On has had a flurry of shoe releases recently, from the On Cloudmonster to the On Cloudneo – and the best On Running shoes offer plenty of choice, whatever you might be looking for.
But while they’ve been wowing us with style and green creds in recent months, there was still some work to do in order to compete with the best shoes for runners in terms of those ploddy, average, mid-week runs. But this is where the Cloudsurfer comes in.
On Cloudsurfer technical details
Weight: 205g
Drop: 10mm
Sizes: UK women’s 3-9
Price: £150
On Cloudsurfer pros
- Extreme comfort and brilliant fit
- Stylish
- great rebound
On Cloudsurfer cons
- Smaller size range than some
Who is this shoe for?
This is a road shoe for neutral runners – the PR bumf suggests they’re up to 10K and half marathon training, and made for speedier sessions. But I would be tempted to expand that to marathon distance: the supreme comfort means I’m happy to go longer than 10K in them, and I’m certainly happy to run at my ploddy sort of times.
What’s the fit like?
Really good. The mesh knit upper molds well to my feet, the heel collar is padded and super comfy, holding my foot in place, and the laces are generous enough for a double knot even if you have high instep hooves like me. They’re a lovely light weight too – exactly the same, in fact, as the famously light HOKA Clifton 9.
Is this shoe comfortable?
Well, they’ve overtaken the On Cloudmonster in my shoe rotation, so that’s a definite yes. They’re comfy in a way that you wouldn’t perhaps expect from On – plush and soft and glorious in ways you wouldn’t expect, but with the rebound you might.
On Running Cloudsurfer vs other On Running shoes
From my On experience, I can only compare with other models, such as the Cloudmonster, the Cloudswift and the Cloudneo. This is streets ahead of any of them, to be honest. It feels like On has taken a swerve, realized that the all-style-and-no-subtance would hold no truck with runners, and produced a shoe that’s just delicious to run in, quite frankly. And it’s worth saying here too, the upper is 100% recycled (the shoe is 30% recycled in total), and the upper is dope-dyed, which means 95% less water is used in its manufacture.
On Cloudsurfer running review
So you still have those On ‘clouds’ in the sole, but now they’ve moved to the middle of the sole, rather than on the outer limits, and the squidge is obvious from the word go. Made from Helion foam, the theory is that the holes in the sole collapse “like dominoes”, creating a rolling motion, and that all important rebound, eliminating the need for any kind of plating. What does that all mean? It feels peppier and faster than your average neutral shoe, but without the stiffness of a plate. I truly loved running in these. I knocked out mid week 5Ks and 10Ks with not bother, no rubbing, and every time I put them on, the blissful feeling of comfort was huge – especially compared with other trainers I’m currently running in. Yes they’re squidgy, but you don’t feel like you’re disappearing into memory foam – there’s a feeling of attack and vibrancy there that pushes you onwards with a determination underfoot. Every run has been a joy.
Where can I buy this shoe?
The On Cloudsurfer will be available from On from March 23rd.
