My Nike Hyperdunks

Nike's Noteworthy Basketball Shoe Has Upsides and Downsides

Got some Hyperdunks recently. They're white with black and silver accents. I'm having a mixed time with them. Since Nike's basketball line isn't Nike Plus compatible, I resorted to a third party pouch that carries the sensor on the shoe laces. As we all know, the Nike Plus compatible shoes have a slot underneath the insole to accommodate the sensor. Running shoes from Asics and New Balance for instance do not have the slot. It's an intellectual property thing. The pouch circumvents this deficiency, allowing runners to use the Nike Plus sensor with running shoes made by rival athletic shoe companies ... and Nikes that aren't Nike Plus compatible. This means Air Jordans, most of the Nike Free trainers and Nike-branded basketball shoes.

I say most of the Nike Free trainers. As of this year, Nike now offers the Nike Free Everyday. The Everyday has an ultra-flexible Free sole and a sensor slot. And they're available on Nike iD. I love it. The Lunar Trainer and Lunaracer also have elements of Nike Free design, and they are Nike Plus compatible. I still want to try the Lunar Trainers. I still might by the end of the year.

Anyway, I need to sync my sensor with my Hyperdunks. I usually do my running on a treadmill. To sync the sensor correctly however, I need solid ground. So I'm running in circles on the track at my gym. It stinks. I do not like running on the track. You're turning a corner like every few steps. It's hard to develop a good cadence that way.

Sure, I could run outside to sync, but Hyperdunks are an indoor shoe. They're intended for the hardwood, not the asphalt. I don't want to compromise my well-crafted masterpiece of modern footwear engineering on rock-strewn sidewalks and oily parking lots.

No. The Hyperdunks stay inside.

You wonder why kids don't play basketball outside anymore? They don't want their shoes messed up. Modern basketball shoes simply aren't designed for outdoors anymore. They just aren't. The Hyperdunk certainly isn't. Case in point, the Hyperdunk's rubber outsole does not extend to the arch area. Less rubber translates to less weight. We've seen similar design on the Air Jordan XXI with the arch reinforced with plastic and a full carbon fiber shank plate. The Hyperdunk's arch is similar. It's all carbon fiber encased in foam, which is vulnerable to punctures and pockmarks from sticks and pebbles. Who wants that? Nobody. I know I don't.

Anyway, I've spent two workouts trying to sync my sensor with my Hyperdunks. I ran for ten minutes on the first attempt and quit because the readings weren't making sense. For the second attempt I didn't quit, and I logged a 23-minute mile. That's if you believe the sensor's figures. How could that be? I could swear I was beating a ten-minute pace! I was sweating. I tried going faster, but I couldn't finish my mile in a reasonable time.

After further inspection, it turns out that I had the sensor installed incorrectly. Basically, I was running with it upside down. I read the instructions. I just misinterpreted them. Hopefully, I have this sensor thing down for my next attempt at calibration. I'd love it if I could log millage on Nike's website and do so in a pair of Hyperdunks. Nike really ought to make their basketball shoes compatible with the sensor. (Perhaps I should lobby them to do it.)

Now, if I can get the ankle discrepancy worked out, that would be great. The major thing I do not like about the Hyperdunk is that my right ankle is pressing up against something hard, likely the foam panel wrapping around the back end. My ankle feels uncomfortable when my foot is in certain positions. So far as I can tell, there are no manufacturing problems with the shoe. It seems just like the left one. Nevertheless, I developed a blister after two miles of treadmill running. I laced them loser around the ankle, and that alleviated the problem. Even after that my ankle is still coming into contact with something hard. I don't know what to do about it.

All in all though, I think the Hyperdunk is a solid basketball shoe. At under 14 ounces, mine are rather light, allowing one to get up and down a basketball court without hassle. Yes. I have shot baskets in them, and they do their job quite efficiently, providing excellent support for lateral and diagonal movement. Like all basketball shoes, Hyperdunks perform better on the basketball court as opposed to the treadmill. That's understandable. Regardless, I don't even notice the Flywire upper encasing my foot. This is so totally a good thing. Flywire rocks.

Take it upon yourself to experiment with some Hyperdunks.