Goodbye Streak Lt 3, welcome Streak 6

On Saturday, 14 September, I accomplished a performance which had occupied the top of my to-do-list for too much time: running from home to the beach and covering a 15 km distance. The path is downhill (there is a difference of around 300 meters from the hill where I live to the seaside), so it is not an impossible task. Everything went fine: the weather was not too hot (around 25°), the wind was not too strong and the final time was more than satisfactory (1 hour, 9 minutes and 36 seconds, meaning 4'38" m/km). Actually, one thing went wrong: my old Nike Zoom Streak Lt 3 died. It was a symbolic event, as I used them to cover 1000 km and they decide to retire just after I finalised the purchase of my new Nike Streak 6, which arrived this morning...perfect timing indeed!
So here they are, my brand new Streak 6, bought at the great price of 50 € + 9 € delivery costs.

First impressions: compared to the Lt 3, they are a bit heavier (but still very light, under 200 g), more cushioned, even more breathable, higher and less tight. To better detect the differences, I wore a Streak 6 on my left foot and the old Lt 3 on the right one. I knew that the Lt 3 were "low", but I had never noticed how much! I really appreciated this feature, but lately my heels started complaining after each running session, even the short ones. I expect this not to happen anymore with the new Nike, due to the thickier midsole (something I don't like, though) and the 8 mm heel drop (vs the Lt 3's 4 mm). Also, the Lt 3 were extremely narrow, whereas the Streak 6 provide the foot with more space. I am curious to test the grip, which was excellent in the Lt 3, thanks to a very reactive sole. Last but not least, the color: I didn't mind the blue-orange-black combination of my Lt 3, but the dazzling white-yellow on the new Streak 6 looks really gorgeous. Alas, they will get dirty more quickly. And before I forget: running a prototype of these shoes, Eliud Kipchoge won the Berlin Marathon in 2015 (but he had serious problem with the insoles, a feature that was later improved when he won the London Marathon in 2016).

But what happened to my Lt 3? Well, honestly I hoped to enjoy a ride with them till the end of the spring 2020, but that was definitely wishful thinking. Experts suggest to hang them up after 400 miles, I overran this threshold by more than 250 miles, covering around 1100 km (660 miles) over 1 year. The results? The mesh on the side broke, the sole was completely worn-out on the outside-lower part and partly on the central-upper part, I found out a small hole on the internal cushion of the right shoe, which was getting dramatically bigger day after day. In a nutshell: for this kind of essential, ultra-light, A1 shoes, 1000 km are really too many. It was time to replace them.

Feedback after the first 5 km run in the afternoon: the new Streak 6 fits snugly, the contact of the upper sole with the ground is particularly "soft". They are indeed heavier, and I could feel the increased cushion around the ankle. Running at a 4 m/km pace, I confirm that this version is ideal for tempo runs, but I have the impression that they are comfortable enough for 10 km and half marathon distances, too. When I increased the speed, I felt a little pain on my little fingers, due to their contact with the mesh. I experienced the same with the Lt 3: sometimes my fingers were sored (even with blisters) after 5k tempo runs. Hopefully it won't happen too often with this model.