Accelerate-Scott Team member Harvey has been lucky enough to get his hands on a pair of the new Scott Supertrac 2’s and over the last month has been putting them through their paces. Keep reading to hear what he has to think about this iconic shoe from Scott.

When I initially heard Scott were updating the Supertrac i was very sceptical as they have easily been my favourite trail and fell shoe for the whole 2019. Weather it was racing or training, short or long it worked for it all. Thankfully Scott follow along the lines of if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. And wow, I think they nailed it. Everything I loved about the Supertrac 1 has remained with some very subtle tweaks to push it to the next level.

Straight out the box and I knew that they hadn’t changed too much. The main changes are an update to the outsole and a redesigned upper and lacing system.

Redesigned – The Upper
The biggest and most prominent change has to be the update to the upper, it now uses Schoeller’s Coldback fabric for better breathability, heat protection and increased comfort. Something I found with the Supertrac 1 was that the upper always felt a little tough and restrictive. Now however the Scheoller fabric hugs your foot allowing it to move but still maintaining a lock down feel you can trust. This could also be due to the update on the lacing, with an extra eyelet to help when using a runners loop to further lockdown your foot. Perfect for those steep technical descents where you need to be able to trust in your shoes. In terms of longevity with the new material, I have done just over 100 miles in mine and they aren’t showing any signs of wear.

The Outsole
The next change you can see is to the pattern of the outsole. The lugs have been spread out to help reduce the amount of mud that can get stuck in them without losing traction. When you are running this isn’t something you are likely to notice straight away. It certainly doesn’t hold them back. I have taken them on some pretty rough descents and not once did it slip or give me any reason not to trust them completely. Weather it was wet rock, deep mud or long grass they just didn’t budge. Just what you want from a trail shoe that can easily cope with a little open ground and fell.

The Midsole
The finally change they made is to the feel of the midsole, it is, to me, feeling a touch softer than its predecessor. This is due to the grooves which have been added to the midfoot area of the outsole allowing more flexibility throughout the shoe. For me this is no bad thing and I know of a few people saying the 1 was a little to firm at times. With this slight change it makes them feel even more lively when you hit a hard packed trail or road section. They continue to feel responsive, with the advantage of also feeling more nimble through more rugged terrain.

After 100 miles, they are showing hardly any signs of wear, very true to scott.

This is definitely an upgrade for the Supertrac while keeping most of the features that made them the shoes people love. If you liked the 1 then the upgrade is worth a look or if you are after a new pair of trail or fell shoes then these could be a big contender for you.

Get your pair now, Mens here >> Ladies here >>

If there is one thing we can be certain of with Scott Running is this: “If it ain’t broke leave it alone”. This day and age that is a rare thing. Too many shoe brands update their shoes every six months or just bring in a new fresher colourway.

Not Scott. Yes, as a shoe gains traction (Yes, that was intended :-) ) they will change the colour or the upper annually. Not a guarantee though.
What you will see is the successful elements of one shoe taken into the next newer shoe. This plus something different and improved to ensure we do have a new shoe.

In this case the new Scott Kinabalu Ultra RC.  Launch date: 15th June 2020.

Take the midsole from the highly popular Supertrac range. It is responsive, protective and extremely well cushioned. Plus it is resilient, it just runs for miles and miles.
Add in the outsole from the existing Kinabalu RC 2.0 that is perfect for summer trails. Grippy, surprisingly so on wet rock, plus it’s holding power up and down step terrain and you get the idea this is going to be a superb shoe.

With an 8mm drop this is a shoe that should suit a wide range of folk. Add in the ‘Scott Rocker’ and you have a shoe that feels like it just wants to be run in. So we have traction and grip, a resilient, protective midsole; all known factors and pretty much guaranteed that we know what we are going to get.

Except for one major change the upper.  This we did not expect. It is lighter in feel on the new Kinabalu Ultra yet retains the same essential caressing fit that so often typifies the RC range. Straight out of the box and onto my feet. WOW!
That I did not expect, so very very comfy. Definitely a step up in both fit and comfort.

So for a quick run. I normally prefer anything lower in drop than 8mm. Yet, these did not feel like 8mm, if anything more like 6mm. Was it the rocker?  I felt immediately at one with the shoe.  I wanted to run in them. All the characteristics I love about Scott Running shoes were there. The traction, responsiveness and protection. Yep, reckon I could run all day in these. The big step up is in the level of comfort and fit offered by the upper.

If you are in the market for a summer training come racing shoe then I suggest the new Scott Kinabalu Ultra RC should be on your radar. It could be a surprising treat for your running paws.

Out of the Box review by Stu. Photos’ are our own, with a very excited Harvey.

To get your pair now follow the link here >> for Mens and here >> for Womans

Late April Polar released their latest in wearable training aids in the form of the Grit X. Boasting longer battery life, some fancy new features and all in all an almost indestructible package. Accelerate team member Will Burton has been using a Grit X for the last few months and shares his likes and dislikes about Polar’s latest invention.

I have been lucky enough to own a few Polar watches since I started running, they M430, V800 and now the Grit X. Something that always impresses me with polar is their attention to detail, even when it comes to the packaging. However, the Grit X goes above and beyond what I have had before. It comes in a sleek black and red box, as you slide apart the box you are greeted with a clean, crisp and glossy watch face staring back up at you. Polar have made a very refined product that comes with more features than previous models.

At 64 grams this feather weight watch is hardly noticeable when you are wearing it and you can almost forget it’s even on. It comes with a comfortable and changeable rubber strap so you can choose from one of their many strap options. The watch is striking and fashionable so perfect to use as a normal watch as well.

Polar have worked wonders on the battery inside the Grit X. In its most accurate GPS setting (updating GPS every second) it has 45 hours continues battery and in ultra-mode it goes up to 100 hours continuous tracking. The highlight of this means I only have to remember to charge it once a week, despite using it on the most accurate mode and it only takes 2 hours to fully charge!

Unlike the V800, the Grit X has a newly refined wrist-based heart rate monitor, using 10 LED’s sensors 5 red, 4 orange and 1 green. This is to helps with different skin tones to keep an accurate heart rate reading. This helps me train accurately accordingly to my different heart rate levels, negating the need to wear a heart rate strap, which I find much comfier when running. The watch also uses your HR data to calculate the number of calories you have burned through during exercise and how much you need to consume with a handy reminder of the specific amount of fuel in grams. Sometimes a little more information than I would normally need yet for ultra athletes this could be invaluable.

Polar have also added in Power to the Grit X something I haven’t had before it is helpful when running off road and pace goes out the window but power take into account of the terrain so you can run at a consistent effort irrelevant of where you are running, this is calculated all through the watch negating the need for a foot pod.

The mapping feature is something I also haven’t used before, it tells you how far along your route you have covered, showing you when to turn and an arrow in the direction you need to travel. The mapping feature is not as advanced as I anticipated, it doesn’t show you the paths around the one you are following, which could make navigation difficult without a map to consult.

Other features included in the watch are details like distance ran uphill and downhill (Hill Splitter) this also show the gradient you are running on in real time, the quality of sleep and how much you are getting, hourly weather forecast and VO2 max estimator.

After finishing your run all the metrics are uploaded to Polar Flow where you have access to even more data and a guide to whether your training is progressing or if you are overtraining. Even better you can let a coach of access to your account and they can see all your data without having to share with them each time.

I’d recommend the Polar Grit X to people wanting to take their training to the next level and examine their training in more detail than was previously possible. It also functions as a great training partner while team sessions are off, encouraging me to keep improving for when races start again!

To get your own Polar Grit X follow the link here >>