I wasn’t an early adopter of carbon-plated super shoes for several reasons, but now they’ve re-energized my racing.
It was October of 2018. I was standing on the starting line of the Baystate Marathon in Lowell, Massachusetts, fit and ready to run fast. The Nike Vaporfly super shoes, which were first worn surreptitiously by elite runners in 2016, were now available to the public. As I looked around, I felt like I was the lone dingy floating in a sea of pink and green Vaporflys. It seemed like everybody had them. Me? I was wearing a pair of Skechers Razor racing flats.
Yep, that’s right. Skechers had a performance division, and, at the time, I was a proud member of their team. I won’t lie to you, when I received my first shipment of shoes from them I wasn’t sure I could fulfill my contract. They were like no other shoes I’d run in to date, and I didn’t love the way they felt. But, as my husband said, it was four free pairs of shoes so could I maybe just learn to love them? The answer was yes, I could. I made those shoes work and eventually I was more than happy to be running in them.
I was on the team for several years and the design of the shoes improved substantially each year. It was great. Until it wasn’t.
Let’s take it back to 2015. I had a big marathon breakthrough, running a 3:04 at age 41. I’d run a number of marathons leading up to this one, maybe ten or twelve, but this was the first time I was within tasting distance of a sub-three hour race. I had just started running for Skechers and was wearing the GORUN4, a very popular race shoe for them. Now, I was a notably stronger runner at this stage in the game, mainly because of the coaching I was getting and the increase in mileage and workouts in general.
But, if you asked me at the time, I was a big believer in my shoes. For obvious reasons, right? I had worn them for a couple years now and my race times had only improved. So, I was giving them a lot of credit. I didn’t see a lot of other runners sporting the same shoes but it didn’t matter to me. I was rolling and the shoes were working. I was all in. Naturally, once I almost tasted the sub-3-hour Kool-Aid, I wanted a full cup.
Obviously, I knew I was going to have to work for it, but given that I was a mere 5 minutes off and I had come down from a 3:40, I believed it was within reach. Sub-3 became my one and only goal for the next three years during which I ran nine marathons. Some were total fails, but most were so close it was almost stupid. A couple 3:01s and 3:02s. Then there were the absolute heartbreakers. There was a 3:00:16 in Sugarloaf, Maine, and a 3:00:07 in Albany, New York. We’re talking a blink of an eye and I’d missed it.
And then finally, in fall of 2018, on a chilly October morning in Lowell, Massachusetts, in a sea of dayglow pink Nike supershoes, I crossed the line in 2:59 and change wearing my Skechers. Turns out, I didn’t need those oddly shaped, hot pink shoes that all the women were wearing that morning. Were those even legal? My jury was out. Plus I wasn’t on team $250 for a pair of shoes. I would continue to train and race my face off and I would do it my way as I had just proved that I could.
I would race a few more marathons in those magical shoes but as the super shoe craze took off I found myself being left in the proverbial dust on race day. And then finally, in 2021, I caved and bought a pair of Saucony plated shoes. I lined up for a small local marathon here in MA and crossed the line in three hours and two minutes. So close and yet so far. I remember thinking as I drove home that day that I would likely have multiple sub three hour marathons under my belt had I worn the super shoes instead of the Skechers for the past few marathons I’d done.
I’m not saying that it would have been a sure thing, but given how close I’d come in all of those races, there is a good chance I would have slid comfortably under 3 had I been wearing fast shoes. But, alas, I would never know. And if I’m being honest, I’m even more proud of that first sub-3 given what I had on my feet.
Over the years, I have become a significantly more experienced runner. And my knowledge of both training and run gear has increased tenfold. In 2023, I fully committed to the Nike Vaporfly. Not surprisingly, even at age 47, I was blowing doors off my old race times. Oh man, was I having fun. And I was in LOVE with my shoes. As most of us were. What a difference the hyper-responsive midsole foam and carbon plate made. So long Skechers. It’s been real.
Alas, all good things come to an end, right? And, yet, after a couple years in Nikes, I could no longer wear them. My left foot has a bunion and I need a wider shoe. As the Nikes evolved, the toe box got narrower and the Boston marathon in 2023 would be the last time I would line up in a Nike shoe of any kind.
Enter New Balance. For a year or so, after Nikes were no longer a viable option, I tried any potential race shoe that was wide enough for my foot. Hokas, Saucony’s, Brooks; any and all of them. Some worked, some didn’t. It was a true labor of love with a lot of frustration sprinkled in. After a couple years, many black toes and a lot of blisters later, New Balance released the FuelCell line and more specifically the SuperComp Elite for racing. But not only did they put out this awesome new shoe, they offer in a wider width. Praise. Freaking. Be.
After testing so many different brands, I was both thrilled and relieved to find New Balance offering their best race shoe for those of us with wider feet. I cried tears of joy the first time I raced in a pair of New Balance FuelCellSuperComp Elite v3. I literally felt like I was floating and for the first time in a while, the right edge of my left foot wasn’t an issue. Finally, a fast shoe that I could trust and feel good in. Out of the box, onto my feet, love at first mile.
This past weekend I raced a 10K in the New Balance FuelCell SuperComp Elite v5, my second pair of this model. It was raining buckets. And, if I’m being honest, I was not thrilled about racing as I sat in the car before the start. Then I put on my race shoes and did some strides. You know that image when the clouds part and the sun comes out? It felt like that even though the rain continued to come down. I walked over to the starting line with a skip in my step, feeling confident and ready to fly.
Puddles be damned, these super shoes were next level awesome. I ran one of my best races of the year and I am fully confident that my shoes had a lot to do with this outcome. And that, my friends, is how the story ends. Well, as far as the shoes go at least. In terms of racing, I will be lining up for the Hartford Marathon in October and for the New York City Marathon in November. To not have to worry about what I’m going to race in is, well, it’s just everything.
I have been running since I was a kid. Today, I’m 50 years old. My current run goal is to best all of my race times from my 40s. Because, why the hell not? If you see me out there, I’ll be rolling in New Balance. I’ve got my work cut out for me, but at least I have new, fast, and appropriately wide shoes I can count on to support me along the way.
Boston-area editor-at-large Rebecca Trachsel is a mom, a competitive age-group marathoner, a high school cross country and track coach, and music lover with a coffee problem. She’s still chasing big goals—and wearing super shoes—and having a blast along the way.
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