Review Under Armour Charged Bandit 2 Night

A small review of the Under Armour Charged Bandit 2 Night 😃

I've got my hands on a pair of Under Armour Charged Bandit 2 Night and have decided to write a small review on them. Under Armour is relatively new in the running-shoe-business, and some are not aware that they actually make shoes as well besides sports clothes. However, they are playing around with many different models and makes, and I have got to try a few including the Under Armour Fat Tire Low trail shoes, which I wrote about some months ago and like very very much!


I'm not gonna write about all the technical details which you can find here on the Under Armour website. Instead I'm gonna write about how if find them and what I like about them and what I like not-so-much.

To start with, the looks of them is great in my opinion. I like the black/orange colours. The top and sides are reflective which helps to be seen in the dark. The top-front of the shoe is fairly soft and forgiving when touched/poked, but not really stretchy, which I find good, as you want your toes/forefoot to stay in place during a run, and not "floating" around in the toe-box. If compared to the Under Armour SpeedForm Gemini 2 or the Under Armour SpeedForm Slingshot, the foot is more fixated in the Bandit 2 Night shoe. Not that the Gemini and Slingshot are not comfortable, they are very much indeed, but I feel my forefoot are moving a bit around in them.

Many Under Amour running shoes have no cushioning on the inside of the heel-cap, which may seem strange when comparing to many other brands, but once I put them on, I don't feel it at all - nice and comfy :-) The heel-support in the Bandit 2 Night is better then in the Gemini 2 and the Slingshot, which I see as a major improvement. I found it bit too loose in the other two for running and I have the feeling of being able to slide out of the shoes at times. I don't have that feeling with the Bandit 2 Night. In my opinion they have a fairly tight grip around my feet while still being comfortable and having space for the toes as well. 

The tongue (the loose flapping part under the laces) is fairly wide and goes along way down on the side of my feet. However, it is not noticed when I tie the laces, and they tie up nicely around my feet. I've left out the top lace-hole as the laces otherwise will go too high up in my opinion. 

My first few runs in them has been great. They feel good and the cushioning is a bit better than in the Gemini 2 in my opinion. I've read that some find it a bit too hard, and that the sole changes character after a while of running. I have not noticed any of this yet, as I've only been out in them a few times. I'll take them for a long run later to feel them with my own feet 😀  


The sole has a good grip on the ground, though in places it felt a bit slippery due to the many fallen leaves on the ground and wet weather, which is doomed to be slippery... So pretty much any shoe would feel slippery in these conditions.

I like the direction Under Armour is taking and so far, I like these Bandits quite a bit and compared to other models I've tried from the Under Armour range, these Bandits are the best I've tried so far for road-running 😊

Oh - and I've now passed the 2016-mile-mark(~3244km) for the year 😉💪

See ya out there and stay safe 😉

#UnderArmour #YouVsTheYear #RunWithFight #IWILL

Best M.

PS: The running shoes have been kindly provided by Under Armour UK, however, the views are my own!
 

RTTS2016 - Aftermath

In retrospect of Race To The Stones 2016 I want to check up on what I had chosen to bring/wear for the race compared to what I actually used and found useful... 

Kit review:

For shoes I had chosen to wear Under Armour Fat Tire Low (see review here) trail shoes, which was an awesome choice! My feet was good for the whole run and they survived with only two not-too-bad blisters on my big toes. The cushioning was awesome!

I used my Salomon Advanced Skin 12 Set Trail Running Backpack for water (1.5L), a 0.5L bottle for electrolytes, camera, gels, etc. I like this vest very much and didn't find any problems as such, except one zipper "broke" about 70km into the race as I probably had overfilled the zipped pocket a bit. I did manage to fix it after the race though.

I had chosen to bring my Black Diamond Distance FL Z poles as well, as the inclines seems quite steep when looking at the race data. I did use them and they gave me a great walking pace uphill compared to when not using them! I will definitely used them again when possible (and allowed!). They were strapped to my running vest, but somehow they got to touch my back causing a bit of chafing. Nothing too serious though! 

I "redesigned" how I use the Salomon 4D pole carrying system to make it easier to strap them on and get them off, by using a carabiner clip to attach/release the top bungee-cord. I found this much easier and less likely for the bungee-cord to be entangled into the poles/pole-straps when trying to wrap/unwrap them from your back.

I wore my Under Armour CoolSwitch calf sleeves. There are many theories about if they work or not. I like the feeling of them and my calfs didn't ache at any time during or after the race. If it's due to the guards or something else I cannot tell! But fact is, I haven't had a single sore muscle in my legs from the run, however my hips and ankles were a bit sore from the uneven terrain and the downhill running.

My Under Armour Shadow Run Cap protected my head from the sun and redirected sweat from running into my eyes. At some pit-stops I soaked it in cool water to cool me down. Awesome! My Under Armour Launch 2-IN-1 shorts and LP Embioz compression top also did very well along side my Falke running socks :-)

My Garmin Forerunner 310XT didn't complain and recorded the whole run. The HR chest-strap (which is actually from my old Garmin Forerunner 305) was unnoticeable and didn't leave any marks from chafing, as the original HR chest-strap have given me on much shorter run (~20km).

I did bring extra clothes like a waterproof jacket, a thin long-sleeved top and extra socks just in case, but didn't use any of it. However - you never know with the British weather ;-)

All in all the clothes I wore worked well for the hot weather and I could have left the extras at home, but 100km is a long way if you need it at some point, hence I'm happy with the choices I made :-) 

Food review:

I had chosen to bring my own gels (Science In Sport/SiS) as I have used these through out my training, and didn't want to find out if I could/could not use other gels mid-race! I used 15 gels on the course. 

Flat coke is a winner!! :-)

I also brought my own electrolyte tablets (SiS) for the same reason as the gels. I refilled my 0.5L bottle with a new tablet/water at every pit-stop except the first one (one for approx every 10km) and even though it was extremely hot and sunny, I didn't at any time feel I was lacking fluid or the like, so I think I got it right.

I refilled my 1.5L bladder once. In addition to this I drank a lot of flat coke and some squash/water on the side. In total I must have consumed at least 8 Litres of fluid - and only one stop at the loo! ;-)

I didn't eat many of my homemade muesli bites. I think it was due to the hot weather. I also didn't eat any chocolate bars as they were way too sweet during the run! Instead I devoured a lot of oranges at the pit-stops where possible and grabbed some apples for the road + a few bananas on some of the early stops. I also found bananas too sweat to eat at the last half of the race.

I ate crisps in some of the pit-stops, which was a very welcome snack and a great source of salt :-) Standard food from now on!! 

The pit-stops were well stocked on all sorts of things, and if I were more brave using those "unfamiliar" things, I wouldn't have to carry much myself. At some point I might start using what's available instead of bringing my own :-) 


Bottom-line for food and liquids is that I didn't have any stomach aches as I did in CTS Dover in January, so I must have done something right this time ;-)

Every thing worked out for the better and I had a fantastic and awesome day!! Loved everything about it :-D 

#RTTS2016

See ya out there... :-)

Best M.


PS: I'm on Endomondo Blog about the #YouVsTheYear challenge!! ;-)

Under Armour Fat Tire Low Trail Running shoes

I got my hands (or feet if you wish) on a pair of Under Armour Fat Tire Low Trail running shoes and decided to do a small review.

At a first glance, when seeing them on the Under Armour website, they looked a bit weird and funny because of the wide turquoise sole, I'll admit that. But I think they look much better in real life!


The shoes are a bit heavier than my other trail shoes (Salomon Speed Cross 3), but I don't feel it when wearing them. The front has been reinforced a bit (read: not toe protection), and there is plenty of room for my toes, though still with a great tight fit around my feet.

The first mile or so I did in them, felt a bit funny and very bouncy due to the massive amount of cushioning, but I quickly got used to the different but very pleasant feeling. The sole is thick so I don't really notice small-ish rocks and other uneven ground under my feet, however it doesn't feel like I loose contact and feel of the ground.


The sole is made for trails and crafted by Michelin - WildGripper. The quite distinct turquoise colour can be discussed, but as the shoe only comes as seen, it's not gonna be a long one :-) And I actually think the colour combination is growing on me :-)

After taking them for a spin on some local trails, with awesome weather for running (a great mixture of thunder, hail, sunshine and really heavy rain) I am even more pleased with them. They kept a tight fit around my feet through out the whole 51km, even though the laces untied once, which I didn't notice until I looked at them at some point. But they stayed in place for the rest of the run (~35km).


While running in mud, I didn't get the feeling that they got stuck in there, which I have experiences before with other shoes. They did let go quite easily in the type mud I forced them through on my run :-) On steep muddy slopes while running uphill, I felt a few times that the shoes didn't get a decent grip, but I've experiences that with other trail shoes as well. So that doesn't worry or bugger me.

The heavily cushioned shoes in combination with the Michelin sole were great when traversing ground with smaller rocks as I hardly noticed the sharp uneven edges. 

The laces go up relatively high providing a great fit and support for my foot.



Based on my first long trail run, I must say that I find them really good and they have just become my new favourite trail shoes!

I am seriously considering using them for my Race To The Stones 100km run mid July! UPDATE: After having tested them further, I'm sure I'll be using them for the Race To The Stones :-) Love 'em!

2nd UPDATE Used them for Race To The Stones (100km in one day) and they were awesome! Had two not-too-bad blisters on my big toes - that's it. :-) Loved the cushioning!! 

See you out there on the trails!

#YouVsTheYear #RunWithFight #IWILL #UnderArmourUK

Best. M

PS. Views are my own! and are not affected by being an Under Armour #YouVsTheYear ambassador. The shoes were provided by Under Armour UK.