Outsole on tennis shoes - clay vs all court
- Thread starter Gato
- Start date
rogerroger917
Hall of Fame
Makes a big difference. No question. Have a pair of clay and a pair of hard court shoes.
Just do not wear the clay shoes on hard courts.
It depends on the shoe. If it has a herringbone-like pattern with widely spaced grooves, it's going to work on clay. If you have an Asics hard court shoe, you might want to get the clay version. If you have an Adidas hard court shoe (Barricade, Ubersonic, or Defiant) you'll be fine with it on clay because they already have a herringbone pattern that's widely spaced enough for clay. I happen to wear a basketball shoe, the Adidas Crazylight Boost 2016, and the traction on clay is great. You can take one look at the tread pattern and tell that it works on clay even if it wasn't designed specifically for it.
rogerroger917
Hall of Fame
It is more than just grip. The Adidas hard court shoes with herringbone is not the right spacing. The tip of the pattern is too wide. And the pattern is not full sole. The nike hard court shoes have little herringbone.
With a real clay shoe the grip and the slide (when the shoe releases) is predictable. And repeatable. Nike and Adidas. Not sure the other brands. As my son wears Nike and Adidas. And he trains on harttu and red clay half the year. Absolutely a difference in traction and performance.
With a real clay shoe the grip and the slide (when the shoe releases) is predictable. And repeatable. Nike and Adidas. Not sure the other brands. As my son wears Nike and Adidas. And he trains on harttu and red clay half the year. Absolutely a difference in traction and performance.
prjacobs
Hall of Fame
Clay shoes are lighter, because they don't need to be designed with the same kind of lateral directional support that you need on hard courts. A few years ago I bought a pair of Asics SS2s for clay and they are the most comfortable shoes I've ever worn. 12.3 ounces - much lighter then even the SS2 hardcourt model. Clay shoes will change your world - on clay[emoji4].
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bigserving
Hall of Fame
What is the difference overall. Are clay soles designed to make sliding easier, or are they made to give more traction on the slippery surface?
More traction. Always wear on clay only as the soft rubber sole will wear fast on hard court.
rogerroger917
Hall of Fame
More traction. So you can change direction more surefooted. You notice a significant difference if you wear clay court shoes and forget it once and have hard court shoes on. You will slip. It's not a small difference. It is a big difference.
The sliding with clay court shoes is good because of the grip. You know where the point of grip release is more readily.
Wrong. They are not lighter. Your case was you just bought a cheaper light clay shoe that you happened to like.
bigserving
Hall of Fame
That is interesting that traction is the clay shoe need. I am an above average hard-court slider. The few times that I have played on clay with hard court shoes, it seemed like the shoes kept me from optimum sliding.
Probably the technique of the user!
Probably the technique of the user!
rogerroger917
Hall of Fame
I believe it is because the hard court shoes has different patterns on bottom. A little herringbone. A few squares, etc... it is just not predictable. Not enough traction. My son slides on hard court as well. But on clay it is different sort of sliding. You actually start the slide differently. And more purposefully.
prjacobs
Hall of Fame
Yes, I stand corrected - partially[emoji4]. Thanks. I prefer a lighter shoe and clay shoes aren't lighter by design. However, the GSS2 series clay was an ounce lighter than the GSS2 hardcourt and I assumed that was an industry wide practice with clay vs. hardcourt models. But, it's not a budget shoe or cheaply made. I wish it had been, but it was the same as the average price of other premium shoes at the time. They cost more than my Vapor 9.5 tours, bought the same year. And have maintained their cushioning, whereas the 9.5s are toast.
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AlxThm
Rookie
I play mostly on hardcourts, but there's something like a "clay season" in my city when a couple of clubs make their clay tournaments and i am a very agressive mover and i like to slide and use my shoes as an emergency brake, and im fine with my pair of barricade boost 2016 shoes, i think the most important thing about the surface change is the strike zone..
Just want to give you my update - I bought Cage 2 Clay and played today for 2 hours, the herringbone outsole is amazing, I got so much grip when I started running, no slip like before..Thanks!
Did you notice any difference in durability with the clay edition? I've been using a Adidas Ubersonic 2 with a standard outsole, and I was looking to pick up the clay version this time. The standard outsole already has Herringbone pattern and offers plenty of grip, so I'd rather just get that if durability is a concern with clay outsoles.
J011yroger
Talk Tennis Guru
Once you play in clay shoes there is no going back.
J
J
There are also other clay court shoes patterns, like “yonex power cushion eclipsion CLAY”. They don’t look like the traditional herringbone pattern.
The shoes last a bit longer than normal clay court shoes, good traction. Very comfortable.
I mainly play on sandy synthetic grass, which is closer to clay surface (well... except for the rest of it, ball bounce, speed etc) than hard court.
Would be interesting to know if there are comparison around different clay court shoes patterns out there other than the traditional herringbone pattern on real clay (eg Italian or American clay).
The shoes last a bit longer than normal clay court shoes, good traction. Very comfortable.
I mainly play on sandy synthetic grass, which is closer to clay surface (well... except for the rest of it, ball bounce, speed etc) than hard court.
Would be interesting to know if there are comparison around different clay court shoes patterns out there other than the traditional herringbone pattern on real clay (eg Italian or American clay).
