to Take it out on runs you don't have to Worry about that case getting damaged Most of the buds in this category tend To be uh sort of rated for waterproofing But the cases are often not and this is One area where it stands apart uh I Think what else have I missed I mean Yeah I think just basically the all Round package of the Jabra Elite 8 Active 2 a really good good the one Thing I will say actually though is that The price has jumped up a bit and you Know that some improvements in the Active noise cancellation and the Transparency modes there's some Improvements with this generation factor In the kind of there's extra mics for Call Quality all those kind of things I Think if you're not too bothered about Those things actually last year's award Winners would still be recommended on a Deal but those we feel those things have Improved enough to make the second Generation the War winners this year as Well okay um they are was in deals as Well so that is one thing with Jabra and We're still saying this cuz Jabra are Likely to discontinue their consumer Headphones right but it does seem like They're going to be supported so I don't Think we have to worry too much about Buying them I think that's fair to say Yeah okay and the runner up for best
Rning headphones was the Apple airpods 4 Um which I never tried So why why did that why did that get the Runner up I'm already pleas has got These are like my favorites I didn't Know you guys like them as much as me I Think it's just Nick They just fit my ears so well I don't Get on within ear headphones very rarely The jabas do fit my ears actually but Yeah the airpods for just fit my ear so I love having a partially open headphone Because it means you can hear your Surroundings quite well they sound Really good for a partially open design They have know surprisingly useful ANC For a partially open design so I use Them when I'm traveling they're the only Headphones I really use now uh for Everything and yeah I really like just The fit and everything so I'm very Pleased they've ended up getting Runners Up but someone else was have voted for Them it can't just to be me I mean I've Got them in I have got them In um they so the other ones that uh Appeared in that list with the shocks Open Fit air the shocks open SPM Pro uh Bose Ultra open what they called Ultra Open earbuds earbuds very good and the Stto Sonic okay so the next category is uh we Don't call it best because we uh it's Favorite Trail uh and the reason we call
It favorite Trail shoe is just there's Too many trail shoes um for us to cover We don't test them in the same way as we Test running shoes uh Road running shoes So we call it favorite um trail shoes Because we don't feel like we can call Them the best uh so this one is uh Another interesting one uh who who wants To pick up trail shoes yeah I mean I'm Happy for us in this category a trail Shoe I think fundamentally it has to the Kind of trails that we're running on Here when we're testing are often Slightly Tamer you know if you're out in The kind of mountains of Colorado or in The you know the French Alps it's going To be a very different experience you Might want something that's slightly Different to this and this is why we've Got favorite and I think we're looking For a shoe that can cover 80% of your Trail run so we're looking probably at Slightly slower Paces rather than the Sort of fastest top end kind of Lightweight speed trail shoes we want Something that's going to deliver really Good reliable grip going to be good and Comfortable over the Long Haul uh it's Going to be nice and durable you know uh Good good price um yeah I think just Those kind of things we're always on Kind of rollable kind of rollable we're Always on kind of running No runnable is the word I'm looking for
We're always on kind of runnable trails You know Rolling Hills rather Rolling so that's we're looking for Shoes that can kind of tackle that and Light off-road running So there you go okay um so on this list Um hold on I'm just wrong right uh so on This list we had uh a pretty pretty Clear winner and that was the Hawker Speed goat 6 um why is That lovely shoe we've used this on Quite a range of terrains I think I took This out to gr canara I've used it on Some soft stuff as well um it's just an Easy shoe to recommend and a shoe I Would that would be the trail shoe I Would buy it does everything I need it To do it's pretty lightweight it's Comfortable it's reliable grip it's got A pretty supportive upper it's just it Will do the job in all conditions I feel Pretty good about it like I remember Just running down a hill in Gran can Area and it like quite a steep hill and I don't go downhills very well it's not Really my thing and I just thought yeah This shoe is just going to catch me Basically it's very reliable it's going To grip well and I think you can do you Can do pretty much everything in this Shoe it's very burst the only thing I Have really against it is it's quite Similar to the previous model and that Might be available in a deal but I just
Have never disliked a run or found that The speed goat doesn't grip for me or is Uncomfortable it just it always seems to Do everything really well very good Glowing review um and the runner up was Another Hokah shoe it was the tecton X3 Um and which which I imagine is for Quite similar reasons it's a wild shoe Though that that was that's just a That's a really bound I mean that's I Think one of the first troll shoes to me That really felt pretty wild and crazy And bouncy a bit like the Adidas did Last year but yeah I took this for a Long run in Scotland and it protects the Legs I think so that was a big thing I Noticed about for me like I felt so good The next day compared to what I normally Feel when I I think about 1,700 meters Of climbing and descending in that run And that's just not what I do so Normally I'd be in tatters for a week And I felt fine it's so protective it's Bit wild though right Kieran you knows As wild yeah I mean I I think this is a Really great shoe for attackable kind of Racing Trails so I often do a race Called The New Forest Marathon which is A big mix of um road to Trail but all of It's it's pretty flat it's you know you Can really go at it on this particular Race and it fits that bill really nicely For me if I get to anything too steep I Find it a little bit too energetic you
Know more skilled Runners can probably Cope with it better but that's you know If you've got a a piece of trail that You're going to go and run that you know You can run all out then I think this Shoe works really well and in my head I've got the kind of thing where you Might be thinking do I run with a road Shoe or do I run with a trail shoe those Ones that if it's you know if it's dry And hard you can get away with the road Shoe this shoe will excel on that Trail and yet it's also got that Mountain pedigree I think like like I Say if you're a skilled Runner I think You can do a bit of everything in this I Think actually this I believe from what I understand about it the hoker tekan 3 The one that's the consumer Edition is a Bit Tamer than the one the Prototype That has been used to win UTMB I think They they made it less soft right so It's probably yeah I think this I think The formation of the speed of the carbon Play is slightly slightly more Aggressive I think and they've kind of Rign that in a little bit to make this One a little bit more accessible for Everyone else so it's not well it is Probably targeted as you guys have kind Of said more kind of kind of skilled and Kind of more more challenging Trails I Think it probably is going to make it This design is going to make it more
Accessible to more Trail Runners I Think nice okay uh and other um picks That were in our short list were the aex Meta Fuji Trail which is something that A few of us have been testing aex truko Max 3 uh sokon zodos Exodus Ultra 3 Zus zus mer agility and the Adidas terx Agravic speed you know what's glaring in This submission and I want to I want to Shout stop the steel at this point he Got his own category okay the meore Flight award Mar more flight award for Being the best maram more Flight of the Year okay yeah yeah Yeah okay uh so the next award uh Nick You can do this one because you uh seem To enjoy explaining the difference Between these this this in this category More than anyone is the best all rounder SL daily trainer well we didn't explain Difference did we we had a long fight About it if I was um but what do we say In the end it was like we did want a we Wanted a vend diagram we were all R was If you had one shoe that could do Everything D was a you know your Training an allrounder is a is a is a Daily trainer but a daily trainer is not Necessarily an allrounder yes is that What we said yeah anyway we did actually Did a video on the best all rounders Recently and all of our Windows popped Off in this basically yeah it's a shoe You can do everything in it works both
As a standalone shoe like a rotation Killer a shoe that you can do every Running it's fast enough for Speed Sessions and racing even but it's Comfortable enough for easy runs it's Great for cruising around in great for Long runs um or you can have it in a Rotation as just a really versatile shoe Your daily trainer essentially where you Might then surround it with an even Faster pure racing option and then have A more cushioned pure easy option with It but the idea is it's a shoe that you Can think about your running plan and go Oh I wouldn't mind doing any of those Runs in this shoe or I'd love to do any Of those runs in this shoe so lots of Options these days in this category Every brand now has them there's more of A divide now so you either go for a Plated trainer in this category lots of The opest Rounders are plated shoes now Whether they have a nylon plate or a More flexible carbon plate than you get In a full racing shoe or you have a Really lightweight bouncy unplated shoe That you know still can do speed because It is unplated but is also still Comfortable because every shoe these Days has a pretty high stack of foam and It's quite comfortable because Foams are So lightweight and that means you can Get really versatile shoes that can do a Bit of everything without having a plate
So yeah there's this category is now Laden with great options and it's one of My favorite categories for sure yeah is Is definitely one of the most well there Was a lot of options in this in this in This category um and the top the top two Are joint first um joint winners for This category and probably will not Surprise you uh one of them was the Sakon Endorphin speed 4 the other was The asex Super Blast 2 um Nick please Continue with why we pick those well These actually wer my choices so I'll Hand over I I can assign them though Because I think Kieran I assume picked The sock the Endorphin speed For put that one first and I had the Super blast second yeah I mean the speed The speed four and I I basically Separate these out the speed four for me Is it has a few characteristics that Sort of make a start different it's it's Kind of really light it's really precise There's a lot of agility in the shoe It's probably I think slightly kind of More direct than the super Blast 2 which I quite like if it's got now when you Look at it in comparison it's got I Think a bit more of a traditional ride But it's really Lively it's really light It's really energetic it when you want To go slow if you like that kind of ride That's a bit more kind of ground feel It's comfortable enough to tackle the
Easy miles but then when you actually You know it comes to life when you kick Up the pace and that's when the foam Kicks in and the nylon plate sort of Start to do the work and you can Actually take this shoe I think through The whole gamut of Paces I can do pretty Much any training run in this I also Just just think it's got really nice Sort of Disappearing feel on the foot It's one of those shoes that no matter What I'm doing in a training session it Will just disappear on the foot and let Me get on with business and I think That's it has a it cuts a slightly Different path now than something like a A super blast 2 which I also like but I Just like it because it's just got a Little bit more of that kind of nimble Agility to it I think it's definitely Now the lowest act really of these even The plated ones especially under the 4 Foot you know it's and that can lead to It being a little bit less comfortable Under the four I think on harder long Runs than some of the other options like The max2 the super blast which are now So built up there but it does give it a Really Nimble feel if you're going to go And do like short intervals or something Like that which yeah does expand its Versatility and it's really cushy at the Hill for such a fast and lightweight Shoe like as as a heel strike if I'm
Mooching around that's where the Softness I think is really clear in it Even with that plate in there the other Thing is it's very Available very Available oh God yeah God here we go so Want to talk about the super to you talk About Blast tom was saying the other day If you can't get a super blast you're an Idiot I did not say that please don't Comment on that I actually said we Should probably start featuring it Because everyone keeps complaining about The they can't Tom you had two pairs of Su blast haven't you no uh no not Su Blast I've got any pairs of superlast 2 Mike had two and he two that's why There's none available Mike keeps Stealing Them a kitchen feature out of them Uh just cut some up or reading comments It was probably not a surprise that the Su Blast 2 was going to crop up in this Um we have all very much enjoyed testing Superlast 2 and many of us enjoy testing Superlast one um and the reason why it's So popular is it I I think it's because It it really delivers a certain type of Allrounder star running really really Well I use it as a uh longer session Tempo training shoe if I'm doing Marathons it becomes it's it's probably My favorite shoe for hitting those Distances and times where I need to
Maintain a really consistent Pace it's Not necessarily the best interval shoe In the world it's not necessarily the Best easy day shoe but it really hits That bit in the middle really really Nicely uh it doesn't have a particularly Soft mid sole it's got a lot of ACC Cushioning in it but it's still a Responsive a little bit of firm than Some people might might expect from a Shoe that's got that level of cushioning In it um but it has a lovely turnover It's just very very quick off the quick Off the mark and um yeah I think that's About it really what have I missed hard To get hold of hard to get hold yeah Well I did say that hopefully aex will Produce more of these in time yeah I Going on I just I mean yeah yeah there's Loads of colors being like leaked and Stuff why aren't they coming out I don't Know I don't know well really like all Teal one I think now that's going to be A thrill yes it will be for You so uh so there're the two topics uh Other there was a lot in this category Uh we actually probably one of these Categories of different choices that was In there so got the Muno Neo Vista Haw Ma X2 Haw Max 6 New Balance ballos s six No blast five uh New Balance Rebel V4 And Brooks Hyperion Max 2 so pretty big Category of choic lot of shoes lot of Shoes we're just going to show you how
Big that category is now and how many Good shoes there are in It okay so best cushion shoe I probably I'll explain this one so cushion shoe Cushion shoe is really tricky category These days because pretty much every Shoe you could class in some way as a Cushion shoe it's not like you know the Late 90s early 2000s where you bought a Cushing shoe because you wanted a Cushion shoe and all the other shoes had Slightly smaller sack Heights most shoes Now will have a relatively large uh Stack of cushioning in it the the Cushioning that we how we classify a Cushion shoe is normally a shoe that's Not specifically designed for like race Day and faster training it's a shoe Really designed for click ticking off The miles more more about comfort and Easy runs maybe a bit more longer runs But they're really shoes that are Focused on comfort and cushioning as Opposed to you know the super blast Which is a pretty Max cushion shoe but We wouldn't put that necessarily in um Cushion shoes I know Kieran would Because he Did um but I think K cushion shoe picks Over the years man in general when we Say cushion shoes we're really talking About that that end of the spectrum Where it's about comfort and enjoying The run and not necessarily going at a
Fast pace I think that's fair to say Isn't it BL 2 is great for that Though let's not do this again I got the Blame last time you got be the Instigator the winner refer back to the Previous video if you want to hear us Arguing about that um so this another Category that was massive there's so Many shoes in this category now with Many many Brands releasing their Max Version of quite a lot of um their their Range so the top two picks in it well The the the joint winners in this were The Brooks um glycerin Max and sakon Hurricane 24 um so these are two uh quite Different shoes actually so you got the Brooks M glycerin Max that which came Out fair Fairly recently um and that Shoe is Obviously new development of the book Glycerin Ryme but it's it's actually Quite a different shoe there's quite a Big stack of cushioning in there um but Brooks is very much always focused on Their shoes having good level of Stability in them so it's quite a nice Stable Max cu shoe it's got a relatively Soft midsole in it but you still feel Like you got a nice firm hold on the Ground and it's not wobbly or anything Like that um and it's actually as a Result it's a relatively balanced Max Cushion shoe I think you can you can
It's not a fast shoe but it's definitely A shoe that you feel is more sitting in That sort of daily realm necessarily Than than a really slow easy day shoe That you can often find um is that right That's right one problem with it though You wouldn't get married in that Shoe no I tell tell you what shoe you Would get mared the S hurricane Hurricane 24 only one man can talk about This shoe yeah go go on Mike go on talk About your your wedding shoe uh shoe for Weddings next category coming up um I Think I think for all I think I probably Speak for all of us I think this has Been a bit of a surprise shoe for us I Think um you know for for me the Hurricane I would I think the first you Know this is a kind of M stability Sho That's kind of it's Focus none of us Here are kind ofab Or use kind you know strictly stability Focus Shoes but I think in terms of what You're getting here in the hurricane It's just a very comfortable shoe first And foremost from upper to midsole I Think that's that's the thing that Really strikes me and for the types of Runs that you're ultimately going to be Using it for it is a shoe built for easy Runs and that is absolutely where it Excels it it generally just feels very Comfortable you can roll through very Nicely I think you've got those
Stability elements there but they're not Kind of I don't think you know it Doesn't make a stability um kind of run A kind of shoe I think anyone can kind Of get on with the shoe and I think That's fundamentally what I think we've All kind of found that it's you know in Terms of what it sits and what it Del You know promises to deliver that's Ultimately you get and it definitely has Been a surprise shoe for me one that I Didn't think you know we we kind of Probably be talking about in this Awards yeah 100% I almost like I was Testing it but I haven't tested PR Models of the line not a stability Runner and this is yeah probably my Favorite cushion shoe for a long time it Just doesn't feel like the kind of shoe You would get along with but yeah like You say just ticks over so nicely ly is Soft but doesn't get Squishy and you Know bog you down it's yeah it's kind of The shoe we I think some of us thought The Triumph 22 might be with this power On PB foam in it it's a really great Shoe okay uh shortlisted entries in this Category there's quite a few of these And they're quite varied as well so You've got the New Balance more V5 think You can guess where that came from that Vote came from the hoker skywood X uh The New Balance 108 v14 the ax super L 2 Thanks Kieran the HW skyflow H skylow
And the on cloud Monster hyper so a big Range of shoes there in cushioned Shoes two more Awards left Nick I'm Going to let you do this one because um This is your favorite category more Flight time best best more flight Colorway 2024 we're doing best raceu Yeah uh go on explain what makes a good Race you going to be fast that's what It's that's always it's going to be it's The simplest one no ven diagrams here It's a shoe designed to be fast and Deliver on race day it's not necessarily Going to be stable it might be stable But it's all about running fast that for That these days you need a high stack of A very lightweight and soft and bouncy Foam with a carbon plate in there Trend This year has definitely been to seen Some shoes move a lot lighter than we Had in the past and that's I think a Really welcome trend for me because You're still getting these huge High Stack shoes but they are now more Lightweight and still delivering all That protection that you've come to Expect from a race shoe and yeah they're Great for every distance you you know You might have a bit of a difference Between your 5K shoe and your Marathon Shoe but really I don't think there is That difference so much anymore there's Just a load of really really good shoes And every brand pretty much now maybe
With the exception of Brooks has Delivered a top class racing shoe that Can really compete at the top level and For now I think a lot of this now comes Down to personal preference I think we Actually all have quite a similar Preference which suggests that shoe Actually maybe is still a bit A Cut Above but overall if you find a shoe From the brand you like and it's comb Rate racing shoe you're probably going To get a pretty good shoe these days Okay so the uh the winner for this Category was by far in the way the the The the the winner it was the got a lot More um votes than anything else and That is the aex Met speed Sky Paris uh Why why do we love that Sho so much PBS PBS we love it that's right Kieran and I Got Marathon PBS kieran's got at least One other PB in it I've got a half Marathon PB in it and just works it's The full package like I say it's it's Under 200 gam in my size it is a full Stack shoe it is comfortable over any Distance I've run London marathon in it Did my half marathon PB in it recently And it's just great it's just really Great Tom I don't know what to say like Uh it's also been a bit more durable Than I expected I'm about 250k into my Pair and it still feels just as bouncy Even if the heel is deteriorating a Little bit as you expect from AIC Super
Shoes where they don't cover the heel if You're a heel Striker and that's what I Mean it's like a fully modern Su shoe in That you're getting that protection You're getting that bounce you're Getting that propulsion but it's super Light so at the end of a race when you Start to feel a bit heavy legged the Shoe is not adding any weight there it's Just a bit of everything and yeah it Just works really well and it's not Outrageously expensive for a super shoe Like with some coming out this year have Just pushed the price higher and higher Aex actually stuck to their previous Models pricing which is quite a nice Little Change excellent now the and the runner Up for this category well is a I'm Really pleased that this shoes the Runner up uh because I've been banging On about how good it is and and Mike has As well it's the Puma DV8 Nitro Elite 3 Um which it's that that that shoe line Um I We've all said it in the past that that They're good the pum DV8 Nitro Elites And and the two but they're not quite up There with some of the top tier comp Plate Racers now the the new uh Elite 3 Really is it's such a fantastic shoe you Get a lot of Bounce out of it it feels Really really fast I used it for Manchester half might Ed it for
Manchester half as well and I think we Both agreed that it was just a really Really good shoe so it's nice to see Pummer really getting getting to grits With the the I think it's down to the Foam really in that shoe and it really Makes it a big difference in that um Other sorry and they bumped up the stack But made it lighter so again yeah yeah You getting you're getting everything You're not picking between weight and Bounce or anything these days it's just You just get everything it's great and It's under 200 and it's under 200 yeah So I've I've got a trick tricky Choice Ahead of me for Val Valencia because That's I've got like three shoes to pick Pick now uh and the first the first of The runner up both in there and the Other one is the hogao X1 uh which is One of our shortlisted pick so as well As hedo X1 cell X1 yeah cell C there was There also the Nike Ally 3 the Adidas Adios Pro 4 although to be honest I Don't think that's entirely Fair because We haven't all tested that so that might Have got higher if we' all tested it and The on cloud wi strike LS which again uh Might have been higher if we'd all Tested it but um there they were the Short list for best race Sho first year Neither the winner or the runner up is a Nike Shoe I mean the VAP 3 wasn't in
Contention but I think wouldn't have Been top to anyway you know Yeah okay so the final award that we Picked is the brand of the year um who's Not done Mike you you've only done one Of these want to explain why we picked Brand of the year I think this is a Pretty self-explanatory one but I think This is probably going to be the brand That has has ultimately I think in terms Of launches I would say probably in Terms of innovation and I would say in Terms of particular talking in terms of Shoes you know you know evolving and Enhancing existing lines and making them You know better shoes as well so I think There's a lot that can kind of Contribute to what you know we would Consider you know Brand's having a good Year in 2024 and there's definitely been You know I I think we' all kind of agree There's been a couple of brands that Have have really kind of stood out for Us in that space that's kind of Represented in who we've picked as our Winners yes um and the winner for the Best Brown The brand of the Year 2024 is hoker this Year uh why have we gone for Hoker I mean I think for me I could I Think from the beginning of the year to The end of the year the the the launches Have been consistent in terms of you Know back you know back from kind of the
Cello to the Skyward we've had existing Lines like the Max 6 new shoes like the Sky flow so there's been I think Ultimately for me I think Hawker is Brought new lines brought new innovation Brought really very fun and you know Shoes fundamentally from a performance Point of view really kind of deliver uh And I think you know a mix in terms of Those launches in terms of improving ex Existing lines uh and just having very Good sh you know very good shoe launch Uh year I think that's for me that's Kind of how I see it yeah after Banger Hasn't it they've certainly had a lot of Shoes people are talking about this year I mean previously we talk about like the H 5 and things but then then it was a Bit of a big spag because we weren't Massive fans of the the macx but this Year it seems like every release you Guys are talking about constantly Because I'm not tested that many of them But I've just been testing this the tx1 And I'm really enjoying that Sh okay and the uh runner up in this Category was aex um uh which you know They've done some fantastic uh they've Had some fantastic releases this year Which um what she what the been the big Shoes from mics this year super last I Mean the best honestly they just Released loads of great shoes I mean They met P guy Paris as I racing pick
Super blast a top all rounder NOA blast 5 really started liking that and it's It's less it's it's less of a surprise Some of the cuz a lot of them were Continuations of shoes that were already Great so I guess maybe that's why H had A bit more yeah I suppose in this Category you do sort of need to see a Bit of change don't you as well like What what brands are really up and Really making big big differences in in What in what they're developing whereas Aex has been quite consistent you've got Things like the jel keano range which is Uh really solid but they had you know Joo 30 last year was fantastic as well So um but great year for for aex um and Then other brands that popped up in this Category were sunto New Balance and Socony so the final award is the uh the Big one the audience shoe of the year Now this is we basically open up the um This category to all of the audience on Um YouTube on Instagram and ask for Their top shoe of the year and we get Quite a lot of people voting at this It's like 300 people comment on on this Post and we get a lot of stuff so I sit And go through all of them and tally Them all up and work out what is the Most the biggest shoe uh and I don't Think you're going to be surprised and You you well you won't because you can Saw some of the comments pop up as they
Came in but uh super Blast 2 was the Resounding winner on this one and by a Long way people absolutely love that Shoe uh and there's a lot of comments of People saying they can't get that shoe In everyone who got it may to vote for It yeah exactly yeah so that's that's a Good sign um so so well done for that One um and then the uh runner up in this Category was the fuel cell Rebel V4 Which is quite a nice surprise because That's a shoe that we haven't mentioned Yet in this video um well very Loosely Rened but um that's a really good shoe That um it's good to see getting some Attention for this year um there were a Lot of shoes as You' guess from about 300 um go through them Tom I'm not going To I'm not through all of them through All the comments but I mean most of them Are the ones that we've mentioned Already in this video so um yeah w a Wide range but um asex super 2 gets it This year right so great year for the Awards some excellent shoes some Excellent products all around uh Kieran Has disappeared because he's so happy That the aex super Blast 2 won the Audience Award easy running it he's gone for an Easy run in it and then I think he's Going to go some champagne to celebrate Um so that's it for on the awards thanks A lot for watching or listening to this
If you're listening to the podcast Version of it and um we'll be back very Soon with another review video probably On the channel Mak sense yeah catch you Guys later byee
