Men's Distance Elite

A great ride.

This is my third pair of Distance Elites. They are light and well built. Mine seem to hold up for about 400 mostly road miles. Even after that, the tops still look great. The parts that wear-out for me are the front halves of the lugs and the heels.

got an email tonight about the new distance 9 and had to see how it was different than the elite i bought 6 mo. ago.

well, major difference. it has the 5 lugs, which i looked forward to trying in the distance 8, of which i bought 2 pairs to rotate.

i was pretty disappointed with the feel, and after running on them for over a year, and now comparing 6 months on the elite's, i can write a knowledgeable review. understanding this is just from my perspective and running/body style. still, it may be of help.

i've read a few other runners say this and i agree totally that the 5 lugs seem very much like a normal shoe to run in. which is not what i want. i always loved the newton energy return that has now to some extent been lost or damped down. i read that the 5 lug has a lower lug profile, accounting for this, and that makes complete sense as to why these feel so much more like a normal shoe.

i really hate padding or cushioning in my running shoes and would go totally flat with 10mm of cushion if i could. but i run on concerete and asphalt for 65 min. runs, and the effect on my foot structure is just too much for me to enjoy it. my form is excellent, but that can't compete with 65 min. on hard surfaces. so after leaving the newtons to become Mr. Minimalist with new balance and merrells, the slamming on my metatarsals brought me back to newtons, which i always considered a transition shoe to being Mr. Minimal.

ego took a back seat to my aching foot bones, and i put on my old newton disance 3's, old and worn, and the run was a delight. so that's when i went to the 5 lug hoping it would be incredible, and it was anything but. it was like dialing back what newton does, about 50%. to those who haven't run in the 4 lugs, they might not understand. the 4 lug is closer to a true minimal shoe in feel as it sits higher in the front, and forces you to use your midfoot/front foot more. it's more in the vain of minimalist running.

i'm sorry to see newton go backward, however so many running shoes have axed minimal shoes altogether, that i am happy to see newton still around.

and now that they are honoring their true mission as minimal shoes with a cool trampoline device (vs. more cushioning) by offering the 4 lugs again, i'm on board.

please do not get rid of your 4 lug shoes. i will already never forgive new balance for dropping the best minimal shoe ever, the minimus zero drop. still, i would have come back to newton because 65 minutes on concrete in the minimus zero was a bit too much for me.

so don't you desert me and the rest of us who need a 4 lug from you. i hear all this talk of lateral stability. let me remind newton these aren't tennis shoes. you run forward, not laterally. save your fifth lug for your trail shoes, if you make them. keep 4 lugs for your original customers.

please.

I was happy to hear that Fireman Capital sold their stake in the company and the original founder was coming back. So many amazing runs with these. A truly transformative experience. As long as they keep producing this model with 4 lugs, I will keep coming back.

I am so pumped the Elite is back. I put about 380 race miles on the previous Elite and I was worried that Newton had retired the model. I am using these purely for racing (running and tris) and pre-race runs. I put all the heavy training (longer runs) on Distance 8s. As of this post, I have 40 miles on the latest pair of Elites and have already PRed the 10k of an Olympic tri. I replaced the laces with lock laces and have been racing sockless without any blister issues. If I have to be really picky, it does seem to be a little more difficult to shove my feet in while in transition, but a little body glide around the mouth of the shoe remedied that. Awesome shoe and very happy they are back!