Training - USA Road Trip Trail Runs

During the middle week of our USA road trip, our primary focus was exploring trail runs in new areas. Our first stop was in Jackson, WY while in town for our attempt on the Grand Teton. The climbing ranger pointed us towards the trail around Jenny Lake. We didn't want to use up too much energy before climbing but went for a short out and back run before taking a dip in the glacial fed Jenny Lake.

Gear - Inov-8 X-Talon 212 Trail Shoe

Review: With over 100km, 13 hours, and 4600 meters vertical, my Inov-8 X-Talon 212 Trail shoes have been put through their paces. I have been testing them in the mud puddles and on the sandy beaches of the West Coast Trail, on granite slabs and snowpatches in Whistler, and on the smooth single track and rocky rooted trails of Squamish. The X-Talons are a lightweight and agressive, nearly minimalist trail racing shoe. The cleated sole provides excellent traction even in deep mud. Flex zones running across the forefoot of the shoe allow it to fold with the shape of your foot. Designed with trail in mind, these shoes offer very little cushoning - this goes a long way towards a lightweight shoe but it also means I needed to run with a bit more care the few times I hit sections of pavement. Over longer runs (>2 hrs) I also start to notice my feet compaining from hitting rock edges and pointy root ends.

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The shoe upper does a moderately good job off keeping out mud and sand but once saturated in puddles, begins to soak through. Can't really ask for much better than that. I don't notice pebbles or sand getting into the shoe so I suspect they fit fairly tightly around my ankle. The rubber around the edge of the sole/upper provides a bit of protection but you still have to be carefull not to stub a toe too hard. The laces are doing fine and don't seem to be wearing out too fast.

These have become my standard shoe when I know I won't be going on pavement (about 75% of my runs). They are durable, comfortable, and seem to fit true to size. Overall, a quality shoe that I will definitely keep running in.

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Gear - Newton Trail Running Shoes

A significant amount of foot pain has prevented me from running much lately. I am suspicious that using worn out shoes combined with running on lots of pavement is much of the problem. I picked up a pair of Terra Momentus shoes made by Newton. These are the trail running version with a bit more grip on the sole.

Cool colors and rubber "lugs" on the sole right under the forefoot makes the Newton stand out.

Newton shoes have one huge design difference compared to any other model shoe: the forefoot lugs. The sole of the shoe has large lugs under the forefoot that encourage you to land there rather than slamming down on your heel like a normal running show. While they seem to be marketed toward the natural running crowd, I do thing the design has some merit compared to some of the other barefoot shoe options. 

With about 10 hours of running on these shoes, I am overall pretty happy and have noticed a few things. On roads, I find them great, easy to run in. They don't entirely prevent me from hitting my heel but they certainly encourage rolling forward onto my forefoot. Downhills I find it feels a bit funky but I suspect it will be normal soon enough. On trails, especially steep or variable ones, they really excel. I can bound from spot to spot and my heel never touches the ground. Downhills are fine until they get steep or slippery. 

One issue I have is that on rocks, especially wet ones on downhills, these shoes are treacherous! They do not work for me in scrambling terrain. The lugs act in the opposite manner as a climbing shoe. The edge of a proper climbing shoe is just that, a distinct edge to the flat sole. The lugged sole of the Newton is very rounded and tends to slide right off small rock edges. I realize scrambling was not the intent of the shoe but some of the trail runs in Squamish cross this type of terrain.

An approach shoe like the 5.10 Guide Tennie shown above has a very flat sole and distint edges. These shoes are great for scrambling. Compare the edge on the 5.10 to the Newton's rounded forefoot higher up.

Pros: 

• Reasonably light.
• Good grip on trails.
• Not too stinky yet!

Cons:

• Lugs are scary on rocks.
• No place to tuck the laces.

Overall, I am enjoying training in these shoes, especially on the road, and low key trails around Squamish. If I think I will be hitting really steep terrain or need to scramble over rocks, I will probably stick with someting a bit more traditional. The Newton seems to be a great shoe and a good training tool to improve form. I will definitely be using them in my day to day runs.