Shoe Review: Saucony Mirage

unlike a lot of people who found their way into a pair of Saucony Mirage, i was not led down their path from prior experience with the Saucony Kinvara.  I was looking for a shoe to compliment my go-to running shoe, the Brooks PureCadence.  I tend to buy into the theory that you should vary your footwear from time to time to work even a slightly different area of muscles in your legs.  still, with hopes of finding a shoe that kept within the same basic guidelines of the PureCadence, i soon realized my options were quite limited.  those guidelines where:

• 4-5mm drop
• some stability control
• less than 10oz

the Saucony Mirage are one of the few shoes that fit the bill in a new trend of "moderate minimalism".  to be clear, and this should not be understated, the Mirage are *NOT* minimalist shoes.  here are the specs:

• 26mm heel, 21mm forefoot (5mm drop)
• 9.4 oz (weight is for size 9, reviewed shoe is size 11.5)
• Saucony's "Supportive Arc" stability control built into the midsole

when i first put these shoes on they felt very, very strange.  it felt as though there was extra material under the front part of the heel and the forefoot.  the toebox also felt very tight.  the shoe didn't feel all that comfortable and very far from natural or form-fitting to my foot.

still, being the shoe geek that i am i was excited to try them out, and, with todd coming over for our typical thursday night 10-miler, i would try them straight away.  looking back, i probably would have been better suited breaking them in a bit before setting out on a 10 mile run with them, but, hey, i'm well beyond that at this point!  by the end of that first run, my feet were killing me.  the cushioning and midsole felt very stiff and un-responsive, the heel cup didn't quite keep my heel in place and the narrow toe box felt constricting.  needless to say, i wasn't pleased with the shoes after my first run.

still, at todd's urging that i needed to break them in, i gave them a few more runs.  i have nearly 60 miles in them and while i'm not going to tell you these are in the same class as the Brooks PureCadence, i am happy to have them in my rotation, especially at the $59 purchase price (i believe they are even cheaper now on runningwarehouse.com).  

my thoughts after having broken them in a bit more:

• the shoes feel very light on your feet.  they give you ample cushioning and ample support without feeling like you're wearing bricks.  this is a big plus and the best reason for owning them.  the strangeness i felt on first putting the shoes on (cushioning under heel and forefoot) has lessened (it's still there, but the midsole has compacted, broken in and is much more comfortable now).
• the narrow toe box is what it is.  i tend to like more room for my toes which enhances my foots ability to do what it does best.  that coupled with the stiff midsole, which does provide good enough cushioning, but also forces you to be more aware of your running form aren't going to enhance your propriocpetion while running.
• if you have issues with the heel cup like i do, you can play around with the lacing to get a better fit which almost resolves that issue.
• the shoes are very breathable.  this is readily apparent on a cold, windy run and will be nice to have come warmer weather.
• the tongue has a tendency to shift down and to the side over the course of the run, causing a bit of discomfort in the top of the foot, under the laces.

i won't use these shoes for runs longer than 10 miles, nor will they ever be my go-to shoe.  but for the price, you really can't go wrong if you're just looking to add a short-mileage shoe to your rotation.

Related Posts:
Kinvara 2 Review
Shoe Review: Brooks PureCadence