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Performance Teaser: Reebok Zig Encore

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I apologize for the delay with the Reebok Zig Encore… playing in these just wasn’t happening while my ankle was injured.

Hit the jump for more…

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Energy return my a**… these feel like you’re running around with 2×4’s attached to your feet. The foam is very firm, and not in the forgiving way. These have one of the densest foams I’ve come across in a while. Yes, I do really enjoy foam based cushions… I never said I enjoyed them all.

What really hurts the overall performance is their construction. Sitting just above the dense Zig Tech midsole is a TPU plate that runs full length across the shoe. SprintFrame is built and constructed very similar but there is one thing that the Reebok Zig Encore doesn’t have…

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adidas provides you with a PU insole. PU stands for Polyurethane, the same stuff the Air Jordan III through IX’s have as their midsole. Polyurethane is a type of foam that is fairly impact absorbent and can be resistant to strain for a certain period of time unlike Phylon… although Phylon is a bit more comfortable and has a much longer life span – Polyurethane cracks & crumbles after so many years.

Reebok, for whatever reason, decided to provide you with a sponge like insole. This feels great… if you were to have a regular base sitting beneath your foot. Since the Zig Encore has plastic directly under foot, you sink into the soft sponge like insole and hit the TPU plate upon every foot strike… this is why I couldn’t play in them with my ankle in the shape it was in…

I will be swapping out the insole with a PU version to see if that helps… it seems to work with adidas sneakers so I figured I’d give it a shot and see if it helps at all.

12 comments
  1. Did you say ZigEncore? Who would ever want to have an encore of the ZigSlash? Oh yea, John Wall did. I’ve actually heard rumors that he could be offered a contract from Under Armour when his current contract ends.

  2. Zig ballin shoes are GARBAGE. the first ones had tread like a horse shoe at the tip/ rim. They were like slippery machines & your darn right there stiff. The cross trainer on the other hand are comfortable but the ballin kix stay away from them. They need to direct the next Container from China of Zigs to the recycle bin and make some Questions & Answers out of them.

  3. DOPE – I picked up the PYS questions. Got the last reissue 2008 Answer 1 DMX in my size but are tooo large need to a full size down if they release those this year should be cool THX for the heads up – You kmnow who’s supposed to sell them? i used to ball in the dmx crosstrainer black / silver foil. I ran those down to the the blue airbags.

  4. oh yeah probably gonna pick up the “Blast” now there on sale. Those are actually comfortable and the tread is soft so should have good traction.

  5. Scrolling uo I saw the Pic – Does that say Zig Nano? Poor Wall, he go payed but also got screwed. Theres a guy at my gym who wears these, he’s a young kid and moves slow I told him it was the shoes.

  6. the foam on these shoes is called 3D Ultalite, they had this technology since the answer 2’s, i just don’t know what it’s made from.

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