Trail-Running Shoes
Archive
The founder of the Boulder Running Company is opening a new store and merging it with his physical therapy business
Altra founders Golden Harper and Brian Becksted will remain involved under the new ownership
Two new running shoes designed specifically with the ultrarunner in mind
From a totally reinvented ski boot to a wetsuit that's good for the environment, this is the stuff we're most excited about
In our ongoing Weekly Escape series, we aim to transport you from your desk to an incredible place in 2 minutes or less.
Seeing a beloved piece of gear get discontinued is a bit like going through a rough breakup. Pearl Izumi’s decision to terminate its Run line left our writer particularly devastated.
A cadre of talented new hikers are ready for the trail and beyond.
The best thing going in this year's crop of shoes? Diversity.
Spring's best off-road shoes strike a balance between speed and comfort
Gear to help you focus on your surroundings, not your blisters
Forget the forecast. This gear will keep you moving through the toughest season.
Gone are the days of "shrink it and pink it." This equipment—much of it designed by women, for women—rocks.
Top shoe brands are racing to enter the super-cushioned fray. We review 2014’s corpulent shoe crop.
‘Tis the season for car camping and barbequing, which means grilled burgers, sunny days, and (hopefully) cold beer. But to keep your beverage of choice chilled, you’ll need a cooler that can withstand the heat. We reviewed four mini coolers—each 10 liters or smaller and each packed with a six-pack—to…
For years, I used to test how far I could go on day trips without eating. I don’t know if it was some unexplainable machismo or just laziness, but that mindset changed about six months ago. I’d gone on a four-hour run with an empty stomach and no food in…
It’s tough to tell how trustworthy a piece of gear is going to be when you first buy it. In fact, the only way to actually test your equipment’s longevity is to, well, test it. Thoroughly. So instead of having you, dear reader, put your gear through the ringer in…
Forget about rubbing two sticks together. Without matches, your only hope of getting a fire started in the wild is to take advantage of other tools at your disposal. Mykel Hawke—a former U.S. Army Special Forces Green Beret and founder of survival school Spec Ops—recommends two easy,…
Yes, I write about gear for a living, I have access to the most sophisticated toys and tools in the outdoor world, and I’m constantly geeking out over tech details. But I’m keenly aware of the fact that the gear does not make the athlete. I was a much better…
Next week at Outdoor Retailer, Black Diamond will unveil jackets with a revolutionary cord management system that shrinks, hides, and embeds the technology needed to tighten hoods and hems. It’s called Cohaesive, and I’m excited about it for a few reasons. Cohaesive simplifies cord…
Over the past few decades, humans have developed some pretty high-tech synthetic fabrics, including membranes with nine billion pores per square inch and bi-layer wicking polyester. But in spite of our best efforts, the most advanced technical fibers still come from Mother Nature. Take merino wool, which is hard…
This is always a tricky question. There’s plenty of room for debate when it comes to choosing the “right” ski length, and a useful answer should entail a lot of research. Take the rocker revolution, which had people arguing about how the effective edge—or the length of metal…
The 2014 Consumer Electronics Show, a tech orgy that draws hundreds of thousands of people every year, wrapped up Friday in Las Vegas. And as usual, there was some pretty weird technology on the floor. Sensoria Fitness Sock A tattoo that measures your pH. A glove…
Exercise caution when you look for an inexpensive mountaineering pack. Remember, a well-built pack is going to last a lot longer than a cheap one, and you want to make sure it won’t fail at a crucial moment. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t good options out there that cost…
Outside staff members are always busy testing gear—we reviewed more than 600 items for the summer and winter Buyer’s Guides alone. We can’t cover everything in the magazine, so we asked 11 Outsiders to name their favorite piece of gear from 2013. And because our staff ranges from elk hunters to ultramarathoners,…
I ran my first ultra, The North Face Endurance Challenge 50-Mile on December 7. Save two missing toenails and a pinky toe that looks like it belongs on a cadaver, I think I am far enough away from the pain to write about the gear that helped…
You'll never forget the suffering of your first ultra gone awry—until you do.
An endorsement—and a eulogy—for the Saucony Xodus 4.0.
It’s been years since we picked a thickly padded road runner as our top shoe. But the 1260v3 demanded the recognition. Yes, it goes overboard on the comfort, with a pillowy tongue and heel collar and spongy mesh in the upper. Yet it’s still efficient, so it was a welcome partner on long hauls.
I’m looking for a minimalist shoe for running on trails with a lot of rocks and brush. What do you recommend?
From minimalist speedsters to winter-ready mountain scramblers, we’ve got you covered.
It’s summer, and time to run. What are some good trail runners for warm summer days?
There was a time when shoe companies took their bestselling road models, slapped some dark colors on them, toughened up their outsoles, made them uncomfortably stiff, and marketed them as trail shoes. And guess what. Hardly anyone bought ’em. Thank goodness that those days have finally come to an end.
Kicks designed specifically for the female foot, including The North Face Single Track Hayasa, best for mixed road and trail runs; the Salomon XR Mission, best for long trail runs in rough terrain; the New Balance 890V2, best for a cushy on up-tempo runs; and the Pearl Izumi Kissaki, best for high-mileage marathon training and racing.
It’s “the perfect fourteener shoe,” one Colorado-based tester proclaimed, which is perhaps the best compliment a running-hiking hybrid like the PeakFreak can receive.
What are the best trail running shoes for handling spring mud and rain?
Outside picks the essentials for March, including the Salomon XR Mission.
Outside picks the essentials for March, including the New Balance Minimus Trail Zero.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Saucony ProGrid Outlaw.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Columbia Hoodster boots.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2012 Winter Buyer's Guide, including the Saucony PowerGrid Cortana running shoe.
After competing in more than two dozen adventure races, Stephen Regenold breaks down his go-to outdoor gear
Best Foot Forward: From marathon trainers to minimalist trail runners, we've got the right shoe for you, including the Montrail Rogue Racer trail running shoe.
Best Foot Forward: From marathon trainers to minimalist trail runners, we've got the right shoe for you, including the Brooks Cascadia 6 trail running shoe.
Best Foot Forward: From marathon trainers to minimalist trail runners, we've got the right shoe for you, including the Salomon XR Crossmax Neutral trail running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Adidas Adistar Raven running shoes.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Asics GT 2160 running shoes.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Montrail Fairhaven running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Saucony Progrid Peregrine running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Brooks Trailblade running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the New Balance Minimus Trail running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including The North Face Double Track running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the Hi-Tec V-Lite Infiniti HPI running shoe.
Outside reviews the best gear in the 2011 Summer Buyers Guide, including the La Sportiva Quantum running shoe.
I am going on a Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim day hike in several weeks. I have done a lot of hiking mainly in light boots but I am wondering about using trail runners for this one. Any suggestions? Mark Henderson, NV
What is the best trail running shoe for someone with flatish feet, that is 195 pounds, and runs between 7-10 miles a day on rocky trails? My shoes often wear on the outside first.ScottCamp Lejeune, NC
What are the best shoes for winter running? The Editors Santa Fe, NM
I run on trails in the Virgin Islands because it's the only safe place to run, but I don't have trail running shoes. I have been tearing through shoes because they can't handle the rough terrain. What is the best warm-weather trail running shoes? Imagine a rocky gravel trail that gets muddy due to frequent tropical downpours. —Greg
ALL-PURPOSE This crossover shoe performs well on a variety of surfaces. On technical trails, it’s stable and comfortably cushioned, thanks to high-rebound foam in the midsole and a solid plastic protection plate in the forefoot; on hard surfaces, the cushion almost makes this shoe feel like it was made for…
If you took a razor and cut every gram of fat from a typical trail runner, you’d get the X-1/C. Amazingly, Teva didn’t have to whittle away stability to do it. The trick: The upper’s lacing-and-support system, called Wraptor Lite, pushes your instep toward the center of the shoe while…
Mountain Maniac Can a shoe give you superpowers? With the amount of confidence the Raptor inspired in our testers, it came pretty close. The most protective and stable—but still fairly lightweight—shoe in our test, the Raptor let us ignore the terrain and just run. The extremely grippy proprietary rubber and…
Why They’re CoolThey’re anti-gearhead shoes—the sort you’d see on the feet of a humble Kiwi adventure racer with a resting heart rate of 32. They’re hip yet unimposing, functional without being encumbered by newfangled compounds. » Actually, we take that back. Teva uses an abrasion-resistant fabric impregnated with rubber in…
SPEED AND SOUND The Pegasus is like your favorite pair of jeans—soft, comfortable, and versatile enough to wear just about anywhere. And by anywhere, we mean both pavement and slushy trails. Like a true road shoe, its narrow shape and flexy construction inspire speed, especially on flat trails, dirt roads,…
1. Fire roads. Technical trails. Even races and runs with short stretches of pavement. Regardless of what they were doing, testers reached for the Mountain Masochist more than any other shoe. And although it weighs less than 11 ounces and feels light and agile overall, it has just enough…
Trail The Cabrakan is low and responsive and offers good feel for the trail. The flexy forefoot runs smoothly on gravel roads, the aggressive tread stuck to everything, and the water-resistant upper kept our feet reasonably dry in the muck. 9.1 oz. TAGS: all-terrain, moderate stability…
ROAD-TO-TRAIL WONDER Admit it: For most of us, the odds of running wilderness trails 100 percent of the time are about the same as the likelihood we’ll win the Leadville 100. Which is why the Wave Ascend 2 received high marks from testers who ran on a mix of trails,…
A TRAIL SHOE FOR ROADIES Sometimes you drive to the trailhead; other times you just run there. This is your shoe. Built to have the same smooth heel-to-toe transition as ASICS’s road shoes, the lightweight Attack is sufficiently cushioned for gravel roads and packed dirt, yet it still feels responsive…