Combat Evolved
The Adidas Decade has been a mainstay in Adidas' line of shoes.Even as the company has evolved and advances in technology are made classic shoes like the Adidas Superstar,Decade and Forum are all updated year after year with new tech while keeping with the design of the classic.The Adidas GCS Decade has been updated with Adidas' latest tech-GCS standing for Ground Control System.GCS was first introduced in running shoes,it works much like a car's suspension does promoting stability and conforms to changes in terrain reducing stress on the body keeping the wearer's foot stable.Ill go more into detail about the tech as I progress through the review.
figure1
some examples of how the Decade has evolved
The Decade was a shoe I was excited to try out because of the new tech.GCS works by creating a ground leveling effect with the midfoot and heel being supported by a tpu shank working independently from the midsole and outsole.In this case three columns that run along the medial side of the shoe providing excellent support when moving laterally and on hard cuts by moving independent from the rest of the outsole/midsole preventing overpronation.Ankle support is definitely a plus on this shoe.Dense foam padding inside the shoe provides comfort and support.A CMEVA foam wing runs through the lateral side of the shoe providing support keeping the foot in place making sure the foot doesn't slide off of the footbed on hard cuts.
figure2
a look at the GCS tech with the 3 column setup as well as a look at the multi-directional traction pattern
figure3
a look at the medial side of the shoe with the TPU shank and GCS
I initially found the shoe to be a little bit on the stiff side during the initial break in period.Definitely not a shoe you want to pull out of the box and go with right away.After about 2-3 days of working out and light running in the shoe broke them in nicely.Heat and moisture management is good with a vent on the medial side as well as the tpu shank being perforated.There is additional padding for Achilles support and comfort.Unfortunately wearing no show socks might cause skin to be chafed from the seams on the support.Cushioning was a bit on the stiff side.With heel and forefoot Adiprene,cushioning was decent but not spectacular.Compared to the cushioning provided in the Adidas Crazy 1 the Decade feels like it took a step backwards in the cushioning department.Traction was decent.I actually expected the shoe to perform better in the traction department when looking at the outsole pattern.There is plenty of surface area for the shoe to come into contact with the playing surface but I continually experienced sliding during play on both hardwood and naturally dirty tile.After examining the shoe I'm guessing the rubber compound used for the outsole is a bit on the hard side and doesn't really grip the floor very well.
figure4
a look at the CMEVA foam wing
Overall the shoe excels stability and ankle support but was only mediocre in all other performance aspects.I was initially excited to try out the new GCS tech but was kind of turned off by how the rest of the shoe performed.Good thing the series continues to evolve.
Comfort and Fit-3/5
Cushioning-2.5/5
Ankle Support-4.5/5
Traction-3/5
Overall-3/5
Fit was excellent but comfort was not so much.Overall the concept shows promise but execution was lacking on this one.
The Adidas Decade has been a mainstay in Adidas' line of shoes.Even as the company has evolved and advances in technology are made classic shoes like the Adidas Superstar,Decade and Forum are all updated year after year with new tech while keeping with the design of the classic.The Adidas GCS Decade has been updated with Adidas' latest tech-GCS standing for Ground Control System.GCS was first introduced in running shoes,it works much like a car's suspension does promoting stability and conforms to changes in terrain reducing stress on the body keeping the wearer's foot stable.Ill go more into detail about the tech as I progress through the review.
figure1some examples of how the Decade has evolved
The Decade was a shoe I was excited to try out because of the new tech.GCS works by creating a ground leveling effect with the midfoot and heel being supported by a tpu shank working independently from the midsole and outsole.In this case three columns that run along the medial side of the shoe providing excellent support when moving laterally and on hard cuts by moving independent from the rest of the outsole/midsole preventing overpronation.Ankle support is definitely a plus on this shoe.Dense foam padding inside the shoe provides comfort and support.A CMEVA foam wing runs through the lateral side of the shoe providing support keeping the foot in place making sure the foot doesn't slide off of the footbed on hard cuts.
figure2a look at the GCS tech with the 3 column setup as well as a look at the multi-directional traction pattern
figure3a look at the medial side of the shoe with the TPU shank and GCS
I initially found the shoe to be a little bit on the stiff side during the initial break in period.Definitely not a shoe you want to pull out of the box and go with right away.After about 2-3 days of working out and light running in the shoe broke them in nicely.Heat and moisture management is good with a vent on the medial side as well as the tpu shank being perforated.There is additional padding for Achilles support and comfort.Unfortunately wearing no show socks might cause skin to be chafed from the seams on the support.Cushioning was a bit on the stiff side.With heel and forefoot Adiprene,cushioning was decent but not spectacular.Compared to the cushioning provided in the Adidas Crazy 1 the Decade feels like it took a step backwards in the cushioning department.Traction was decent.I actually expected the shoe to perform better in the traction department when looking at the outsole pattern.There is plenty of surface area for the shoe to come into contact with the playing surface but I continually experienced sliding during play on both hardwood and naturally dirty tile.After examining the shoe I'm guessing the rubber compound used for the outsole is a bit on the hard side and doesn't really grip the floor very well.
figure4a look at the CMEVA foam wing
Overall the shoe excels stability and ankle support but was only mediocre in all other performance aspects.I was initially excited to try out the new GCS tech but was kind of turned off by how the rest of the shoe performed.Good thing the series continues to evolve.
Comfort and Fit-3/5
Cushioning-2.5/5
Ankle Support-4.5/5
Traction-3/5
Overall-3/5
Fit was excellent but comfort was not so much.Overall the concept shows promise but execution was lacking on this one.
Posts
