The Saucony Kinvara 3

A fresh pair of Saucony Kinvara 3’s

Over the last year I spent some time trying to find what I thought to be the perfect all around running shoe for training and racing.  I’ve tried several different shoes from various brands but none left me 100% satisfied, not to say that any of them are bad shoes, I’m just saying that none of them were the ideal shoe for me.I did a little more research online and came across the Saucony Kinvara’s.  The loud colorways instantly caught my eye.  You can’t overlook the importance of a good looking kit.  The best way I can describe the shoe is it’s a bit of a hybrid between a traditional cushioned running shoe and a minimalist shoe.  The offset from heel to toe is only 4mm which I liked, I’ve found this to make it easier for landing on my midfoot rather than heel first.  The shoe has a sockliner which makes it an option for running barefoot for shorter races.  The shoe also weighs in under 8oz while still providing a good amount of cushioning.  For me the shoe is the best of both worlds, it provides enough cushioning for everyday training but is also light enough to feel fast on race day.

Race Testing the Saucony Kinvara 3

The only negative thing I can say is that they don’t have an amazing shelf life.  The foam on the outside of the forefoot started to really wear down after a couple of months in my Kinvara 2’s.  Saucony has made an effort to address this on the Kinvara 3’s by reinforcing some of these areas with more durable materials and my 3’s seem to be holding up much better than the 2’s.  I used these shoes for all of my races this season and couldn’t be happier.  I’ll continue to race and train in these for the foreseeable future and can’t wait to get my hands on a couple new pairs.