Latest thing in low-impact shoes: Nike launches "Lunar" in time for the OIympics

Nike have got some great new running shoes coming out at Olympics time. This heads-up is courtesy of Dwight Cornwell of Gap Coaching, who just bagged second in his age group at the Carslbad 5000: 18:45 at 61.

I caught up with Dwight after our Saturday high-altitude run on Magnolia Road; he was absolutely flying, while I staggered through the first 6 miles at barely above jogging pace, then enjoyed the benefits of the downhill-trending last 6 after my turn-around.

Over breakfast he showed me the new shoes. Dubbed “Lunar Lite” – at the moment, at least – they take advantage of a new super-light foam that not only provides superior cushioning (so they say), but also spreads the load over the whole foot. The sole obviously owes something to the Nike Free, as it flexes in some of the same ways; the uppers, also super-light, seem to be reinforced with some kind of supporting “wire” cage. Dwight is a fan of extreme lightweight shoes, but seems prepared to give up his Mayflies for this new model, on the grounds that it is not only really comfortable and protective, but still manages to transfer power efficiently from the foot to the ground and back.

There’s only a couple of pictures of the new shoe on the Net as they are not on sale yet. Dwight got one of only 90 pre-production pairs. They should be on sale in specialist running stores (only) around July time. There will be a training version and a racing version. No details on price yet. Also bear in mind that the shoe is still under development, and these pictures look slightly different from the “finished” model Dwight was wearing.

The Lunar foam has been trialled in the Nike “Dunk” shoes. SneakerFreaker.com has the technical details, as does Stuff.tv, which also teases: "There’ll be two Apollo trainers available from July – the Apollo Trainer, which is more for day-to-day use, and the Apollo Racer, which is a more serious proposition for middle distance running and will probably make an appearance in the Olympic marathon this summer."