Nike's Alphafly 4 goes wide with a lighter foam and a lower price

Nike widened sales of the Alphafly 4 marathon racing shoe on October 29, after a limited run sold only on Nike.com since September 17. The shoe costs 280 dollars, fifteen less than the Alphafly 3's launch price of 295.

Nike says the new ZoomX LT midsole foam is up to seventeen percent lighter than standard ZoomX with about eight percent more energy return, and that the finished shoe returns ten percent more energy and weighs five percent less than its predecessor, measured on a men's size 8.5. The carbon fiber Flyplate keeps its signature forefoot scoop but sits inside a reshaped foam stack, and the two forefoot Air Zoom units now run in separate chambers with less surrounding plastic. A new seamless Atomknit upper adds zoned midfoot cables, a more breathable toe box and an integrated heel unit, and a new Fast Shot outsole is built for wet footing.

Nike's Emily Farina, a senior principal in its running footwear group, said the goal was "to create a shoe that helps athletes feel more confident." The company's own release frames the shoe against results run in earlier Alphafly models, from Kelvin Kiptum's marathon world record to Eliud Kipchoge's sub-two-hour run, and pitches the new version at marathoners from elite racers to first-time personal-best chasers.

Our view: a flagship racer that gets lighter and cheaper at once is the rare shoe story that is actually good news for the runners buying it.

Sources: Nike; Believe in the Run; Fueled by LOLZ.