Shoe Stack (Sep 2024)
2024-09-04 17:45
1. Topo Mountain Racer 3
My 5th pair of Mountain Racers. First time on series 3. These ones are my main pair at the moment. They just work so well. Wide toe box and a little bit of drop. Good grip. Perfect for the mix of wet muddy trails and rocky ridges common around here. I run many many KMs in Mountain Racers with near 0 blisters. Ran a mountain marathon on first wear once. No issues. I like the yellow.
2. & 3. Topo Mountain Racer 2s
These preceded number 1 and have both done over 1000KM. I use them when I'm running from the office as I don't feel as guilty slapping pavement and ruining the grip on bitumen before I get to the trails. I do town errands and mow the lawn in them. They're pretty done for. I did a muddy trail run in them recently and they had NO grip.
4. Topo Ultrafly 3
Similar set up to the Mountain Racers, but no grip so only use these for the flats and road. For some reason these give me blisters on the top of my middle toes. Never enough to pop or cause grief, but enough for me to notice. Weird given they feel exactly the same as the Mountain Racers. Maybe it's the type of running I do in them.
5. Salomon Speedcross 5
These have crazy lugs so really good for muddy terrain. I haven't really used them much though, I think because they are much narrower than the Mountain Racers, and because of the lugs I feel like I'm on stilts so I am paranoid I'll roll an ankle.
6. Sidas insoles
Off-the shelf insoles. Mid-arch seems to work great. I've got some old ones I need to retire. I can feel it in my calves when either the shoe or the insoles are done for.
7. Asics Gel-Nimbus 23
An old pair of runners for the flats again, but I just use these for riding now. I don't have clip-ins so the peddles are ripping through the underside pretty quick.
8. Topo Ultraventure 2
Clearly I love Topos. These are pretty much the same as the Mountain Racers but with a bit more stack, so supposedly better for longer distances. I can vouch for it too. On second wear I finished my second half of my "climbing 10,000m in a day" mission (first half I used the Mountain Racers), and on a later date I ran for 40 hours and 172KM over mountains, through creeks, mud, everything, and didn't get a single blister.
9. Asics Glen-Trabuco Terra
I got this fairly standard trail shoe relatively cheap for trail and road running around town. I don't use them much because the Topos are so good. Tend to use these the most for walking though.
So that's what gets me around right now. Currently saving for another pair of Topos and insoles so I can retire the others. As the cycle goes. I try and use a mix of old and new all the time so my feet use all the muscle groups.