Saucony Kinvara 6

According to Kona Triathlon Magazine's Kona Shoe Count 2015 , 14.3% of triathletes wear Saucony shoes, 2nd highest rank after Asics (17.5%). 

Here is the Kona Shoe Count 2015 as of Oct 11, 2015:
 1. Asics                        17.5%
 2. Saucony                  14.3%
 3. Hoka                        11.6%
 4. Brooks                        9.2%
 5. Newton                       9.2%
 6. Adidas                        7.2%
 7. Mizuno                       6.2%
 8. New Balance               5.2%
 9. On                             5.0%
10. Nike                          4.5%
11. Zoot                          3.9%
12. Skechers                  2.6%
13. Kswiss                       0.9%
14. Pearl Izumi                0.9%
15. Puma                         0.4%
16. Innov8                       0.3%
17. Altra                          0.2%
18. Salming                     0.2%
19. Other                         0.8%

I have been wearing Skechers ever since 2013 when I decided to learning mid foot and fore foot landing instead of my usual heel landing to have an injury-free running life.And I'm very grateful that thus far, I have been very satisfied with the shoe performance. 

The only concerns I have with my Skechers GOrun and GOMeb Speed 3 shoes are:
  • Fast wear and tear (outsole)
  • Can't find U.S. shoe size 9.5 in Malaysia
This has resulted in me looking out for other brands that have U.S. shoe size 9.5 and as light weight as Skechers GOMeb Speed 3.




After some observations, I noticed Saucony is rather popular amongst some fast runners. There is this runner who has completed 12 full marathons in 12 months recently managed to clock all sub 4 times in all 12 full marathons. It's such an amazing achievement! 

And since I personally am chasing for consistent sub 4 time as well and he is one of my running idols to look up to for fast timing, I have found out from him that he has been wearing Saucony Kinvara series since he started running - from Kinvara 1,2,3,4 to 5.

So i decided to give Saucony Kinvara 6 a try. I bought a pair at Stadium, Mid Valley, KL for RM359 after 10% discount on 27 September 2015.

My first pair of Saucony shoe - Kinvara 6.

 
                       
With the current haze conditions, a few attempts to run outdoor have failed. Finally, I managed to run in Saucony Kinvara 6 out door on 14 Oct and 18 Oct clocking about 29 km in total. I also run with Saucony Kinvara 6 on treadmill which makes total mileage to be around 40 km or so.

1st Run (14 Oct) : Double Hill (9.35 km)






2nd Run (18 Oct) : Lake Garden to Seri Hartamas Route (19.35 km)


And here is my review based on my personal experience between Saucony Kinvara 6 and Skechers GOMeb Speed 3:


Wear and tear
Saucony Kinvara 6 after about 40 km mileage


I personally find that Saucony Kinvara 6 has much better material and design for the out sole that will help to make the shoe longer lasting. 

The outsole for Skechers GOMeb Speed 3 is much softer. And I notice the wear and tear is faster.


Cushioning


Saucony Kinvara 6 has very firm and responsive cushioning. It's very good for those runners who prefer lightweight shoes with cushioning. As I run in Saucony Kinvara 6, I also find the shoes to be bouncy returning energy.

However, perhaps naturally I'm still a heal striker which I have been trying to change by wearing Skechers shoes to correct my landing to mid foot, I find it a bit challenging for me to adjust to the cushioning in Saucony Kinvara 6. 

I like the "feel the ground / barefoot" feeling in Skechers GoRun and GoMeb Speed 3. It's almost like running barefoot! This means that I could ensure I don't land hard on my feet and if my feet were to feel any pain, I would have noticed it immediately. This will then allow me to control my stride or to have softer landing. Perhaps that's one of the reaons why I managed to have injury free running since I changed to Skechers.

So this is a tough call. 

By right, the cushioning is good. And I guess it's just a matter of time to get used to it. But after 40 km mileage, I still miss the "ground" feeling in Skechers. I guess I need to give Saucony Kinvara 6 some more time to be comfortable.


Weight 

Both all all lightweight shoes which I love. I'm not used to wearing anything more than 10 oz to run full marathons. 

And I find Saucony Kinvara 6 to be slightly heavier than Skechers GOMeb Speed 3. I guess the cushioning somehow added some little weight onto Saucony Kinvara 6.  However, it's still very light and responsive. 


Toe Box

One thing worth mentioning is that toe box area. It seems that Saucony Kinvara 6 is wider than Skechers GOMeb Speed 3. This is something I really love. 

The wider toe box is exactly what I have found comfort in Skechers GOrun models but not the GOMeb Speed models.


Design

What can I say? I love both Saucony and Skechers designs. So it's a match here. 


Summary

In summary, I still need more time to adjust to Saucony Kinvara 6 especially with the cushioning. I love the longer lasting out sole and the wider toe box. I guess it's just a matter of time for me to get used to it.

But for the rest of running season 2015 which I only have Penang Bridge International Marathon 2015 to participate on Nov 22, 2015, I will still wear Skechers GOmeb Speed 3.

I will consider to wear Saucony Kinvara 6 for races when my Skechers GOmeb Speed 3 wears out (soon already!). 



Written on: 2015.10.18