If you’re a neutral runner looking for reliable cushioned comfort, you can’t go wrong with the latest iteration of the New Balance 1080.
First introduced in 2011, the 1080 is New Balance’s light-weight, high-cushioned training shoe for neutral runners. Having run more than 650 miles in a pair of v13s, I tested the latest model, the 1080 v14, to see if the subtle upgrades improve on what, after 13 years of development, was already a great running shoe.
Men’s Fitness verdict
The 1080 has an impressive pedigree and v14 continues its upward trajectory. It may be a little heavy but comfort and cushioning levels are second to none.- One of the most comfy, well-cushioned shoes around
- After 13 updates this is a well refined shoe
- Improved stability and breathability
- (Justifiably) expensive
- On the heavy side
Why you can trust Men’s Fitness
We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Our team of reviewers includes experienced product testers, PTs and fitness writers – as well as the core MF team – who know exactly what sets the best products apart from the rest. Find out more about how we test. Steve Wright has been competitively racing on the road, track and cross-country for more than 40 years. He competes at all distances from 5K up to marathon, having raced the London, Berlin and Boston marathons over the past two years.
Is the New Balance 1080 v14 right for you?
Most of us are neutral runners so the New Balance 1080 is aimed at a big audience of road runners looking for good cushioning. It’s particularly geared towards those banging out a high milage week in, week out. If you need a stability shoe, check out our review of the New Balance Fresh Foam X 860 v14.
Not only does the New Balance 1080 offer great cushioning, the sock-like comfort you can expect from most New Balance shoes is also here. If looked after, I think these shoes will see you well beyond the 500 miles normally recommended with a decent pair of hard-wearing trainers. I’m nowhere near ready to retire my 650-mile v13 1080s; I still use them on shorter and easier road runs and parkruns. Even when I do, I plan to give them a good clean-up and use them for my gym sessions. That’s how robust they are.
Road testing the New Balance 1080 v14
In my testing of the New Balance 1080 v14 I’ve done some shorter races and longer training runs up to 15 miles. I’m not running any longer than that at the moment, but these shoes are made for banging out road miles for marathon training, and I look forward to doing just that over the coming weeks.
I’ve worn the shoes in all weather and over most surfaces. They are definitely not designed for off-road use, and don’t handle at all well in mud. You can use them over dry trails, but I’d not recommend this. You can get a lot more miles out of these shoes just by using them on the roads or other surfaces that are less likely to wear out the soles.
From first use they fit well and were reassuringly comfortable. My first run in was 11 miles around the local roads, including a fair number of hills. Unfortunately we’d had rain, and when I returned home they were already really grubby. But the strong blue colour made them relatively easy to clean up to a presentable level.
Improvements over the 1080 v13
Most of the 150 miles of testing I’ve done has been on the road, but with my club training we often do speed sessions on an athletics track. I recently did a session of 10 x 400 metres fast with a 200 metre recovery. These shoes performed perfectly well here, with a better toe-off on the fast laps that I experienced with the v13s.
I like to use these shoes for hard training sessions. I don’t actually believe in training in my racing shoes, as I like to save that extra performance benefit for the race. It’s also almost always the case that racing shoes need replacing more often (after fewer miles) when compared to shoes like these.
Size and weight
I used to size up half a size with most NB shoes. Typically I’d go for a size 10, which is the size of my 1080 v13. However, I found the New Balance 1080 v14 fits me well in a 9.5, which is my normal size.
My pair of v14 shoes each weigh 10.5oz (298g). That’s 1oz more than the v13. I’d be more concerned about adding weight if they were racing shoes, but for trainers this increase is not noticeable, and not a concern for me.
Another difference with the shoe is in the upper. NB has made it more breathable, which is supposed to give you a cooler ride. I did find my feet often got quite warm in the v13, but the v14s are not so noticeably different. I always tend to consider what thickness of socks I wear depending on the outside temperature. Over the cold snaps I’ve been training in lately, it’s been nice to have a warm pair of shoes to run in.
Ride and responsiveness
Designed as a workhorse trainer, NB has made the midsole a little firmer in the V14s. That’s supposed to make them more of a viable option for faster training sessions, or even racing. That’s if you not into carbon plates for chasing PBs. I found the difference here noticeable, and for training I preferred the bigger bounce offered by the v13. The v14s are a good, responsive shoe, and I’d use them for any training session, however easy or hard. But I’d always turn to a pair of higher-performance shoes for any important race.
Related content:
Images
