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ON Cloudboom Strike Initial Review: Striking Gold?
Jul 16, 2024
In the video we take a first look at the On Cloudboom Strike, a brand new marathon super shoe with 00:00 Details, Fit and Ride Erin the run, Conclusions and Comparisons
It releases July 11, $280
Samples were provided at no charge for testing purposes with no additional compensation. The opinions herein are entirely the author's
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0:00
Sam from Road Trail Run, we're going to take a look at the cloud boom strike from On today
0:05
$280 and it goes on sale July 11th. So it's a brand new max cushion super shoe from On at 39 a half at the heel, 35 and a half at the forfeit with an innovative slip-in top layer midsoul
0:22
which eliminates the hard strobel board and the sock liner. Of course it has a beautiful on upper
0:29
with plenty of internal padding in a very minimal kind of monomesh type upper
0:35
And On does not skimp on the outsole with a full, really full outsole
0:40
We do come in at 7.18 ounces, 203 grams, a bit heavier than most super shoes
0:46
I've taken them out on the road today in New Hampshire doing some marathon, half marathon pace segments
0:52
I want to give you my impressions of fit, ride, and some comparisons. Stay tuned
0:57
Hello, everybody, Sam from Road Trail Run. going to take a look at the on cloud boom strike, their top, top end racing shoe, which launches
1:05
July 11th, $280. So this is a max cushion in the sense that it's 39 and a half at the heel
1:14
and it has 35.5 at the four foot, so four millimeter drop. So they've really maximized the
1:22
cushioning here within the world athletic standards. But they've gone further on as gone
1:29
further. It weighs 7.18 ounces or 203 grams in my US 8.5 for comparison. The Cloud Boom
1:39
Echo 3, which was 3828 stack height, so quite a bit less at the forefoot, weighed 7.5 ounces
1:52
214 grams. So we've dropped 11 grams. We've gained 1 millimeter at the heel
1:59
and if I do it right, 7.5 millimeters at the four foot and stack height
2:04
But here's the unusual thing because the effective cushion is even more
2:09
Let me pull it out here and you will see. I partially removed it
2:17
This drop-in top mid-sole layer, which is what On calls helium hyperfoam
2:27
Okay, so this drop-in layer, gets rid of what we traditionally see in a shoe as the sock liner and the strobele board
2:38
So the carbon plate or bounce board, as they call it, as you can see there
2:44
and the layer that attaches the upper to the midsole are all one unit
2:51
So that gets rid of the stiff strobele board, which you see in almost all shoes
2:57
except maybe the Evo one from Adidas and the sock liner, which doesn't really add much to cushion
3:06
And here we have a soft, bouncy layer. This foam is somewhat softer than the main midsoul
3:18
which reminds me in pressing, and I'm going to take them for a run
3:21
and give you those run impressions of Light Strike Pro. So when you slip it in
3:27
effectively you get all cushion right to the foot you do have a bit of a fabric on the
3:35
front so you really get the maximum amount of cushion within the legal limit of
3:42
30 of 40 what on is also done and you can see it here and we'll move a bit to the
3:49
upper is they have a molded piece here to hold it in place you can see it
3:54
coming around we have a moderately stiff back of the heel counter similar to what we see in a lot of super shoes
4:03
We have some very nice bolsters on the sides. And then moving to the midfoot, we have an array
4:11
of internal underlays. Here you can really see those underlays on both sides and the bolsters
4:23
which are really decently, decently kind of substantial. They're just two of them
4:30
I've tried them on and they fit true to size, but this is a monomesh type upper which reminds maybe a bit of the older next percent the Hoka Rocket X2
4:44
This isn't a knit type material. It's sort of a single unitary non-stretch material
4:50
You can see here how much the inner slip-in midsoul has you up, and it is cupped, so you're well held in there
5:01
And effectively, what that does, and let me get to my statistics here because I measured all this
5:07
is that you now sit with the plate. There's our plate, right
5:16
You sit at about 22 millimeters below the forefoot. So the plate is at about 22 millimeters below the four foot
5:26
But I would say that's closer to a metaspede edge or a vaporfly than it is to say a metaspede sky Paris where the plate is higher
5:39
But I don't have their exact measurements. Here I can. So 22 millimeters there
5:44
And at the heel, the plate is 14 millimeters below the heel
5:52
So you have plenty of heel cushion. You're not sitting right on, if you will, the
5:56
the plate. So continuing with the upper, you have a bit of a toe bumper here on this
6:05
mainly created by the inner foam midsul, not so much the mesh. You can see we do have a
6:15
bit of an overlay situation. So that's good. I've tried them on they fit real nice as a
6:23
race shoe. We'll talk a bit more about fit when I run them
6:26
here in a minute. But I would say that if you have a slightly wide or higher volume foot, you might
6:33
try a half size up. Now, the tongue is something really elaborate here. Unknown for their uppers
6:40
Look at this. We have sort of a very, very kind of just really light stretch mesh here, not the same as
6:48
the upper. We have padding down the medial side right here. This is kind of a thin
6:56
leatherette type tongue. We have two little pads on the inside. It is not a full gusset
7:05
It is attached. You can see here on the lateral side and the medial side just really stitched up there
7:13
You can see here, maybe if I can tilt it a bit
7:17
you can see padding on the outside. So they lace up real nice
7:21
I've walked around in them. What's the walking around feel like in this shoe
7:26
Well, we want to run them, but the walking around feel is, I would say, really normal
7:32
There's no pronounced feel of the plate. There's no, despite the 4mm drop, there isn't a sense that you're kind of back, back on your heel unless you're running
7:42
However, I do note that it is 4mm drop and it does kind of feel like, feel like kind of flat on the ground, which is perfectly fine
7:53
So I'm going to take them out now for a run. early this morning, a first run and give you those impressions
8:00
But here, just a bit more of the outsole. I didn't show you the outsole
8:04
Plenty of rubber here. Plenty, plenty of rubber on both sides. They didn't skimp on the rubber
8:10
And, you know, that may contribute a bit to the weight here, because we said it's 7.18 ounces, 203 grams, US 8.5
8:19
So about probably 7.4, which is a bit of, heavier than say competitors such as the A6, the vaporfly, and the Evo from Adidas
8:33
But this is a solid, solidly constructed shoe. I'm not seeing this as kind of a one, once in one race and done or minimal kind of durability here
8:47
So it looks really good in that sense. Okay, enough talk. Let's take them for a run
8:52
Let's talk about fit. So I am at my tru-to-size. 8.5 and I'll show you the toe room just a little less than a thumb, my wider foot and a bit more than a thumb on my narrower right foot
9:09
Very very well held This is a race fit There no question about it Don come here expecting kind of soft stretchy stuff The mono mesh does not stretch I would say that most should stay true to size
9:28
If you have a really wide foot, if you think on Tryon, you might get a bit more room here. You might try it
9:36
Lace up's easy. Laces are thin, kind of stringy. They hold, they seem to be holding well, the padding's good
9:47
I'm seeing a little bit of folding here, less so in the other one
9:52
He'll hold excellent a bit, not quite as good on my narrower foot
9:56
but still very, very good, very appropriate for such a shoe. I'm about a mile in
10:03
They're very stable. And what I'm really noticing is the big slab of foam upfoam
10:12
front we've got 14 millimeters down below to the plate so we have you know a good 21 22 above so I'm not feeling the
10:28
plate in the mix which is something I like they do feel like a 4 millimeter drop shoe if there's
10:35
anything so far I'd say I kind of prefer a bit more drop 6 to 8 millimeters in a super shoe but I'm
10:41
going to wind up I'm just warming up right now. So I'm in my warm-up, 940 pace. Feels very nice and normal. Nothing too aggressive here
10:52
but I really notice you easily plunge down into the front. Sort of want to lean forward
11:01
reminding me a bit of the original vapor fly. The rear of the shoe reminds me of the
11:07
Garacarbon, flat, stable, quite linear in feel. There's a lot of bounce off that front piece of insert, supercritical foam
11:22
And so far, I'm not noticing the plate at all. Unusual for a super shoe
11:27
I'm going to keep going. So if you remember the cloud boom echo three, this is a much more forgiving shoe
11:34
Although it is still full-on elite, it is not kind of that rough, rough, firm ride we had before
11:44
I'm not finding it having as much of a rocker as some shoes or toe spring
11:50
Pretty flat on the ground. You really want to plunge down into that deep front section of insert foam
11:57
that's softer than the lower layer to really make these work. Now I'm going to do a bit more at faster pace
12:04
So now I'm getting down into my marathon pace, a bit faster, 820s per mile, 830s
12:13
And I'm really feeling now the plunge forward into that soft foam and the kick of the bounce board
12:23
It's a very steady kind of flat feel, a bit like the gara carbon, kind of marathon
12:34
suitable kind of feel. While there isn't a big toe spring or rocker, I'm feeling a quick kick
12:44
I think as I plunge down into the foam, plenty of four-foot cushioning here
12:52
Kind of unusual for such a shoe. Usually you feel a hump of the plate at midfoot
13:00
Not so here. Really nice. Okay, as I catch my breath, that was a mile
13:04
segment in the 730 paces around 737 738 which is about my half pace on a good day so what did I feel
13:14
wow quick cadence oriented shoe with those bases you get what and I'm I'm a heel
13:22
striker I got plenty of bounce off the front as I said earlier this isn't a sharp
13:29
final toe off it's kind of a mellow bouncy quick final toe off off the front, not like speed roll, for example. Zero feeling that I had a
13:41
plate under there in terms of harshness, but lots and lots of impulse. Very, a teeny little downhill
13:48
very very stable Absolutely feels like a marathon shoe for me given that a heel strike and I more cadence than kind of stride oriented so I think this is sort of equivalent more towards the metaspede edge than the sky
14:07
and it sits a little more cadence oriented for me than the newest vaporfly three also
14:14
there's plenty of cushioning between plate and road so you don't feel that kind of sloppy
14:20
bottoming out feeling, although it's a bit noisy. So the cushion is really good up front and very
14:27
stable at the rear. Plenty, plenty at 39 and a half. Wow, I really like this cloud boom strike
14:35
So I ended up doing three segments of about a mile during my run at my half pace. I'm coming back
14:45
from a busted kneecap in November, so the speed isn't there. But, um, we're going. We're going to
14:50
My knee sure felt good. There's plenty of cushioning. As I said during the run, really what you feel is plunging down into this foam
14:59
You don't have a particularly aggressive rocker. You're relying more on plunging into the foam and a smooth kind of quick cadence roll off the front
15:10
all with no harshness from the plate. They're very, very stable, remarkably so
15:17
And I think that's a tribute to this overlay, which kind of, or molded overlay in here
15:25
which keeps things stable. And also the geometry, while we're not super, super wide on the ground
15:31
we got full rubber and at the heel. The heel hold was good
15:37
I fussed a little bit with the laces, but got it just right. So you want to kind of run a bit and then adjust
15:44
For me, this shoe, so far, and I'm only one run in, kind of takes me back to the original vaporfly, the very first
15:53
vaporfly, where you could find the groove, if you will, and even if when you were tired
16:01
It is kind of flat feeling on the ground. It doesn't have kind of the wild geometry of some
16:09
shoes, and that's something I like. So I think, of course, Helen O'Bori won Boston in this
16:16
in a version of this shoe, one without laces. So it for sure is an elite shoe
16:21
But I think it's a pretty, what I would call, democratic approach to a marathon shoe
16:28
I think folks like me who might, you know, get under 345 if on a very, very good day, maybe 350
16:35
can race this shoe. I certainly will race it for a half. There is so much cushion here at 39.5 at the heel
16:43
35.5 in the front. and the foam is just great. So there's plenty of cushion, a very, very little shock effect
16:54
You do have to drive it. I was conscious of kind of rolling forward into the foam
17:00
but it's a groove that's easy to find. So I think this is a top, top contender here
17:08
not the lightest of super shoes, you know, because we do come in at 7.18 ounces, 203 grams
17:15
and there are others that are lighter, even considerably lighter. I think the only one, and I wouldn't probably run a marathon in it
17:25
that kind of tops it for me is the Evo one from Adidas
17:29
That thing is so light. The rocker is much more pronounced. I think this shoe could benefit from a bit more rocker
17:37
That would be my only criticism. You can see that it's pretty flat
17:42
And then this is where you feel that toe off. impulse that isn't like a sharp thing. It's more like a plunge and roll into the foam
17:54
So overall, honest, done a fantastic job here with this cloud strike. It is a huge contrast to their
18:02
prior marathon-type shoes, the Echo Boom 3, Echo 3, and the ones before, which were very
18:10
firm, very harsh. Even our faster road trail run contributors wouldn't run much more than a 10K in it
18:18
This is a true marathon shoe. So well done on. I'm also going to have a full review
18:25
Hopefully we'll get some more pairs with lots of comparisons. Have a great run. Thank you very much for
18:31
watching. On provided the sample at no cost for this review