adidas ADIZERO ADIOS 6 - First Impressions
Posted on September 07 2021
The adidas adizero ADIOS started life not as the ADIOS at all but as the CS and at the time it was a the go-too marathon racing shoe. It was light, low stack height, and incorporated the adidas torsion bar system which was a plastic insert in the midsole which provided a real kick as you rolled off the shoe.
It became the ADIOS when Haile Gebrselassie set the Marathon World Record in the shoe in Berlin in 2:03:59 in 2008.
It was always positioned as the top of the adizero range until Carbon came along.
The ADIOS 6 pretty much retains the same configuration as previous models and consequently it remains one of the few shoes in the adizero range that is legal for use on the track. You can check the latest list on World Athletics HERE , the current list is dated 3rd September 2021.
For the adizero range, adidas has moved away from BOOST as the defacto midsole material and replaced it with LIGHTSTRIKE. Similar to the BOSTON 10 which we recently reviewed (read that review HERE), the midsole on the ADIOS 6 is a combination of LIGHTSTRIKE PRO and LIGHTSTRIKE EVA, each coming from a different company apparently.
In the adizero range there will soon be the TAKAME SEN 8 which will be priced at $1399 and it will have a similar set up to the ADIOS 6, but with Carbon and 100% LIGHTSTRIKE PRO. (we hope to review that soon). The ADIOS 6 is effectively a takedown of that shoe and at a $999 price point, does not have the carbon and cuts the LIGHTSTRIKE PRO to about 50%.
The rest of the ADIOS 6 is very reminiscent of all the previous ADIOS models and even maintains quite some stitching on the single layer mesh upper!. Quite unusual these days, but it does help to maintain good structure to the shoe. Its super breathable too and its easy to see your sock through the mesh so this won't hold much rain and sweat.
Similar to the BOSTON 10 the ADIOS 6 has a nipped in feel around the midfoot and with the gusseted tongue its super easy to get a really a tight fit around your midfoot. Almost too easy to overtighten the shoe!
I found the ankle collar a fraction high, so if I overtightened the shoe I could feel it under my ankle. It is solved by backing off the lace pressure a bit.
The shoe maintains the Torsion Bar as part of the midsole construction and its easily visible on the bottom of the shoe.
There is plenty of science around to explain how the torsion bar works but in the end it's a question of how it feels. I was shocked when I first ran in a pair of CS's at the effect this system has. To be honest, I have never felt it to be quite so aggressive in subsequent models but it is still a great contribution to the spring when you toe off.
Continental rubber we of course love, as it will grip on anything, even the wet tiles of the waterfront!.
SO HOW DID IT RUN! I have done 3 sessions in the shoe so far, a longer but still pacey 21km, a short recovery run and marathon focused track session.
Like the BOSTON 10, this LIGHTSTRIKE and LIGHTSTRIKE PRO combination does feel firm. Especially at slower speeds and when you are heel striking, a little more. Its probably because there are so many marshmallowy soft midsole foams on the market at the moment (think of the New Balance Rebel v2 for instance).
This shoe runs like a racing shoe but at 231g its not really light enough to be a pure racing flat. I am looking at the TAKAME SEN 8 for that when it arrives but what this is, is a fast, structured, stable shoe. The LIGHTSTRIKE EVA in the heel is a bit like old EVA midsoles which were firm but when you get onto the midfoot and forefoot where the LIGHTSTRIKE PRO takes over, the energy return comes back. This is definitely helped by the torsion bar, in a very similar way to how I found the BOSTON 10 was helped by the Carbon rods.
Of the runs I did, I enjoyed the track session and the pacey long run the best, I will pick something softer for my recovery runs. On the longer stuff I simply forgot I was wearing the shoes. They helped me run how I wanted to run.
I do believe this midsole material will get better with use as there seems to be a "breaking in" feeling to it and maybe after more miles I can see if this is true. I have complained in the past that BOOST was too soft, especially after a couple of hundred kms so this fits more with what I would like from a shoe.
So in conclusion, this is a durable, fast, race trainer, that I would use up to half marathon, maybe further, lets see. At $999 it's certainly aggressively priced and fabulous value for money.
Oh, and on a final note, adidas is making an effort to use recycled plastic material in their shoes and the ADIOS 6 contains "PrimeGreen" which is recycled Ocean Plastic. That can't be a bad thing can it!.
Check out the collection HERE (sadly only men's available at the moment)
https://gone.run/products/adidas-mens-adizero-adios-6
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