Discontinued · road · Tempo / Race day · $190
Non-plated zero-drop tempo shoe with springy EGO Pro foam.
Built for tempo, race day, at a target pace of 6:00–8:15 /mi on road.
This model is no longer in production. The closest shoe you can buy today is Altra Vanish Pulse.
Altra tuned this midsole soft (4/5 on our cushioning scale). Energy return is above average: the midsole rebounds well without feeling unstable. 33 mm of heel stack is the modern daily-trainer sweet spot — enough foam for long miles without losing contact with the road. Combined, the ride reads as snappy at 4/5 responsiveness.
There is no plate here. The midsole does all the work, so the shoe flexes naturally and stays versatile across paces — easier on the feet day to day, but without the snap of a plated shoe when you want to roll.
A 0 mm drop is close to level. That loads the calf and Achilles more than most runners are used to, so ease into it. The rocker is aggressive: the sole is curved and stiff enough to tip you into the next stride on its own, which saves the calf on long runs but feels strange when you slow right down. Forefoot flex is middle of the road. It is a neutral platform with no built-in correction.
The toe-box is wide, with space for the toes to spread late in long runs. It fits true to size. Expect roughly 250 miles from the outsole, about $0.76 per mile at $190.
For the foams and plates Altra uses across its line, read the Altra brand guide.
Measured against the 542 currently-available shoes in the catalog. The bar shows where this shoe sits in that range.
Weight
210 g / 7.4 oz
65 g lighter than the catalog median of 275 g
Heel stack
33 mm
3 mm lower than the catalog median of 36 mm
Drop
0 mm
6 mm lower than the catalog median of 6 mm
Price
$190
30 pricier than the catalog median of 160
Responsiveness
4 / 5
Catalog median 3 / 5
Cushioning
4 / 5
Catalog median 4 / 5
Energy return
4 / 5
Catalog median 3 / 5
Durability
~250 mi
Catalog median ~400 mi
Within the Altra line it is lighter than the brand's median (294 g / 10.4 oz) and sits taller than its median stack (30 mm).
Current shoes with the nearest combination of weight, stack, drop, foam feel and plate.
Altra Vanish Pulse
215 g / 7.6 oz · 34 mm · 0 mm drop · — · $180
Zero-drop tempo trainer with springy race foam and no plate.
Altra Experience Flow ST
230 g / 8.1 oz · 32 mm · 4 mm drop · — · $145
The Experience Flow with added support — low drop with guidance.
Altra Vanish Carbon 2(2024)
229 g / 8.1 oz · 36 mm · 0 mm drop · Carbon · $260
A zero-drop carbon racer — rare, and the only super shoe with real toe splay.
Hoka Rincon 4
228 g / 8.0 oz · 33 mm · 5 mm drop · — · $130
Barely-there lightweight Hoka for quick, cushioned miles.