The traditional method of creating stability is through posting in the midsole, a thickened portion of material (the Guide 14 uses a TPU guidance frame) that creates rigidity in the medial aspect of foot anywhere from the heel to the forefoot. The upper can also play a role in this, with lockdown security throughout the foot and how it handles in hard turns or unstable demands potentially influencing the foot from the top. This can be done through many ways including geometry, specifically through the usage of the last, platform, heel bevel, toe spring, etc. The aims of the shoes are to create certain aspects of either rigidity or guidance to the natural pathway that someone runs through in order to have a more fluid gait cycle. Adjectives we see a great deal are light, moderate, maximum, or even motion control levels of stability. Today I wanted to take a look at what footwear categories refer to when talking about certain levels of stability. The descriptive terms I would use are firm, protective, smooth. The posting is definitely noticeable, but feels integrated well for a stability shoe. I enjoyed the bevel on the Hurricane 23 more than this one, but it still does a pretty good job of getting the initial contact at the heel smoothly and quickly into the midfoot stance phases of gait well. The shoe also has pretty decent posterior lateral heel bevel integrated into the shoe as well. At daily paces the transitions feel nice throughout. Similar to the Ride model the Guide also has deeper flex grooves integrated into the outsole that help with flexibility throughout, especially in the forefoot.
The result is a protective yet firm ride throughout that moves well with geometry. The posting is integrated very well in the rearfoot through the midfoot and couples well with the slightly firmer PWRUN midsole. David: The Saucony Guide 14 rides like a traditional stability training shoe with some modern tweaks.