New Year New Shoes to Test Drive Your Pace: Vimazi

I’ve reviewed a lot of shoes. I’ve worn bunches of a lot of shoes. Shoes designed for speed work. Footwear designed for tempo runs. Shoes designed for the long run. Big, cushy shoes. Minimalist shoes. Spike shoes. All the shoes. But there’s a new shoe in town that offers something none of the other shoes have – pace-tuned shoes. Have you heard of Vimazi? Don’t worry, I hadn’t either, but I have a feeling that you soon will.

This company, based right here in Portland, has officially introduced it’s first collection of shoes that are engineered to different pace zones. This enables runners a much more personalized fit according to the type of runner they are, resulting in a better performing shoe with the best shock protection possible. This shoe is the first of it’s kind and we here at Run Oregon are excited to test these out.

The first six models of the Vimazi shoes will range from the Z20 for the 4:30 to 5:30 min/miler to the Z70 for the 10:00 to 12:30 min/miler, and they will be available to you in early 2023. Vimazi is also working on an additional road model as well as two new trail running shoe options. There will also be a walking shoe introduced, available later in 2023.

Vimazi was founded by two marathon veterans, Scott Tucker and John Zilly. Tucker hypothesized that shoes might differ in efficiency based on pace, as running forces will change at different speeds. Tucker imagined a range of shoes built to accommodate different reactions, and two years were spent with a research team on the math and physics behind this technology.

The research proved successful, as the studies aligned to the physics-based predictions about cushioning and performance. Vimazi specifically tunes the midsole of their shoes with a proprietary midsole tech, a FastPod. The midsoles are tuned to respond directly to the force impact generated by runners within their own designed pace zone. The ideal cushioning has been considered in each model, as well as the propulsion efficiency during push-off.

Get ready for this new technology from Vimazi, headed your way in February of 2023. Also stay tuned for our review!  Until then, check them out on social media and sign up for their email newsletter on their website!