This is the Nike LunarEpic Flyknit 2, and it has a pretty big update for a shoe that was just introduced last year. You may remember the first version of this shoe had the high-top cut with a really stretchy booty. Then the low came out and it with more traditional styling and a separate tongue.
The new version has that booty again. The tongue is all integrated into this, which is the big change that we notice. It’s a very snug fit through the midfoot and the heel—the upper is very deconstructed. It’s all about the knit upper, really holding the foot in place with a really firm, thick knit construction. Then you get Flywire cables through the midfoot to really give you that lockdown.
Underneath, you still have a podular design, all of the siping (laser cut grooves), and really soft LunarFoam. We are still testing this at the Runner’s World Shoe Lab, so I don’t have exact numbers, but the cushioning is soft in the heel compared to the first version.
The Nike LunarEpic Flyknit 2 retails for $160 and will be available February 2. It is on the feet of our wear testers right now, and we will have a longer review soon on runnersworldblog.com.
Jeff is Runner-in-Chief for Runner’s World and the director of product testing. He has tested and reviewed running shoes, GPS watches, headphones, apparel, and more for nearly two decades. He regularly tests more than 100 pairs of shoes each year, and once had a 257-day streak running in different models. Jeff can usually be found on the roads, racing anything from the mile to a marathon, but he also enjoys racing up mountains and on snowshoes. When he’s not running, you’ll probably find him hanging from a ladder making repairs and renovations to his house (he’s also director of product testing for Popular Mechanics).
