Mizuno Wave Musha 3 = 5k PB

When I first laid eyes on the Musha 3, I knew I had to try them out. Thanks to Arnold (Mizuno), I was given the opportunity of doing so and all I can say is wow! The Musha 3 is a stability racing shoe and once you put them on, you won’t want to take them off.

There it was, a brown box branded with the Mizuno logo just sitting on the kitchen island waiting to be opened by me.  I tried to take my time but like a kid on Christmas morning, I flung the lid open and whipped those Musha’s out of there faster than a Kenyan during a sprint workout.

I am a big fan of bright, multi-colored shoes so the Musha 3 had already scored some points in my book. But color will not help you get to the finish in record time. What does? My first run with these was a 7k run to break them in a little and make sure they fit properly before doing a race a week later. The fit was what I have become accustomed to with Mizuno (Did numerous races last year with the Elixir 5’s and started this year with the new Elixir 6’s). They fit like a glove and I experienced no pressure points anywhere.  Because these shoes are on the minimalist side, you get a more natural feel of the road and I experienced a more responsive feel over the Elixir’s which is what I was hoping for. Confident with their performance, I put them neatly back into their box for race day.

Race day came and with it, the excitement of once again opening up “the box” that contained these red beauties! I set the alarm a few minutes earlier in order to spend some alone time with them before the race. One concern I had was that road conditions were wet and I was unsure how much traction the Musha’s would have.  The starting gun went off and I quickly set my pace. Being mindful of the road conditions, I took the first turn with caution and slowed the pace a tad. I was very surprised at how well they gripped the ground and from that point on it was full steam ahead. Crossing the finish line was a great feeling because I had set a new 5k PB by 37 seconds!

Thanks Arnold for supplying the shoes and for giving me the chance to test these red rockets. I will continue to use them and you can only have them back if you can pry them off my feet!!