Saucony Men's or Women's Hurricane 23 Running Shoes Expired

In contrast to @YertleTheTurtle I found the Hurricane 23 less roomy than the Guide 14 and Guide 15. It's definitely the more premium shoe but the toebox is too narrow for my feet. I loved everything else about the shoe except the tight forefoot. The cushioning is great but this model of the Hurricane does not feature the new PWRRUN+ sockliner that Saucony is using with this year's shoes. The new sockliner is made out of TPU pellets and is super duper plush. Huge step up over the previous generation of sockliners Saucony used.

Saucony recently released the Guide 15 and they made the shoe roomier than the previous v14 version. Perhaps they did the same with the Hurricane 24 update? But for the v23 it's simply too restrictive in the toebox.

Other shoes I have include the Hoka Gaviota 3 and Saucony Endorphin Shift 2. Both shoes, like the aforementioned Guide 15 are roomier and more comfortable in the forefoot than the Hurricane 23. I wear a size 14. The Hurricane 23 may simply run shorter than these other shoes. That could explain why my big toe felt pinned the side of the upper. I'd try to go u half a size but that is not an option.

Anyone know if there's been studies or research done on how sticking up and storing new unused running shoes for 1-3+ years affects the materials and cushioning of the shoes?

I have read conflicting anecdotal reports on running shoe self life. Some people report problems such as midsole stiffening after a year in storage. Others report no problem.

In the past I stocked up on a Hoka shoes. Purchased two pairs of the same model in early 2019. Kept them in my closet. Took them out of storage in late 2020. Noticed the midsoles of both pairs were much stiffer than other pairs I had purchased in previous years but wore immediately. The midsoles were so hard I could not even push my thumb into the foam...

Fast-forward a few months and the shoes that were pulled out of storage softened up significantly. I've been wearing them for over 18 months now, nearly every day for walks and errands. The midsole foam is now really soft! The shoes feel cushiony and plush. In a contrast to my normal experience with this Hoka model the pairs pulled from storage are actually getting BETTER as the weeks and months go by. Typically, with this model of HOKA the midsole foam gets harder and loses its cushioning with use. But the ones from storage are defying this.

Rye information online on the topic of running shoe shelf life is not very helpful and lacking in scientific basis. Most articles are written by or use information sourced from running shoe companies. It's.no surprise that such articles advise against storing shoes for more than 12 months. In fact some of the articles revealed the true motivation for such warnings by explicitly finger wagging at customers to not "waste money" by stocking up on their favorite shoe when it's "heavily discounted" because the shoes begin to "deteriorate while in the closet".

Such warnings strike me as fear mongering. Obviously, the shoe manufacturers and retailers want to dissuade us from buying and sticking up on shoes when they're heavily discounted.

One last thing. I came across an article that even tried to suggest that buying a pair of clearance shoes (previous year's model) was "bad" because the shoes "aged while sitting in the warehouse shelf". The article stated, without any credible source, that new current year model shoes would provide a runner with "12 months of use" while clearance shoes would only last "9 months". Strikes me as total nonsense.

I can't really agree with this at all. In the last 5 years there have been massive improvements in running shoes in both performance and comfort. Advanced foams and the introduction of carbon plates have allowed for the previously impossible - a sub 2 hour marathon.