Nike Free Flyknit - Initial Impressions.

It was only a matter of time before Nike would roll these out in the Philippines. Thank goodness for working in an office a street away from Nike's flagship store in Bonifacio High Street. Now that I finally got to see these things up close, here are some initial impressions that might help anyone looking to pick up a pair.

I. Aesthetics

Just when I thought the Nike Flyknits couldn't get any sleeker, they announced the impending arrival of these bad boys. While it would have been easy to just slap on the Free sole on some previously designed Flyknit upper, I like how they brought out a new pattern that integrates itself rather well with the Nike Free sole. And seeing the colorways that have dropped from both the Flyknit and Free lines, there's a lot of good stuff to look forward to.

I'm honestly intrigued with the construction of both the "lace holes" and the portion of the upper where the feet are supposed to enter. While Nike's intention was for the marriage of sock-like fit with almost-barefoot flexibility, one worry that comes to mind is how long the stretchy portion of the upper can retain its initial form, like when socks get old.

Regarding the "lace holes", while they may look cool in an when-old-world-design-meets-modern-technology kind of way, I worry about their durability. If there are videos showing how some people choose to cut off the laces on theirs for a true slip-on feel, then it seems to me that it might be pretty easy for them to snag and get cut loose either on a run or when worn causally.

II. Comfort
While I don't own a pair of Free Flyknits, my point of comparison comes from having a pair of both the Flyknit Lunar 1's and Free 3.0's, so whatever impressions I have in this section are pretty speculative.

I'm a huge fan of the Flyknit upper and how it fits to your foot, so I can only imagine how much more precise the fit of the Free Flyknit will be given its intent to be worn barefoot. And because of the unique construction of the upper, the shoe is pretty breathable.

I'm not a hardcore runner, but whenever I have the time, I go for a run in my Nike Free 3.0's. Despite the absence of the Lunarlon cushioning that went into the Flyknit, the Nike Frees aren't a slouch in the comfort department either. Pretty cool for shoes which were intended to mimic the benefits of barefoot running as closely as possible.

III. Price Point.

Ouch. Simply put, these things cost more than buying a pair of either Flyknits or Frees.

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The jury's out for a real in-depth look for now, but if you want to pick up a pair or check out the other available colorways from the initial drop, head out to Nike BHS!