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On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2 review

By Nicolas Brun Translated from French · Read the original

We already told you about the new Cloudboom generation when it launched. Since then, Nico has had time to put the On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2 through its paces, and the verdict is blunt: "damn, that's one hell of a shoe."

Tester: Nico
Test length: over 100 km
Test conditions: road training, race paces

Looks: on the On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2, the one-piece woven upper, with no seams and no laces, gives the shoe the clean, futuristic look that is the signature of the technology. This is a shoe that makes no secret of its ambitions: it's all about performance. A nice little bonus given the price: a pair of socks comes with the shoe, and they finish off the look perfectly, a real plus for a package that feels thought through to the last detail. The box itself goes all in on the tech storytelling: "Welcome to the future of running. By combining robotics and material innovation, LightSpray™ allows us to create a seamless upper in a single step. In just three minutes. The result: our lightest running shoes to date." You can tell the brand doesn't do things by halves, right down to the unboxing. A fun detail we'd never seen anywhere else: the box even includes an illustrated guide to putting the shoe on. Literally: "To put on your LightSpray™ shoe, slide your foot all the way in, then gently pull the heel fabric upwards." With no tongue and no traditional laces at all, the instructions aren't superfluous: the upper is so snug that you'd better know the right move before tackling it for the first time.

Comfort: Nico's first observation, and not a minor one: the On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2 is more comfortable than an Adidas Adios Pro 4, with a less narrow fit. For a pure racing shoe, that's far from a given. Another reassuring point about the durability of the LightSpray tech: after more than 100 km, the upper hasn't budged an inch. It's still a racing shoe, not built to soak up big daily mileage, but it takes the kilometres without flinching.

Performance: this is where the On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2 hits hard. The responsiveness and energy return are immediate, almost mind-blowing. The concrete result: less effort needed to hold a given pace, so a lower heart rate at the same speed than with a regular shoe, with a difference you can feel even against other super shoes on the market. Add a featherweight build (158 g), and it's easy to see why this shoe is now considered the most accomplished in On's pure performance range. The numbers speak for it too: a 1.6% gain in running economy measured by the University of Cape Town, and a list of personal bests that makes your head spin. Hellen Obiri improved her best by 1 minute 48 in London, and Joe Klecker smashed his in Boston, taking 4 minutes 41 off the clock. And the example that will probably stick with us the most: Yeman Crippa, who blasted through the final kilometres of the Paris Marathon with this shoe on his feet, gaining 48 seconds on his time. Proof on the road of a muscular economy that holds right to the end, exactly what the new CloudTec® Sphere geometry is supposed to deliver. The only real caveat: like most super shoes, it is built exclusively for the road and isn't a fan of changes of direction. That said, this seems a little less pronounced than on other shoes of its kind.

Summary: what we loved about the On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2: the unexpected comfort for a racing shoe, the durability of the LightSpray tech, responsiveness and energy return you feel straight away, remarkable lightness, a wild and futuristic design, and attention to detail right down to the unboxing (socks included, user guide). A shoe clearly designed with a single goal in mind: pure performance over the marathon or long-distance races, for runners looking to hold their speed to the very end rather than just max it out over the first few kilometres.

Specs: On LightSpray Cloudboom Strike 2

  • Weight: 158 g
  • Sizes: EU 36-49
  • Drop: 5 mm
  • Price: €320 (pair of Elite Run Sock High Hyper included)
  • Technology: LightSpray™ upper, CloudTec® Sphere geometry, Helion™ HF foam, curved carbon Speedboard®
  • Availability: on.com and selected partner stores

As with most of our tests, the product was provided by the brand for the purpose of the review.