Nike Zegama Trail 2 Introduction
The Zegama 2 trail shoe from Nike marks a significant advancement in Nike’s trail running offerings, addressing past shortcomings to deliver a strong off-road experience.
Continuing the use of the energetic Zoom X midsole midsole that continues to provide the responsive cushioning that runners have come to expect, the Zegama 2 ensures superior comfort and energy return with every stride.
Complementing the midsole and after its success on the Ultrafly, Nike has done the smart thing and added a Vibram MegaGrip outsole, providing unparalleled traction on diverse terrains.
Building on lessons learned from its previous attempts that fell short in the running community where Nikes’s trail offerings often paled in comparison to their acclaimed road shoes, The Zegama 2 looks to rectify past stability issues to deliver a more secure and stable ride.
This latest iteration hopefully represents Nikes’s commitment to enhancing trail running performance, making it a standout choice for runners seeking comfortable and reliable trail shoe offerings.
Nike Zegama Trail 2 Impressions
Initially, my runs with the Zegama 2 were fairly enjoyable, particularly on packed and rolling terrain here the shoes responsive Zoom x foam and vibram outsole provided excellent comfort and traction.
However, my enthusiasm waned when I encountered more technical and rocky terrain. Despite efforts by Nike to control the wild instability of its predecessor, The 2 continues to struggle to provide confident an and secure footing needed on wild terrain.
The shoes overall instability became apparent, leading to me frequently feeling unsettled and unbalanced choosing my routes very carefully on technical terrain.
While suitable as a daily trainer or even for ultra-distance racing on less challenging trails, the 2’s limitation on anything technical makes it suited to only controlled, smoother conditions.
Nike Zegama Trail 2 Protection
The Zegama 2 offers sturdy protection against the rigors of the trail, incorporating a couple features to protect against various terrain hazards.
While the ankle gaiter, although stretching around the ankle, proved somewhat ineffective against smaller debris, it did effectively keep larger junk out.
The shoe’s substantial Zoom x midsole, boasting 36mm of foam in the heel and 32mm in the forefoot, provides ample cushioning that shields against most impacts from below, which provided me with a comfortable and protective ride.
Additionally, a thin TPU protective layer across the toe acts as a reliable bumper, successfully guarding against stubs and impacts.
Although Nike doesn’t explicitly mention a rock plate, the presence of a thin protective layer in exposed areas of the outsole suggests sufficient defense against whatever fierce nastiness the trail wants to thrust at you.
Throughout my runs in the Zegama 2, I didnt experience any discomfort or damage to my feet, confirming its effective protective capabilities over miles and miles of variable terrain.
Nike Zegama Trail 2 Durability
The durability of the shoe is noticeable across its design elements.
The engineered mesh upper has undergone a significant upgrade from the first version, featuring a sturdy single layer construction that has shown minimal signs of wear after logging over 50 miles.
The shift away from the perforated mesh previously used seems like the better choice in terms of durability, resisting snags and abrasion effectively. The reinforced toe skin adds another layer of protection while contributing to the overall robustness of the shoe.
The Vibram MegaGrip outsole, renowned for its durability in various types of footwear, continues to perform flawlessly without any noticeable signs of wear.
The culmination of all theses materials and design elements certainly instills confidence that the Zegama is a dependable shoe for enduring all the conditions the trail has to throw at it.
Nike Zegama Trail 2 Responsiveness & speed
The Zegama 2 showcases impressive responsiveness and speed, thanks to its incorporation of Zoom X foam, renowned for its use in Nike’s highest-performing racing shoes due to its exceptional energy return and responsiveness. This translates into a lively and moderately active ride that feels bouncy and effortless on the trails, while maintaining a plush softness that combats fatigue over long distances.
The shoes rocker geometry further enhances its speed capabilities ,particularly noticeable when navigating down hill and traversing packed, groomed, and rolling trails.
However, the plush nature of Zoom X comes with a trade-off in stability, which was a drawback of the previous version.
To address this, Nike introduced a layer of SR-02 carrier foam around the ZoomX midsole to add some stability.
Despite theses efforts the shoe still exhibits a lot instability due to its narrow width relative to its stack height, making it less stable for technical terrain.
This limitation became evident during my first run on a technical trail, where quick movements and scrambling resulted in frequent ankle twists.
While the Zegama 2 excels in responsiveness and speed on less challenging trails, its instability on technical terrain suggests its better suited for smoother, less unpredictable trails opposite those found in the Basque Country.
Nike Zegama Trail 2 Comfort and fit
The comfort and fit of the Zegama 2 presents a mixed bag experience, despite its true-to-size fit.
The single layer engineered mesh upper gives the shoe a light and breathable appearance, but it conceals a thick liner that retains moisture for an excessively long time, The longest being 12 hours after being outside in the dry Colorado air after a run with a couple stream crossings, and also feels very warm making them better suited for cooler weather runs.
Despite claims of a wider fit, the shoe felt narrow and low in volume, causing my standard width feet to feel constricted and look like the shoe was about to burst at the seams when looking down at my feet.
This was particularly noticeable in the fore foot, where the shallow vertical space left little wiggle room. I am actually surprised that Nike didn’t incorporate the same toe-box design of the Utrafly Trail.
Anyhow, I found that by adjusting the lower lace rows slightly looser alleviated some pressure but compromised the secure fit. The heel, while internally padded for comfort and reducing Achilles pressure, proved to be a little shifty during my outings, especially when running down hill.
Adding a runners loop helped minimize movement but left little lace length for a secure not. Overall, while while the shoe offers plush comfort in certain areas like the heel, it may pose challenges for those with moderate to higher volume feet.
Nike Zegama Trail 2 Conclusions
The Zegama 2 is a real conflicting shoe for me.
There are individual aspects of the shoe that I love like the plush comfort, and liveliness of the midsole, and reliable and sturdy traction of the 4mm lugged Vibram outsole.
However when you put it all together this shoe simply just doesn’t hit the mark for me. I think with a wider platform and toe box this show would be amazing.
While not my first choice I still think I will keep it within arms reach for those longer days over evenly rolling trails. For the rest of the world I think this is a decent choice for ultra running, as long as you like the fit, and isn’t being used for highly technical pursuits.
