Finally I’m back in the UK after what feels like a long stint training and racing in the US. Back to nice bread, Robinson’s squash and narrow roads. It’s amazing how strangely reassuring it is to have Radio 1 on in the car (yes, I’m still pretending that I’m the target demographic).

The races since my last blog went really well. On both occasions I had to contend with tough fluctuations in pace, providing welcome practice for the unpredictability of summer racing.

I raced the 3000m at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston, running 7.47.09. The promised early pace never materialised, and as the leading four African athletes pushed on to run their last mile in 4 minutes, I was left in no mans land leading a second group – until the last 200m when I was punished for my generous pacemaking! The crowd were amazing, and the atmosphere was incredible for a relatively small number of people. It feels like they’re right on top of you! It was also a new experience for me to run in an arena with huge posters of myself everywhere! Very surreal. And thank goodness for photoshop.

For the next few days, I stayed in Boston to meet with various New Balance departments about new products. The meeting with the shoe team was the most exciting – so much hard work and technical expertise has gone into the latest range of New Balance shoes – they’re incredible. It feels like as athletes we’ve really had (and continue to get) an opportunity to give our input during development directly to the designers, and the choices of shoes we have available to us for all the different elements of our training are fantastic. In fact, I now have in my possession a pair of racing flats lighter than my spikes!

From there it was a return to New York for the historic Millrose Games, taking place for the first time at the Armory. I raced in the 5000m, which prompted several people to ask me if I was the pacemaker! The race itself was set up for Bernard Lagat to set a new American record of 13.07, so needless to say the race was tough from the start. The pace fluctuated early on, and a few 62s 400s took their toll on my legs later on! I passed 3km in 7.57 after a few steadier laps, and glanced up to see 10 laps remaining. Obviously I knew how many laps were involved in an indoor 5000m, but nothing prepares you for the constant turning! I was pushing hard, and finished 6th in 13.22.44, putting me 4th on the UK all-time list, and making me dizzy.

On Sunday I had a bit of time after my run in Central Park, and had been told about the Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridien, a cult “secret” hidden in the lobby of one of NYs luxury hotels. Despite the burger in the lobby bar being over $20, the Burger Joint serves (allegedly) the best burger in midtown for around $6. Its menu consists of burger, cheeseburger, fries and drinks. It’s hidden behind a dull brown curtain in the lobby, and has bare wooden floors and basic diner-style booths. The only way you would know it was there is if you peer down a narrow corridor next to the reception desk and see a neon burger. There are no other signs, but the queue at lunchtime tells you something is going on! I really felt like I had ‘discovered’ something, despite it being all over the internet, and the burger was fantastic! Well worth a visit, and the perfect end to my US sojourn.

We’re serving up two great deals on tennis shoes the ENTIRE month of February! Stop by and pick up some 655′s for $54.95 (originally $74.95) or 1004′s for $89.95 (originally $114.95)! Just in time for a new season of tennis. Come in while supplies last! {PRINT}

The MT110AK (Anton Krupicka) and WT110BE (Brandy Erholtz)

It’s a good problem to have, actually: renowned ultramarathoner and New Balance Outdoor Ambassador Tony Krupicka, whose habit of — shall we say — ‘customizing’ his shoes has become something of a trademark, suddenly finds himself with nothing left to change.

“There’s nothing to tweak on them. All my tweaks were designed into them so there’s nothing to cut off, nothing extra.” explains Tony, speaking by phone from his home in Colorado, “You’ve seen the shoe, there’s not a lot extra going on with it. It’s perfect.”

If Tony sounds satisfied with the new 110 trail racing flat, then he’s due some of the credit, as well. The 110 represents not just an update to the popular 101, but more than three years of ongoing collaboration between Tony, fellow ultra runner Erik Skaggs and the New Balance design team in Lawrence, Massachusetts.

“Basically, I see the 110 as the culmination of working closely with the design team for the past three years, first starting with the 100. When I first got the samples of the (NL-1) last and, eventually, the first prototypes a couple of years ago, I was super excited about someday using that last and those concepts — 4mm drop, snug fitting but with a broad forefoot — in a shoe with more protection and traction so that it would be a viable mountain-racing tool. The 110 is absolutely that shoe.”

The vision for what would ultimately become the 110 was initially articulated in a series of emails between the New Balance Design Team, Tony and Erik, beginning in early 2010. Tony’s request that the shoe should ‘fall somewhere between the 101 and NB Minimus’ was followed immediately by another email suggesting that the 110 should feel like the ‘Trail version of the NB Minimus Road’, retaining the blown rubber with a meatier sole that would allow for racing on a variety of surfaces. In June 2010, New Balance Designer Brian Best and Product Manager Bryan Gothie responded with a series of sketches exploring their own ideas for the shoe that Erik and Tony had begun to describe. Already, the 110 was taking form.

Designer Brian Best’s sketch of the approach to the 110

Tony’s response to the first sketches: “I am totally psyched on this shoe”.

Feedback from Erik and Tony continued throughout the Summer of 2010, as each provided considerable input on the two directions that the team was pursuing for the upper: a traditional upper and a more experimental approach using a perforated synthetic. Ultimately, the synthetic approach was used in the 110 — in no small part because of the athletes’ perspective that it ‘looks crazy and is awesomely effective’. Brian’s sketches of the upper suggest that he thought so, too:

Designer Brian Best’s sketchbook showing early explorations of the 110′s synthetic upper

When the first prototypes arrived in November 2010, Tony and Erik each had similar feedback — they both suggested that the rock plate be made stiffer, and Tony suggested that a small piece of rubber be added to the medial side of the heel (this feature is visible in the 110). They also both made the same unusual request: that New Balance deliver a pair that they could use in the upcoming North Face 50. Ultimately, with only the size 9.5 prototypes in hand, Tony resorted to desperate measures.

“I was just so excited about this shoe that I was willing to wear the sample size. I did a 50-mile long run in the 9.5′s with my toes taped and I was ready to do that last year for TNF Challenge because I really liked the shoe.”

Brian Best’s later sketches show the lines of the 110 beginning to take on a more defined form

Throughout the Winter and Spring of 2011, the calls, emails and in-person work sessions at the New Balance Design Center in Lawrence continued – resulting in a series of tweaks geared towards fine-tuning the performance of the shoe. Erik advocated for a slightly softer ride in the forefoot, which the team accomplished with a combination of foam and design changes to the lug pattern. Tony also paid particular attention to the durability of the lugs because “that’s where I really destroy shoes with kind of a midfoot/forefoot strike”.

By early June 2011, there was consensus among the team that the 110 was, indeed, a true next-generation trail racing flat — durable, comfortable, and suited to any surface you were likely to encounter (and, with the sticky rubber, a few that you weren’t). As for the fit, Erik described the 110′s estimated break-in time as “about as long as it takes you to take them out of the box and lace ‘em up.”

Tony hits the trails above Boulder in the MT110s

So what goes in (and comes out of) the shoe that Erik and Tony would (and did) build?

A completely new last: The 110 was built on the new NL-1 natural running last – the same last used in the development of NB Minimus. This introduces a lower 4mm drop — the 101 had a drop that measured 10mm — and positions the foot in a more neutral position, encouraging a mid-foot strike. As critically, the NL-1 last features a wider forefoot that allows the foot to expand laterally on impact.

“This one just fit my foot a lot better. That new last holds your foot down, it doesn’t move over the platform, which is sometimes what I had a problem with in the 100 and the 101″, says Erik. “It’s a very snug fit between the upper and the (PL-1) last.”

Less between your foot and the trail: The 110 features much lower ‘stack heights’ – the measure of the distance between the foot and the ground. The result of the shape of the NL-1 last and the absence of any insert, the lower stack heights (19mm in the heel and 15mm in the forefoot) improve ground feel and reduce weight underfoot.

“I guess I just convinced [Bryan and Brian] to go for it. I don’t use [rubber in] that part of my foot a lot and it cuts a lot of weight from the shoe. The rubber’s the heaviest part of the shoe, so if you reduce that you’re going to reduce the weight a lot” said Tony.

The redesigned, minimal outsole of the 110

A smarter outsole: Learning from the wear patterns on Tony and Erik’s prototypes, the 110 features a minimal, lightweight outsole that uses rubber only where it’s needed most. A thin plate of Rockstop protects the forefoot from punctures and disperses shock, all while maintaining ground feel.

“The rubber is a little bit softer, which makes it a lot stickier” says Erik, “and the diamond lug shape pattern just seems to work really well on anything from rocky terrain to loose, decomposed granite, which is a lot of what I run on around here, even to roads. The shoe transitions really well to pavement and most people are running at least a little road to get to the trails.”

The perforated synthetic upper of the 110

An upper that wraps the foot: We designed the 110 upper with just two pieces of material, minimizing seams and delivering a breathable, luxurious feel with lightweight construction. The fully-redesigned heel counter is wrapped in the shoes’ plush inner lining to minimize irritation and abrasion.

In keeping with Tony’s specs, the upper should stand up to some serious abuse. “It’s just super bombproof; it just never wears out. I’ve put 500-600 miles on the 110 and it just doesn’t go anywhere. It’s just a really solid shoe. I’ve had issues with that in the past where I blow out the uppers on shoes way before the midsole or outsole is gone and that’s super frustrating.”

Killer looks: The perforated synthetic upper ‘looks crazy’, says Tony. Each color is unique to a New Balance Outdoor Ambassador, and pays homage to the venues where these athletes train — and road tested the 110 from prototypes to final product: Green Mountain (Boulder) for Tony, Siskiyous Mountains for Erik, Evergreen(Colorado) for Brandy Erholtz and Bandera (Texas) for Liza Howard.

The finishing touch: a ‘subtle message’ from some of the fastest trail runners on earth that there’s always someone you’re chasing. Mirrored text perforated into the sole of every pair of 110s leaves a message in the dirt reminding those who follow you to:

Sketch of the 110 sole ‘subtle message’ by New Balance Designer Brian Best

All told, the 110 represents not only the final output of three years of extensive design and testing on some of the toughest trails in North America, but also something of a first for Tony: his 10.5′s are exactly the same as yours.

“(My shoes come) off the shelf and out of the box. It’s probably the first shoe since I started running ultras that that’s the case that I don’t do anything to it.”

American Craftsmanship at its finest! Our franchise 990 series will provide the perfect blend of cushioning and stability for the most serious runners.

Just some previous comments paying homage to the legendary 990 series:

anonymous  5 out of 5

For the entire month of January, New Balance Nashville is partnering up with EmPower Wellness to help you meet your New Year’s resolutions! To help you, get 3 FREE half-hour personal training sessions + one week of free gym membership to the FAC when you purchase $150 at New Balance Nashville stores! (Valid on purchases between Jan. 1st – Jan. 31st of 2012. Must present receipt to redeem offer to EmPower Wellness)

ABOUT EMPOWER WELLNESS

EmPower Wellness is a faith based company whose mission is used as a  road map from which we weigh our actions and decisions, and states our purpose as a company.

• To create value and make a difference…
• To inspire moments of optimism and happiness…
• To restore hope through encouraging communities of people to make healthy choices by incorporating health and fitness into their lives.

“Our vision is to EmPower individuals to understand the significance and power in aligning the body, mind and spirit so they may be balanced and strong while creating a healthy lifestyle for themselves.”   -Keelan Hastings

Staff

Keelan Hastings Founder and CEO

Keelan Hastings has been in the health and fitness industry for over 15 years. He started EmPower Wellness while he was attending the University of North Alabama. It began as a One-on-One personal training company working with individual clients. They now have grown into a full service Wellness Company specializing in Corporate Wellness planning while continuing to stick to there roots with personal training.Mr. Hastings has a B.S. in CIS from the University of North Alabama and is a certified personal trainer with the I.S.S.A.I believe getting and staying physically fit is a lifestyle. This is not done overnight or for just a few months out of each year.  It requires a conscience effort on a daily basis to stay active and aware of your food choices.“Our vision is to EmPower individuals to understand the significance and power in aligning the body, mind and spirit so they may be balanced and strong while creating a healthy lifestyle for themselves.”

Mark Simons Head Trainer

30 years law enforcement experience. 20 years working in training division while assigned to the street with the philosophy that a trainer is more effective on the street putting the tactics to the test. Mark was certified in Defensive and Arrest tactics, teaching officers how and when to use force. This included punches, kicks, blocks, and take down holds. He helped develop the scenario based training that is now widely endorsed by by the State of Wisconsin Training and Standards. He taught police veterans, and rookies, as well as citizens. He was recognized by his department for his contributions by receiving the prestigious, “Officer of the Year” award in 2009, being cited as “the most influential person on the entire department.” His other accomplishments include being the point man on the tactical team for 10 years, a Firearm instructor, Taser instructor, Vehicle contact instructor, Professional Communication instructor, and Use of Force Report writing instructor, assisting officers in writing reports involving critical incidents. Mark spent half of his career in uniform and the other half in the detective bureau assigned to the Warrant Division, where he also served on the US Marshal Fugitive Task Force, investigating and apprehending violent felony offenders.

Courtney Ferrell CFT Trainer Administrator

Courtney Ferrell graduated with a B.S. in Sports and Exercise Science at Trevecca Nazarene University and has been an ISSA Certified Personal Trainer for 5 years. As a collegiate softball player, Courtney was dedicated to training hard and being a team player. She has brought these valuable aspects into her professional personal training career.“Being a personal trainer is a passion of mine. I love every minute of pushing people past their expectations to show them what their body can really do.”And Courtney knows how hard losing weight can be. Upon graduation from college, Courtney had gained enough weight to become uncomfortable with the way she looked. She knew it would take changing her lifestyle to achieve the results she wanted. She knows how hard it is to lose the unwanted weight; moreover, how hard it is to keep it off. That’s where teamwork comes in to play…the relationship between client and trainer is invaluable.“Together, we work as a team to achieve the client’s goals. When my client feels they can’t give any more, it’s my job to support and encourage them; pushing them further than they thought they could go. “Having a personal trainer creates the atmosphere of camaraderie that some people need and want to get the most out of their workout. Plus, who doesn’t like to work out with a buddy?!” At EmPower Wellness, Courtney serves as Trainer Administrator and Education Coordinator. She oversees all aspects of education; teaching the EmPower Wellness Trainers on the unique EmPower Wellness method of training and designing the classes offered to our clients.

ABOUT FRANKLIN ATHLETIC CLUB

• Print your Shoesdays deal for January: ATLANTA  |  BIRMINGHAM |  MEMPHIS  |  NASHVILLE

Here’s the first part of our Shoesday deal for the entire month of January.

You’ve been there: wash your socks, and seemingly lose one on the way to put them in your sock drawer or somewhere in the dryer. Let us help! Buy any insert in our stores and we’ll GIVE you a package of socks! BOOM. The case of the mysterious missing sock is solved.

*Cannot be combined with any other offer. Socks value up to $13. Not redeemable on Strassburg sock. Not redeemable for cash. While supplies last. You know the drill

It’s the New Year. Why not start it off by turning over a new leaf?

For the entire month of January, New Balance Atlanta is pairing up with Adrenaline Fitness to offer you gym enrollment for only $1 + first month FREE with ANY purchase at a New Balance Atlanta store! (Valid on purchases between Jan. 1st – Jan. 31st of 2012. Must present receipt to redeem offer at Adrenaline Fitness)

For current Adrenaline Fitness members that make ANY purchase at our New Balance Atlanta stores, you’ll get two weeks of FREE access to CrossFit AND Fusion training + 10% off your ENTIRE purchase! (Valid on purchases between Jan. 1st – Jan. 31st of 2012. Must present receipt to redeem offer at Adrenaline Fitness. Must present proof of gym membership to redeem 10% off offer at New Balance Atlanta stores)

As the Southeast’s most innovative training and group fitness company, their passion at Adrenaline Fitness is providing their members with the facilities, programs, motivation, and expertise needed to achieve and maintain your life-long fitness goals. With three group fitness studios, state-of-the-art cardio equipment, and a large functional training floor, they will change the way you look and feel about fitness.

Adrenaline Fitness is proud to offer Les Mills group fitness classes and Zumba, as well as their own unique offerings like hot yoga, suspended training, and fighter-inspired training. Excellent classes are a passion for their instructors and a key service of Adrenaline Fitness. With over 150 classes a week, we know you will find programs that challenge, inspire, and keep you coming back for more!

—————————————————————————————————————————————————

To re-cap:

Non-Adrenaline Fitness members get:

• Enrollment for $1
• FREE month of gym membership with ANY purchase (Valid on purchases between Jan. 1st – Jan. 31st of 2012. Must present receipt to redeem offer at Adrenaline Fitness)

Current Adrenaline Fitness members get:

• 10% off ENTIRE purchase with keytag or any proof of membership
•  Two weeks of FREE access to CrossFit AND Fusion training (Valid on ANY purchases between Jan. 1st – Jan. 31st of 2012. Must present receipt to redeem offer at Adrenaline Fitness. Must present proof of gym membership to redeem 10% off offer at New Balance Atlanta stores)

**ALL OFFERS EXPIRE 2-29-12**

Anton Krupicka explains the philosophy behind the development of NB Minimus.

Chris Wawrousek: “Obviously, we’re super excited about NB Minimus as a design group. [New Balance Product Manager] Bryan Gothie had this funny story about how he met Tony [Anton] and Kyle [Skaggs, also of Team New Balance] at a running shop. When Bryan came back, he started talking about these guys and the great things that they were doing. We all got super excited to have the opportunity to create product for such elite caliber athletes with direct input from them.

This is sort of a great inspiration point for us to jump off and really try to address some of the things that we were doing in trail running. Tony and Kyle represented a different breed of ultrarunning. We had done some ultramarathon research three or four years prior to working with these guys, and the shoes

that they were driving towards were these really heavy, big shoes, and the guys that were doing it were grueling along – not at all what you think of when you think about the typical marathon runner. Then guys like Tony and Kyle came to the sport and brought this actual racing mentality with them, so to get to work with them was really pretty exciting.”

Tony Krupicka: “For me, I was with a different shoe company before New Balance, and I’ve always been a huge shoe dork, really into the design. As a runner, it’s the one piece of gear that really matters the most. So when I met Bryan in Colorado Springs, he was genuinely interested in what Kyle and I had to say about the shoes that he had with him.

Once I signed a contract, he started sending boxes, and Kyle and I were just beating up these shoes. Bryan would ask us “What do you guys think?”, and we told him what we thought and, for the first time for me, these guys were actually listening to us and cared about what we thought. So right from the beginning, I had this sense that if I told them something, they would genuinely consider it, rather than just saying “OK” and doing whatever they wanted. So it’s been great, and I’ve really enjoyed working with them.”

NewBalance.com: So, what was the point at which Tony’s input began to shape the product development of the MT100 and later NB Minimus?

CW: “Well, the 100 started out as this shoe that we wanted to make specifically for Tony and Kyle and really aim it at racing. As so often happens, in the broader market it was almost too early for us to come out with something quite so extreme. As a designer, it was disappointing, because the feedback we were getting from Tony and Kyle was very specific – things like the drop in the last. But these were things that the broader consumer base wasn’t really ready for.

Then all of a sudden, you had Born to Run [Christopher McDougall's best-selling book about long-distance running], which created this whole new energy around this idea that we weren’t really meant to run on wedges. Which is what we had heard from Tony and Kyle before but weren’t ready to leverage yet. So, a lot of what we had talked about with Tony and Kyle and the origins of the 100 – the 100 itself didn’t really live up to all of those ideas, but when we were able to free ourselves up and do NB Minimus, a lot of the seeds had been planted with the 100.”

NB.com: Tony, we’ve talked before about some of the “customization” you did to the 100s you were running in. How much did that influence the development of NB Minimus?

TK: “Well, the 100 was the first shoe that I had a lot of input on, and I had been learning a lot about shoe design and construction along the way. There were things I wasn’t happy with, like the way that the upper integrated with the platform on the 100, so I ended up trying to fix that by, basically, trimming down the platform. That was really my motivation for the carving I was doing on the 100s, and even the 790s. Basically just going for that flatter drop between the heel and the forefoot. Like Chris said, we were really just a year or two early with the 100 in terms of being able to reach the consumer – not everyone was excited yet about having a really flat, flexible shoe.

NB Minimus, though, is really a whole different shoe line than the 100 series, which is nice because it really allows you to get kind of radical, as opposed to sticking with conventional shoe designs. ”

CW: “Certainly the conversation – from where we were with the 100 to when we started the NB Minimus – the range of what was acceptable footwear just became so much broader. Years ago, we would talk about things like “Can we move that heel crashpad 2mm forward, or is that going to impact the medial rollover too much?” Now, the scope of the conversations you can have about shoes has totally changed to this really open, really fun area to work in.”

NB.com: So, is this an iterative process in which Tony gets a new pair of shoes and gives feedback, and Chris’ team takes that feedback and makes adjustments? How does the actual collaborative process work?

TK: “I got some pretty early prototypes of the NB Minimus, and all they were was this rudimentary sole with the upper from the 100 so that I could run in them. Actually, even before that I got what was really just the last. Really, it was more like a slipper. That was super early in the process. We hadn’t even really been thinking about the shoe yet, we just had a last. From there, they sent me some CAD drawings, and I would comment on them and send them back. So from my end, it’s been pretty integrated between us from the start.”

CW: “Sometimes in my mind, it’s hard to separate out what NB Minimus is today from this whole field of research that we’ve been doing for a number of years, since our Advanced Concepts team identified natural running as a focal point. Those early prototypes were really a test bed for understanding What does it mean if you change the heel to toe drop from 6mm to 3mm to 0mm, and how does that change people’s running?”

Prototype used to evaluate effect of heel lift on running performance (4mm heel lift)

NB.com: To what extent, Tony, did you have to learn to speak a designer’s language to play a more substantial role in the product development process?

TK: “Well, I’ve learned about durometers and upper materials and that sort of thing, but I really just tell the designers what I’d like to see and how I would like it to feel on my foot and perform. Through osmosis you end up learning what these terms are. ”

CW: “Tony talks really well about shoes. It’s pretty clear what he’s after.”

NB.com: Is the feedback you’re giving, Tony, geared toward making a better shoe for racing, for training or just for running?

TK: “For me, it’s typically a racing shoe. I end up, for the most part, training and racing in the same shoe. That’s changed somewhat with NB Minimus – and this is really tied to my philosophy on the barefoot running movement – because for me it’s not so much about an all-or-nothing approach.

If I train on a daily basis in a shoe like NB Minimus, which is super-flexible and really low to the ground, then that allows me to race in a shoe that’s really light as well. For my purposes, on the terrain I cover, NB Minimus might not be quite protective enough. Training in them on a daily basis allows me to race in a shoe that’s much lighter than I might otherwise.

The line itself is sort of split: The 100 is kind of a racing shoe that I’ll use for long runs, and the NB Minimus is something I’ll use more as a training tool. Over the last few months, I’ve begun to gear my feedback to the two shoes with that in mind. ”

From our Shoesday family to yours, we wish you the happiest of holiday seasons! May the New Year be prosperous!

Be sure to take advantage of our 12 Deals of Christmas while there’s still time! All deals expire 12/31/11