Mizuno Wave Ekiden In-Depth Preview

So after a few weeks of mulling over it, calling stores all over the San Francisco Bay Area to try on a pair and scouring the web for reviews to no avail, I gave in and just ordered a pair of Mizuno Wave Ekidens (actually, two pairs and this turned out to be a good decision) from Road Runner Sports. My main concern was sizing as I feel like racers are more finicky than other running shoes in this area. Road Runner Sports has a 90-day exchange policy even after running in the shoes if you join their VIP status, so there we go.

A little background: My first pair of "real" running shoes were the Mizuno Wave Ronin 2s. 8mm drop semi-racer, about 7 ounces in my size. When I ran 1.5 miles non-stop that first day without the usual knee and shin pain from heel-striking in traditional running shoes that would've stopped me within one mile, I knew that this minimalism and mid foot strike business was going to be for me.

I've tried over ten pairs of shoes since then and the Ronins are still my best fitting and to which I set my gold standard to. The toe-box was roomy which allowed my toes to splay on foot strike to disperse the impact and gain some stability as they should. The light upper allowed wind to rush through and eventually had me running sock less, further encouraging toe splay and enhancing ground feel. 8mm of heel drop was lower than the 12mm found in traditional running shoes which helped me transition towards minimalism and mid-foot striking. Cushioning was firm, but on the softer side of firm. After a year I've developed a more solid mid-foot strike and have been most comfortable in heel drops 6mm and lower. So the search was on for a new lightweight racer with medium-firm cushioning for 5K races.

Got my Ekidens last night and the first thing I noticed: they didn't fit like my Ronins. The toe box was not nearly as wide as my Ronins and even worse, the roof of the toe box was uncomfortably low, so that it felt claustrophobic if I bent my toes up.

Lower profile of the Ekiden (right). Toe box roof felt very cramped after wearing the Ronin 2s (left).
It's like looking at a slick Corvette parked next to a dune buggy.

Note the wider footprint of the Ronin versus the Ekiden...that's one-half size up.

Top view. The last looks straighter but it didn't feel much like it when worn.

The heel fit felt fine and the midfoot was a little tight to the point that I could see that the shoelaces closer to the ankle was stretched MUCH further apart than the laces closer to the toes.

This gave me a hint as to the problem. 1) It was too small (even though I ordered it the same size as the Ronins) and 2) the laces were set up to be too tight. Good thing I also ordered an extra pair half a size up, just in case. This one was straight across the laces and roomy enough in the toe box. However, now it was too loose and sloppy in the mid foot and arch. As of now I still haven't gotten a chance to actually run in my Ekidens, but I have put the smaller "correct" size on several times which I believe has stretched it out a little. I've also re-laced it to allow more room in the toe box. This seems to have helped significantly.

My lacing (note "under-over" and ankle lock)

Original lacing (note the "over-under" lacing
of the  top lace)

Further enhancing my suspicions that the Ekidens run small, I compared the length of the shoes from the heel to the toe.

Same sized.

Ekiden one-half size larger.

Of course, what's important is how it feels on the inside, as one upper may be thicker than the other, the toe spring may be tricking your eye, etc. For now, just from feel, I would say the Ekidens run 1/4 size small after stretching out from a few wears. I've decided to keep the smaller pair and my hope is that they will stretch out to normal size once I've actually run in them. I do recall my Ronins stretching out once they were broken in.

Enough drama about the sizing. I will get into the actual cushioning, springiness and performance, etc. of the shoe in a future review once I've put miles on the shoe, but I can tell you about the construction. First thing I noticed in that regards: the ridiculously thin tongue.

This is certainly one way to save weight.

I was kind of shocked they actually tried this, but it IS a dedicated 5K-10K racer, I guess. It's folded up on itself a few times when I've put it on and I'll have to see if it slips during running. Or maybe it'll just cling onto my sweat and solve the problem.

"Oh, you wanted an insole? Yeah, I bet
you'd like me to stop cattle prodding
you, too, huh? MAN UP, YOU."

The shoe weighs a measly 4.6oz in size 9 and they've done several things to achieve this weight. The other trick is that there's no real insole, a la the Mizuno Wave Universe 4, the most dedicated racer in Mizuno's lineup. It's just some white felt.

One very weird thing: there's this piece of plastic film that I think is supposed to be some kind of stabilizer sewn underneath the roof of the toe box. It's plastic, it's noisy, it's uncomfortable and I'm guessing it isn't necessary. I'm hoping it won't be an issue when running. I shoved my camera into the toe box to take a picture of it.

Wut. Is. This.

Thin upper + visible backlight = weight savings!

The thin mesh upper feels surprisingly comfortable though not as smooth as the liner in the Ronin 2s. I don't expect any blisters running sockless, but again, I look forward to confirming.

The ankle collar is a faux leather thing. They feel comfortable so far, but only time and a bleeding achilles will tell. There is a heel counter present and I would describe it as half the stiffness of the Ronin's, just as I was hoping.

Not the gray thing. The white thing at the
bottom is the "Wave plate."

I think other than the Universe, I've never seen a Mizuno lacking in the company's proprietary Wave plate. While it's labeled as such on the bottom, I don't buy it that this is a Wave plate. I've never seen a white one and so far I don't really feel it in the shoe, either.

So far the Ekidens appear to live up to the hype as a middle ground between the true minimalist Universe and the transitional racer Ronins. The sole feels like a 5-6mm drop as advertised, it's flexible and can be folded into itself like the universe but it is stiffer as I would prefer it. The weight is also just in between the two shoes. I look forward to coming up with a review once I've put some miles on them and for now, if you're looking to purchase a pair, do consider ordering half a size up if you don't like your running shoes tight.