My first pair of Nike's (of 2018) arrived last week courtesy of a friend at JD Sports. The Vapormax Plus needs no introduction, with them doing the rounds across Social and the FB groups, but I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents on the pair. Combining a very popular upper with a very popular sole has created the "Nike Vapormax Plus", or as I like to refer the them, the TN/VM.
I've already covered the TN a few journal posts back but the addition of the Vapormax sole warrants this pair a brief write up.
The Vapormax was unleashed on the world at the end of 2016 at the Nike Innovation Summit. It was hailed as a huge game changer at the time, putting a full length Air unit directly underneath the foot, which hadn't been used or seen before, as the tech always included a spacer for a 'walking on clouds' feel. This was seen as being Nike's biggest innovation since 2012's Flyknit (knitted uppers), with both technologies being featured on the launch pair in question. I was instantly excited for the Vapormax, as the sole unit was beautiful and striking, with the shoe upper resembling a Flyknit Racer on steroids. I remember how much I liked the Racer when it dropped, and I remember the dying feeling of wanting a pair on foot as soon as possible, so a "chunky" rendition was well received.
Back to the TN/VM, in terms of comfort they are certainly no Boost beater - many compared the stiff feel of the segmented pods to wearing football cleats and with a complete lack of support around the heel and medial ended with you rolling a foot on many occasions. But they look fantastic and based on style alone I'd still choose the Vapormax over many of it's competitors.
Since the original 'Platinum' colour we've seen lots of different executions - the sole still has major potential and we've already seen multicoloured pods, speckles and even a beautiful 'Volt' version. One of my favourite updates was actually considered a downgrade by swapping the Flyknit for mesh and adding a sturdy mid-foot and heel support cage, which also lowered the insane price point of £170 down to a slightly more realistic £150.
Vapormax Flyknit featuring the "Neon" colour from the Air Max 95.
Vapormax switches the Flyknit for a more supportive mesh and synthetic leather cage.
As we know, Nike have now added a midsole to the Vapormax Plus - which while I feel is a step back from it's original design about being straight on the air bubble, I guess it's more of an aesthetic change as without the TN midsole this would be very odd looking (more than it is already) top heavy shoe. The upper is full neoprene with a TPU cage replacing the fused lines on the original TN. I also appreciate the new TN x VM logo that adorns the heel and footbed of the shoe. For now I think the Triple Black version pictured is the most tasteful of the launch colours.
Comfort wise I've heard a lot of talk about them being more comfortable than the original Flyknit Vapormax. I've tried both the Flyknit and the Plus on at the same time and I've felt no difference in terms of cushioning - obviously the Plus has a more solid and supportive feeling due to it's thick neoprene upper that hugs the foot, but I'd also add because of the neoprene they're also very warm which is a forgotten attribute of the wetsuit material. In terms of fitment, I'd recommend going TTS (True To Size), but a few have also said to 0.5 up. If you're near to a JD or another *ahem* store, I'd advise you go try a pair on before purchasing.
Thanks again JD for the love and thank you Marcus for being a patient hand modeI, took the majority photos below waiting for a train at Waterloo and I'm pretty happy how they turned out. Everyone who's dropped feedback on my writing so far, I've only got love for you, received quite a few messages to my email and instagram and none of them go unread, until next time!
- Morgan
