IN FOCUS: Nike Joyride
Sometime yesterday, Nike unveiled their latest addition to their running family, the Nike Joyride. Over the past few months, our friends from Nike talked about the shoe but could not officially divulge the new cushioning platform to the public. The Joyride aims to help keep legs fresh by delivering a personalized undefoot experience with great impact absorption in a surprisingly light, energy retruning package.
Nike Joyride is a Nike-only, proprietary cushioning system made of thousands of TPE beads (a copolymer of plastic and rubber; result of testing 150 different materials during trialing)
The beads are placed within zonally-tuned pods, which allows the foam to expand in all directions (we call this multi-dimensional displacement). You’ll see different pods aimed at the various Joyride models.
The system creates a dynamic footbed that forms to your foot and feels personalized to you.
Lastly, the pod scale is based on how the foot strikes the ground when in motion. The heel pod, for example, is bigger to absorb impact, while those at the forefoot are prepared to facilitate a smooth transition forward (in short, you’ll need more beads by the heel vs the beads needed by the toe)
Where You’ll See It First:
While there are a bunch of Joyride models, the first pair is the one you see here — the Nike Joyride Run Flyknit. The shoe is meant for all types of runners, providing soft cushioning and smooth transition helps ease impact. The Nike Joyride Run Flyknit’s global release is on August 15. Check out the other colorways of the Joyride Run Flyknit as well as the other Joyride models set to release this year.
The Nike Joyride NSW Optik is designed specifically for women, and is notable for its sleek lace-less upper and premium materials. The leather heel and collar melds with a molded skin on the upper for a playful mix of traditional craft and modern detailing. Additional heel height gives the Joyride platform a unique stance
The Nike Joyride NSW Setter stands apart thanks to a unique upper with rubber eyelets and stability patches. Tuned to keep the foot secure atop the ultra-plush, three-pod tooling, the Setter is “the muscle car” of the Nike Joyride family
With two bead pods, the Nike Joyride Kids Nova is engineered for the unique needs of young athletes. The cushioning helps maximize impact protection, while the stretchy upper minimizes on-and-off distractions. A midfoot strap secures the foot for all types of play.
The Nike Joyride NSW has a tuned two-pod configuration of Nike’s latest cushioning innovation to enable 360-degree comfort.