Once Again Back is the Incredible
The Nike Foamposite One was released in 1997.It's revolutionary design and materials revolutionized the way basketball shoes are made.The upper is made of a single piece of molded polyurethane that does not stretch or lose shape like traditional leather or other materials used as upper's for shoes.While sacrificing weight the material offers a custom "molded" fit after the material conforms to the wearer's foot.But all the fancy tech speak aside,and besides looking pretty and the $180 price tag,lets find out if it really is revolutionary or just another Y2k dud.
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The Foamposite Pro is similar to the Foamposite One minus the swoosh and Penny logo on the heel as well as a translucent rubber outsole.
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here you can see the segmented outsole as well as the carbon fiber midfoot support.
figure1The Foamposite Pro is similar to the Foamposite One minus the swoosh and Penny logo on the heel as well as a translucent rubber outsole.
With the shoe being constructed of a single piece of foamposite material it eliminates any seams that may rub on the wearer's foot.It was constructed and designed to be an extension of the wearers foot acting like a sock.The shoe is lined with a full length dynamic fit sleeve for comfort and support.While the material does not stretch,it does mold to the wearer's foot.This is definitely a pair that you pull out of the box and immediately play in.There is a break in period which at times it feels like your foot is literally breaking to fit into the shoe.But the the results are perhaps the best fitting shoes you will ever wear.the lacing system aids the foamposite upper in locking down your foot and offering excellent support.Heat and moisture management is also good with the lycra/mesh dynamic fit sleeve.
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a look at the lacing system as well as the beautiful profile of the shoe.
figure2a look at the lacing system as well as the beautiful profile of the shoe.
Cushioning is provided by heel and forefoot zoom air.You get a low profile feeling when you wear the shoe but nothing like the Flightposite series. Impact protection was good when landing on concrete tile.I didn't feel too much foot or leg fatigue when playing in the Foamposite Pro.Traction was above average.The outsole is segmented to provide flexibility.with the herringbone pattern split into 6 different pods optimized for motion.Unfortunately the large swoosh on the outsole also hurts the shoe's traction by taking away surface area for the shoe to come into contact with the floor in the heel area.
figure3here you can see the segmented outsole as well as the carbon fiber midfoot support.
Overall ankle support is excellent.My only gripe is that at times it felt like it was fairly easy to roll your foot over.While the support was excellent it just felt like my foot could roll over at any time.Unlike the Flightposites that are actually the same height when put side to side,the Flightposites just felt like they sit lower to the ground.There is also a large carbon fiber midfoot support that works in conjunction with the Foamposite upper ensuring the shoe was tops in it's class in support.Unfortunately this feature also manages to create the biggest chink in the super armor that is the Foamposite Pro/One...The Carbon Fiber cracks.On my third wearing of the shoe,it started developing small cracks in the carbon fiber shank towards the heel area similar to the problems I had with the Jordan XXI.I'm not sure if the problem has to do with the amount of torque I put on the shoe when changing directions but for a shoe to fail so quickly and to pay a premium price for a performance shoe is inexcusable.
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Overall the shoe performed reasonably well.While the design and material used were revolutionary,it was also the first.The Flightposite series expanded on the original idea and pushed design and performance limits into excellence.That being said I was deeply disappointed with the carbon fiber cracking on the midfoot shank.The way the carbon fiber cradles the foot without much more support was certainly a design flaw that was later corrected in other designs.
Comfort and Fit-4/5
Cushioning-4/5
Ankle Support-4.5/5
Traction-3.5/5
Overall-4/5
Comfort and Fit would have been a 5 had it not been for the painful break in period and I seriously thought about docking points from the overall score due to the carbon fiber cracking in a $180 shoe.
figure4Here is a picture of the carbon fiber cracking towards the heel area.
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figure5Overall the shoe performed reasonably well.While the design and material used were revolutionary,it was also the first.The Flightposite series expanded on the original idea and pushed design and performance limits into excellence.That being said I was deeply disappointed with the carbon fiber cracking on the midfoot shank.The way the carbon fiber cradles the foot without much more support was certainly a design flaw that was later corrected in other designs.
Comfort and Fit-4/5
Cushioning-4/5
Ankle Support-4.5/5
Traction-3.5/5
Overall-4/5
Comfort and Fit would have been a 5 had it not been for the painful break in period and I seriously thought about docking points from the overall score due to the carbon fiber cracking in a $180 shoe.
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