Z30 - Half-marathon & marathon

ENGINEERING SPECS: Average adult ranges for height, cadence, and body weight at this pace.

CUSHIONING: At this pace, when your stride's flight distance is quite long, you generate a lot of force on impact, so we tune the reaction density of the heel and midfoot to optimize cushioning given the forces you create. Forget about "max" cushioning for some rando runner—the Z30 gives you the best cushioning for the way you're running right now. We call this pace-tuned cushioning. The only way to get the best cushioning in a running shoe is to tune it by pace.

PROPULSION: It takes a lot of force to push off hard enough to travel 16-25 feet through the air, so the last thing you want is a soft, inefficient midsole. We’ve tuned the forefoot FastPod in the Z30 to deliver maximally efficient energy return given the forces you generate at this pace.

DROP: Runners at this pace are usually lightweight and often forefoot strikers. With this in mind, we built in a 4mm drop into the Z30. It’s ideal for fast, flexible, midfoot, and forefoot runners because it provides the most natural biomechanics while preventing a negative drop angle upon impact.

SOLE DESIGN: Rocker design and fortified arch outsole for ideal propulsion. According to a recent paper on arch compression, forces on the arch are greatest during the push-off phase of your stride (not the impact phase). Many shoe designs carve out the arch area, exaggerating pronation. The Z30 fills the arch area to provide support precisely when you need it most.

MIDSOLE MATERIAL: Vimazi Z-Foam has an EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) base. Proprietary additives have been mixed into the EVA to increase abrasion resistance and elongation properties. Most importantly, however, we use our specific EVA blend because it allows us to dial in an ideal compression set for each model. This isn’t possible using other common midsole foams. Finding a foam matrix that could be specced to specific durometers was one of the reasons it took five years to develop and produce our pace-tuned shoes. Our midsole formulas are the heart of the technology. They’re what allow us to tune the Vimazi Z30 to a peak force spec of 840N in heel/midfoot and 1120N in forefoot (M10). No one else does this, and you can't tune shoes in this way using other midsole foams.

Everyone running in the 6 minute mile range needs excellent cushioning but with the most efficient push-off possible. While running, we generate a wide range of both impact forces and propulsion forces. Those forces are intense at 6 minutes per mile, but less so at 10 or 12 minutes per mile. 

At Vimazi, we carefully studied midsole materials with respect to forces in running, and we found that it’s physically impossible for one midsole to respond correctly to all paces. What does this mean? Midsole densities need to be adjusted to the speed of the runner. 

Our research also showed that the propulsion forces in your forefoot and toe are greater than the impact force you encounter in the midfoot and/or heel. As a result, running shoes need to be tuned by both pace and between heel and forefoot, at least if you want the best performing shoe. 

By adjusting midsole density in the heel and midfoot to the forces you generate at 6 minutes per mile, you get the precise amount of cushioning you need at that pace, no more and no less. Pace-tuned cushioning like this ensures stability, comfort, and health benefits over a lot of blazing fast miles. 
However, you don’t want better cushioning to get in the way of a lively propulsive push-off. To get the energetic push-off you want, the forefoot has to be tuned differently than the midfoot. That’s why the forefoot FastPod in the Z30 is specifically engineered to respond to the propulsion force you generate at 6 minutes per mile. 

This is how the Z30 reduces shock while increasing efficiency when running between 5:00-7:00 minutes per mile (3:00-4:30 minutes per kilometer).