Changing gear halfway through a run usually means asking your legs for something they would rather not give. Adidas is working on a shoe that could make the instruction a little more literal.
The Adizero Gearshift concept allows runners to alter the stiffness of a carbon plate within the shoe. Revealed at the brand’s Home of Innovation event in Germany, it offers a glimpse of footwear that could be adjusted as a run unfolds. Gear Patrol
For now, the word concept matters. There is no confirmed retail price or release date, and adidas has not committed to bringing it to market. Gear Patrol
What Does Changing Gear Actually Mean?
The adjustment concerns how readily the shoe bends. A more flexible setting allows greater movement, while a stiffer setting makes it harder to bend.
Adidas has shown two approaches. One uses a physical slider on the side of the midsole. The other uses electronics and an app, with smartwatch compatibility, to make adjustments during a run. Gear Patrol journalist Sean Tirman, who attended the event, reported seeing both versions. Gear Patrol
That gives the idea an obvious appeal. A runner could potentially choose a more forgiving setting for an easier stretch, then increase stiffness when picking up the effort. It is an interesting proposition for anyone who has wanted a different feel from their shoes several kilometres into a session.
A Switch or a Smartwatch
The manual version requires the user to press a button and move it along a slider, with a brief stop needed to make the adjustment. The electronic version is designed to allow control through a phone or watch app.
According to Tirman’s detailed account, adjustment operates across a range rather than simply offering two fixed settings. The electronic system adds a battery and extra components, with an accompanying weight penalty. Lightstrike Pro branding was also visible on the concept’s midsole. Gear Patrol
The practical difference is clear: reaching down to each shoe would be awkward during a hard effort, while a watch control could make an adjustment much easier. That convenience would need to justify whatever extra weight and charging routine came with it.
Plenty Still to Prove
The reveal leaves plenty of questions for a finished product to answer. How much would it weigh? How long would the battery last? How would the mechanism cope with months of wet roads, grit and everyday training?
There is also the question of benefit. Being able to change a shoe’s stiffness is interesting in itself, but runners would need evidence of when to adjust it and what they gain. A firmer setting should not automatically be read as a faster setting for every runner.
Gearshift gives adidas an intriguing idea to develop. The attraction is having more control over the shoe beneath you as the demands of a run change. The real test will be making that useful, reliable and worth paying for.
