New Balance 574 Rugged 'Black White'
Colorway: Infinity Blue/White · Style code: ML574DGO · Release date: February 8, 2022 · Price: $125 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: New Balance 574 'Pennant Pack' (ML574) · New Balance 574 'Incense' (ML574AA2) · New Balance 574 'Natural Indigo Maple' (ML574AB2) · New Balance 574 'Rain Cloud Maple' (ML574AC2) · Alpha Industries x New Balance 574 'Sedona Seige Grey' (ML574AI2)
Rugged is the outdoor build of the 574, and the outsole is where it shows: a lugged rubber unit made for off-road traction replaces the flatter pattern on the standard shoe. Above it, black open-cell mesh forms the body, with suede overlays in the same tone at the toe, the saddle and the back of the shoe. A white leather N sits on the side, and the brand name is stitched low on the outer toe. Black and white continues down onto the ENCAP midsole instead of stopping where the upper ends.
New Balance released it on February 8, 2022 at $90, ten dollars over the standard version, which is roughly what the extra outsole tooling costs. The Rugged line is less a reinvention than a return. The 574 was built out of the 500 series, a group of shoes made for running on trails rather than pavement, so putting lugs back under it restores a capability the model had at the start and lost as it became a casual sneaker. Everything above the midsole is still the retro pattern, which is why the two versions look almost identical until you turn them over.