Nike ZoomX Zegama - First Look Review
What happens when you take the foam from the world's fastest road running shoes and fuse it with the latest trail shoe innovation?
Bringing Nike’s fastest and lightest super foam to the trail for the first time, the ZoomX Zegama Trail promises cushioning for all day running, along with the grip and stability you need to keep going.
This article covers everything you need to know about the Nike ZoomX Zegama Trail and below we've also included a run test video where our resident product expert and producer Tom Folan lets Flurry Grierson (GB Orienteering Athlete) get his feet into a pair before they were released to share his first run review.
Price: £145
Foot type: Neutral
Weight of men’s: 317.8g
Weight of women’s: 265.8g
Heel drop men’s: 4mm
Heel drop women’s: 3.7mm
Surface: Road
Best for: Racing across tricky off-road terrain, and long-distance trail runs.
Foot type: Neutral
Weight of men’s: 317.8g
Weight of women’s: 265.8g
Heel drop men’s: 4mm
Heel drop women’s: 3.7mm
Surface: Road
Best for: Racing across tricky off-road terrain, and long-distance trail runs.
Here at Pro:Direct running we already sell 3 different Nike Trail shoes over the £100 price mark.
The Wildhorse is a tough and rugged shoe designed to take on the worst the trails can throw at you. The Air Zoom Terra Kiger brings the extra bounce of an Air Zoom unit to the trails, while The React Pegasus Trail is based on Nike's bestselling running shoe of all time (Nike Pegasus) and uses react for an energised and durable ride.
So where does this new offering sit? Well coming in at only £20 more than the Terra Kiger, the Zegama trail offers the kind of response and improved cushioning that lets you run for miles, whether that’s around your local trails, or a 42km loop of the Basque mountainside like the race the shoe is named after.
The first thing I noticed when looking at the shoe is that ankle gaitor at the closure, it is designed to provide a comfortable fit, while ensuring the debris of the trail can’t get inside.
The rest of the upper consists of an engineered mesh vamp for improved breathability and flexibility and protective skins that offer improved durability as well as protection.
The next thing I noticed was the sheer depth of foam underfoot. With an elevated stack of ZoomX underfoot, you have huge amounts of cushioning to soak up the rigours of the trail. ZoomX also has the advantage of being incredibly light, and highly responsive, helping to drive you towards your goal with every stride.
When we get to the outsole, we can see a deep, diverse lug pattern that has deliberately wide spacing for improved traction over technical terrain, Francesco Puppi, pro athlete for Nike explains, “They behave really well on a wide range of surfaces, they are not super specific for one kind of terrain, and I believe this is a great benefit of this shoe”.
It has been difficult to characterise this particular shoe, on the one hand it is named after a famous mountain race, and uses Nikes lightest, and most responsive foam, the foam that they use for all their road racing shoes, so it seems to sit comfortably as a race day trail shoe. On the other hand, that deep stack of cushioning, and the comfort described by Nike pro athlete Cesare Maestri as “I immediately felt at ease with this shoe. The comfort it transmits allowed me to travel many kilometers without any problem” has led me to think that’s it’s a long-distance trail cruiser.
Perhaps for the answer we must go back to Cesare Maestri who also said of the shoe: “it is not easy to define a distance or a surface for which they are optimal: they can be used for any training or trail race depending on the runner's goal”.
So, if you want to cover distance in comfort on the trail, check out the Nike ZoomX Zegama Trail, whether you’re reaching for podiums, or new horizons.
Frequently asked questions
Can you run in the Nike ZoomX Zegama Trail?
Designed for the trails, this is a running shoe that will let you go for miles.
What other shoes are similar to this?
The North Face Vective Enduris is a highly cushioned shoe at the same price, which includes a TPU plate, while the Saucony Xodus Ultra also provides a highly propulsive midsole foam. The Inov8 Terraultra G270 is hard to ignore at this price point with its graphene infused outsole.
Nike ZoomX Zegama Trail
Take your trail runs to the next level.
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