Product Review: Nike Wildhorse 10 Trail Running Shoes.

 

Nike Wildhorse 10 shoes.

Out in downtown LA, going out and feeding pigeons, and all, I encounter all sorts of challenging terrain. This being the case, I like to have good, supportive footwear to help me power through my outings. It was time for a new pair of shoes for me, recently, so I went online to check out the Nike website and see what was new. I found several different shoes that piqued my interest, and I checked my bank account, and I found out that I had more money in my bank than I’d expected. I thought, “oh, goody! I can splurge,” and I ventured on, within the catalog of shoes online, and I let my imagination roam a bit more freely. 

I’d previously tried out high end casual / running shoes like the Vapormax flyknit shoe, which features shoes on top of bubbles of air, as the soles, and, while nice, I wanted to try something new. I didn’t feel like spending $220 (they are currently $187.97, on the store’s website) for shoes, and I’d already tried them out. I had been wearing the Joyride sneakers, which feature foam balls in the soles, for cushioning, and they’re also casual running shoes, but here, I had an opportunity to branch out in to fancier shoes with more features. 

The main attraction to the Wildhorse 10 shoe ($165), in Nike’s trail running series, is that it has a springy ReactX foam midsole that is purported to return energy to the wearer, along with a grippy outsole design that provides for sure footing in all types of trail terrain, whether it be uphill, wet, or over various types of ground. 

My Wildhorse 10 shoe outsoles. Clearly, this is a shoe for serious trail runners.

Upon first trying out the shoes, after receiving them on Monday, after I ordered them on a Sunday (impressive - Nike used a custom courier to deliver the shoes within 1 day), I could definitely feel a spring in my heels, upon trying to bounce and walk around a little bit. It’s unlike other shoe experiences I recall, since it’s foam, instead of air, that’s being used as the cushion. I felt that there was a lot of design input that went in to making the shoe, and it’s got a legacy of design behind it (Nike skipped #9 in the Wildhorse series, and went to version 10, from 8, but there are internet articles that talk about previous iterations of the Wildhorse series). The ReactX foam is truly “responsive,” as it’s termed, and I could definitely see how this model of shoe would assist me and keep me comfortable on future daily hikes out to feed the pigeons around town.

The shoe comes in a good variety of many different color options to choose from, and there’s men’s and women’s versions of the shoe, as well. I chose the funky pink neon, white, black, and light blue version, because I like bright colors. I could foresee keeping the shoes clean as being a chore, as I’d have to watch how I move and handle the shoes, when wearing them, so that they don’t get scuffs or stains on them. Even so, I unfortunately spilled some soy sauce on one of the shoes, on my first day wearing them out, and I nearly freaked out, but I had some water with me, and I gave it a quick rinse, and once I got to a water fountain, I was able to rub out the stain completely, with a little bit of soap, so the fabric is a little bit forgiving. 

All in all, I feel like like the trail running series fits my lifestyle and fashion choices, and I got a compliment on the shoes, on the first day I wore them, which was nice. I ordered a complementary set of shorts and a tank top that matches the color of the shoes. I’d highly recommend the shoes, as a luxury novelty, for the bouncy soles, as well as for active lifestyle trail running (walking, in my case) types, when the shoes can be afforded, financially.