Clay specific tennis shoes

[FootFaultMyeye]

I play only on Har-tru and need a clay court specific tennis shoe. I own a pair of Adidas feathers from 3 years ago with an outer sole that has dimples designed to grip a clay surface. Back then, the feathers were one of the few options for clay/Har-tru players. Now I see Adidas and Babolat offer clay shoes with a herringbone outer sole design. I'm leaning towards the Adidas Barricade 7.0 Clay shoes, but thought I would get some feedback first. Can anyone weigh in on the current selection of clay shoes? I have fairly narrow feet, which is why I previously chose the feathers. Does the herringbone outer soul really provide better traction on clay/Har-tru? And why is it more shoe companies do not offer clay specific shoes? Aren't they ignoring a large and profitable segment of the tennis public?

Thanks.

 

[FootFaultMyeye]

Bump bitty bump.

 

[Ramon]

I think the reason they use the herringbone pattern now is because many clay court facilities will not allow any other type of pattern. Dimpled patterns might grip better, but they will tear up a court quicker, which is why many facilities don't allow them. Most tennis shoes now have a predominantly herringbone pattern, which is accepted anywhere.

 

[mikeler]

I just buy shoes with a non-marking sole. My wide feet limit me to New Balance.

 

[Tennis Truth]

I used the clay sole 6.0 barricade last year, and in prior years used the old feathers, which had a different sole (herringbone?) pattern than the 6.0 clays. The soles of the clay versions of the 6.0 and 7.0 is the same. It is deeper "fins" in a zig zag pattern.

The prior feathers felt lighter and not as stiff as the clay 6.0, but I liked the clay 6.0s better, as I felt the sole was better for har tru. Better grip, but still allowed good sliding. I also like the more ridgid feel of the 6.0, since I use the 6.0 standard sole for hardcourts.

If I didn't have several of the 6.0 clays, I would buy the 7.0 clay version, since the sole is the same.

 

[Andreas1965]

We almost exclusive play on clay here in Germany, so I'm kind of an expert...

Herringbone outsoles work best. Grip/traction, sliding and preventing the court from damage.

The Barricade clay sole (I have the B6) works great. But so do the soles from the e.g. Asics GelResolution Clay, the clay soles from the KSwiss shoes and many others.

Look for a decent claycourt shoe that fits, as long as it's a herringbone pattern, you'll be ok.

 

[FootFaultMyeye]

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. Just purchased a pair of the B7 Clay from TW yesterday.