Adidas Torsion ZX 8000

I've got a mate that I first met at secondary school, I say mate but I think of him more like a step brother. He's Brennan Huff and I'm Dale Doback.

In the decades we've known each other we've had a bit of an obsession with trainers, maybe living abroad and having access to cheaper sources fuelled that but over the years we've had some cool shoes and seen technologies from different manufacturers come and go.

 Anyway, today he gave me a birthday present which was a pair of Adidas ZX 8000's. Now, I never owned a pair of these or any Adidas shoe with their 'Torsion' technology. I wish I did because they are awesome, he had the same pair some 25 years ago which is how long I've been missing out!

I think the the Adidas Torsion system came out in 1988 and was designed to support the midfoot and arch. It's a kind of plastic bar between the forefoot and heel which comes into play during the heel to toe transition in the heel strike running style. I say think, maybe someone from Adidas can qualify that!

 

I guess the fact that the system is still around today says something.

I missed out 25 years ago but thanks to the generosity of a great friend I'll be experiencing them now. Maybe I should try to compile a list of all the trainers I had at school and see what I can find now....