Bit obscure, but hey ho.
Just finished my last trail race of the year, and I think I'm done with my Brooks Calderas. They're only 18 months old, but they feel heavy, and the outsole is fairly aggressive and really large, putting pressure on the outsides of my feet; and the top of the heel cup is wearing through. My previous running shoes were Asics Nimbus - before they turned into more sole than upper - and they were great, even on trails. Lightweight, non-intrusive, no foot pain, I loved them. Only slight issue was they got a bit ripped by gorse, and the tread clearly wasn't designed for trails.
So does Asics do a trail shoe that's like a Nimbus but just a bit more robust in the sole? And if so how are they?
I've had sonomas and trabucos and they just don't last for me. All the gtx trail shoes go in the same place, in the top around the joint of my big toe the material splits. Might be unique to me though. I have just got a pair of hoka challenger gtx in the hope they are better.
I like the Trabuco Max’s, they last well and work well for most trails. The normal Trabuco’a are fine too, just a little less cushioned.
I haven’t had a pair of ASICS shoes for decades, but really like the Trabuco Max - a lot of my running is on forest tracks / crushed rock and there’s plenty of cushioning from the midsole without being too soft/unsample for things like faster descents. The outsole could be a little bit more grippy/deeper lugs for the squidgy stuff but for racking up the miles they’re good IMO. For more technical/mountain stuff I’ve got a couple of pairs of LaSportivas which have better grip on wet grass and rocks.
I have a pair of Trabuco Max and they are exactly like a trail version of the Nimbus, really comfy for long trail runs.
ASICS also do a trail version of the Nimbus, simply the Nimbus TR, but to be honest it's more of road to trail shoe rather than a dedicated trail shoe so it may depend on the trails you run.
Ah fab, thanks everyone. And are the Trabucos fairly neutral support?
The trails I'm on are a mix of rocky scrambling, muddy singletrack, farm tracks etc. My normal circuit is about half that and half pavement.
Yep, the Trabucos are neutral, I slightly under pronate and have always found the Asics neutral shoes to be ideal. If you look on their website they give a pronation rating for all their shoes.
Looking at the description of the trails that you run then I'd go for the Trabuco Max's, if it was just farm tracks or the running equivalent of gravel then the Nimbus TR's would be fine, but they would be no good for mud.
Has the Trabuco design and fit changed this most recent iteration? I was perfectly happy with mine until they started falling apart but the new ones looked different, much more prominent heel...
I ended up with some Hoka Challenger, they feel lovely, light and springy, but I'm not sure I would trust them as much on trickier terrain.
Challengers were designed as a road to trail shoe, so they're not going to be the best where it gets technical.
Trail running covers a lot of different things
While not the Trabuco's, my last pair of Asics (Gel Pulse) began to feel dead within year and not very much running of having them which I was rather disappointed by.
When I needed to replace my trail shoes, I went with the new Saucony Peregrines which I've used for a couple of trail halfs and some local trail 10ks and been very pleased with. For the mucky weather I have a pair of La Sportiva Lycans which are an absolute hoot to run in with grip for days.
There's some good Black Friday discounts over at sportsshoes.com at the moment on Asics trail shoes including the Trabuco Max.