First look at the shoes saw a few tweak on the upper, a totally revamped outsole and of course the most talked about EVERUN. I'm pretty excited about the EVERUN technology which in included in the ISO2 :) What is EVERUN really? According to the folks at Saucony, EVERUN is a breakthrough in continuous cushioning that provides cushioning closer to the runners feet returning up to 83% of energy.. bouncy bounce.. What does it mean really? To put it simply in my own language, it means more cushioning during your run but in contrast to the norm, it is also very responsive allowing me to run looooonger and strooooonger. I will touched on this topic as we go along
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| Removing the sock liner, immediately you will see the EVERUN right under it. Cushioning closer to your feet as promised |
ISO2 stays with 8mm drop with a stack height of 31mm (Heel), 23mm (Forefoot) weighing 10.2 oz for a US size 9, very decent weight considering the amount of cushioning that the shoes gave. Similar to ISO1 the heel collar is overly cushioned and the sock-like ISOFIT technology is about all that was carried over from the first version. The upper mesh used on the forefoot area sees a welcome tweak which is now more breathable, no hot spot even running in the heat and as evidenced you can tell what color of socks you are wearing LOL (pic below). Yes, Saucony has answered my call to reduce the upper mesh cushion/padding resulting from the tweak, the forefoot area feels a little roomier compare to the predecessor.
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| Noticed you can see the yellow/black color socks that I'm wearing through the upper mesh on the ISO 2 but not the ISO 1 |
The plastic overlay on the ISO2 is now housing only 3 eyelet instead of the 4 from the ISO1. Gone are the 1st eyelet overlay stitching which in my opinion was limiting the forefoot width and feels tight at the forefoot. With the stitching taken out, it is no longer limiting the mesh material from expanding and a little more compliant to wide forefoot runners.
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| Only 3 eyelet on the plastic overlay |
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| I did not use the 1st eyelet on the Triumph ISO1 (bottom in Black/Red) in the hope of giving me a roomier forefoot area |
EVERUN layer is sandwiched between the sock-liner and the midsole, surprisingly instead of making the ride mushy with the amount of cushion, the overall ride actually feels firmer and more responsive to run in. I have ran more than 70 km in it confirming the ride and actually wore the ISO1 and ISO2 on each of my feet to confirm the feel. The outsole sees a complete revamp in the layout, it is now more simple and straight forward weaving pattern from side to side. Saucony continue to use xt900 carbon rubber on the heel area for durability while iBR+ is used for the forefoot area for further cushioning.
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| The Silver/Grey is firmer and more responsive than the Red/Black |
With the firmer and a more responsive ride, putting in the pace into sub 5 mins pace is now easier with EVERUN returning energy as compare to the ISO1 which absorbs too much energy from the thick cushioning which is a big deal !!! Saying that, still the Triumph ISO2 is not a racing flat, one should not expect this flats to give you a cushion ride and at the same time delivering the speed that you expect out from the likes of its racing siblings.
Wrapping up my review with some thoughts here. Although with the new mesh upper and the stitching gone on the first eyelet, it still feels a slightly tight compare to the other shoes that I ran in. This is not a big issue, you just need to try it on yourself and go for the up size option if necessary. It continues to be a good partner for long training run and recovery run, though you could run in a race but it is not the best option from the Saucony range. Love the EVERUN... now where's the Kinvara 7 and Peregrine 6?
The Saucony Triumph ISO2 is kindly provided by RSH (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, the authorized distributor of Saucony for review purposes; all opinion are formed base on actual test without influence. The shoes will be available at Running Lab from end March onward, retailing at RM529
