Brooks Pure Grit- A quick look.

[Hamish McHamish]

What are good online sources for Inov-8 shoes in the US? Nobody near me carries them.

[Eugene Smith]

Runningwarehouse.com (*2-day free shipping, Inov8 are usually in stock)

Zombierunner.com (*typically carry Inov8, great customer service)

[Eugene Smith]

@ Chris,

I credit my foot shape to genetics, my entire family on my fathers side has relatively narrow/normal D width feet and long pointed toes (fingerlike!). Do you believe your foot shape is in some way a response to going barefoot and not using narrow shaped shoes when you do go shodded? I've read about this being the case for people but don't quite buy the argument nor understand it.

At work I wear zero drop shoes with no padding for 9hrs, have been for a while now, it feels "natural" and comfortable, but I haven't noticed any changes in the foot shape, but do use my lower legs and engage my feet differently than I did climbing ladders and hauling toolsin while wearing boots in the past.

@James: What are good online sources for Inov-8 shoes in the US? Nobody near me carries them.

I got my first pair of Inov-8 X-Talon 212 from RunningWarehouse.Com and my second pair from Amazon.Com.

My local "Inov-8 distributor" wouldn't even order them and than a few months ago stopped being a distributor all together. Nearest one to me now is 300+ miles away.

[Daniel Smith]

Eugene, what kind of arch do you have?

FWIW I have a flat foot and overpronate and I have about 200 miles on the pure grit. Over time (maybe as the cushioning wore in?) I developed pain on the outside of my midfoot at the end of longer runs. My impression is the grit is built more for an underpronator. I even tried it without the insert and still had issues. The inside of my foot (peak of the arch) was fine it was just the outside. I was interested in the grit as I wanted something minimal with a bit more cushion for longer runs. It is cushioned but not exactly minimal. They are shaped and for my case did not fit my foot. The pain got so bad I am not wearing them anymore. I never had any trouble with my 101s.

[CW]

@Eugene

I think genetics play a part as well as footwear. As an example, my slightly younger brother can wear narrow/normal shoes fine.

Unfortunately, it only takes a short time with narrow footwear to (mis)shape our feet when we're very young, and it can take a lifetime to undo it. There are obviously varying degrees of what most would consider a wide toed (anatomical per se) shape, and that's likely where the genetics come in to play more (IMO anyway).

[CW]

@Daniel

If you truly overpronate, a shoe that corrects that should do so by forcing you to supinate (or underpronate) more. A shoe built to correct supination (or underpronation) should cause you to overpronate even more.

I had a very similar issue a few years ago, though, when a store put me in a shoe for an overpronater even though I have a very neutral strike. An 18 mile run in them had the outsides of both feet (instep area) sore for days and I pulled the peroneus brevis in my left leg. I immediately switched back to neutral shoes and haven't had a problem since.

[Daniel Smith]

Perhaps you are right and I am more neutral now and perhaps this has changed since I switched to minimal? I did use to overpronate at one point. Either way I raise an eye toward what Brooks calls 'minimal' after wearing the shoe. I had no intention of getting a lightweight stability trail runner but that appears to be more of what it is rather than what I view as a 'minimal' shoe.

[Eugene Smith]

I used the term "minimal" in my original post because compared to their other trail shoe offerings, the Pure Grit is relatively minimal in design (flat, simple outsole, sockless liner, minimal overlays) but I don't think Brooks claims this shoe to be a "minimalist" shoe. They do throw around the words "natural" and "anatomical" like it's going out of style however, so yeah, definitely proceed with caution and be an informed runner and know what works for you and what doesn't- not what Brooks claims works for you.

Daniel,

I have a low arch, not completely collapsed but close- my left arch is slightly lower than the right. Despite having a low arch, running in neutral shoes has proven to work best for me and feels best underfoot. The Grits are definitely not as neutral as the 110's, there is some midsole build up in the arch possibly for slight overpronators, but nothing to shake a stick at. I definitely wouldn't call the Pure Grits a stability trainer, but if you're typically running in non cushioned zero drop "barefoot" style shoes, then yes, this is going to be overkill for you. The hefty amount of cushioning is the biggest divergence from the MT110. The thing with the MT101 that I didn't like so much was that it was, yes, neutral, but allowed for too much lateral foot movement due to the floppy mesh upper, it also had a relatively severe drop (9mm) which only seemed to increase as you compressed the forefoot down over time.

Found this article this evening, worth a look for anyone directly comparing the two…

http://ultra168.com/2012/02/14/gear-review-minimalist-trail-shoe-showdown-new-balance-mt110-vs-brooks-pure-grit/

[Nick Gatel]

"The Peregrine has been a solid trail shoe for me, both nimble and fast, but offering adequate protection for technical trails and a solid locked in fit with a relatively snug upper. The only real knock for me with the Peregrine is the slightly aggressive taper as you move toward the front of the toebox- small blisters developed on the tips of my toes in the Peregrines during my last ultra run- this was due to the toebox forcing my toes together in response to the repeated pounding and not accommodating for foot swell over the distance. Is this a problem? Only outside of my regular weekly running volume and distances. I haven't eliminated the Peregrine from my quiver."

Eugene,

What if you went up 1/2 size in the Peregrine?

I have been using this shoe (Peregrine) for the past two months on some really steep and rocky trails (1,000' elevation per mile of trail). They have the best traction of any shoe I have ever worn. Normally my shoes are either a 11.5 or 12. The Peregrine's are a little big in the toe box in a size 12, and I almost got a 11.5. I love these shoes!!

[Art …]

Tried them on in the store today, and I was very surprised at how much I liked them.
I'm not a minimalist, not even close. These shoes feel like the top edge of minimal or the lower edge of regular shoes.
Fit is Great.
Cushion is great, as long as you are a mid foot or fore foot striker. First shoe I ever tried on that had more cushion in the mid foot then the heal. weird at first to walk in, but then you start running and it totally makes sense.
The shoe feels like it is good for a 50+ mile race as long as you don't have too many miles on them going in to the race.
These shoes are a strong candidate for my next trail shoe purchase in the near future.

[Eugene Smith]

Art,

I'm completely satisfied with the Pure Grit, it's a solid shoe for me. You're definitely spot on in regard to the cushion, which is ample, but still responsive and not 'mushy' in any way. I think Brooks dialed in the durometer of the outsole and midsole, plenty of dampening for aggressive trail and the shoe still picks up and toes off nicely on the flat and mild stuff.

I broke in my 2nd pair of Grits on my long run today, my first pair is slowly nearing the end of it's life and has lost that "pop", the upper is still in excellent condition, minor hole in the mesh on the outer left upper where the forefoot flexes, but the midsole is beginning to go flat and not offer the protection against rocks as it has since early December. Outsole wear on my first pair is not so great on the climbs, especially on face smearing footstrikes where I have to toe off aggressively. I will use the first pair for my weekly runs and save my 2nd pair for my long runs and possibly for our R2R2R if the midsole holds up for the next 6 weeks of runs.

[Luke Schmidt]

Chris I have very similar feet to yours. Mind sharing what other shoes have worked for you? I was excited about the NB110 but Craig's review has put a damper on that. NB 101s work OK but they blow out on the side pretty fast. That just happens to be were my wide toes rube the side so they are probably a bit tight and I'm only getting away with it because they're a flexible shoe.

[CW]

I've had good luck with 3 options thus far.

The first is the Inov-8 230 sized up considerably. My real shoe size is about a 9.5 and I can make an 11 work in the 230. I went through a couple of pairs over the last two years.

The Altra Instinct is a perfect fit in a 10, but they're a road shoe with no aggressive tread. With that said, I did use them on a couple of trips recently and didn't have any major issues.

I'm currently testing a pair of New Balance Minimus MT00 in the 4E version for review here on BPL. If anything, they're a bit too wide but that isn't a real concern for me personally. These are extremely minimal and if you go tromping through rocky terrain with any kind of recklessness your feet will undoubtedly pay. That said, they drain like a water shoe. I thought the 230s drained fast but these make those look like they hold water.

[Eugene Smith]

The issue I have with the MT00 is the cutouts on the outsole, which expose your feet to rock bruises and potential debris penetration on anything but tame trails. The "scallops" on the outsole are effective in minimizing the outsole weight and maximizing flexibility, but it is a definite compromise in the area of protection.

[P. Larson]

I would LOVE to try a pair of the minimalist New Balances but they just don't fit my foot. I tried a half and full size larger than my normal shoe and that still didn't work. Stupid goofy feet.

[P. Larson]

And if you want to see some goofy feet, here's a photo of mine. Notice the I wear my climbing shoes a tad, ok a lot smaller than my normal shoe size big toe. Hahaha. I'm surprised any shoe fits my foot.

[Eugene Smith]

Paul,

Can you grasp objects with those things?

[P. Larson]

I can probably beat you in Jenga.

[Eugene Smith]

Jenga?

Talk to me when you can play Piano Sonata No.32 in C Minor.

;-)

[P. Larson]

With my toes? No problem. Hahahhahaha.

[CW]

I thought I'd have the same issue initially and was worried given how rocky and rooty our trails are out here, but I had zero problems on a recent trip that included rocks, roots, stream crossings, and a fair bit of bushwhacking. The leaf cover didn't help any either. I was pleasantly surprised but it could just be that my body has developed an increased sense of foot placement over the years. I also only ran on short sections since it was a hike. If I had been doing a trail run or pushing a 30 mile day I might have different results. I expect to get in a lot more trail time with them and my views may change some through the progression.

[Miguel Arboleda]

The split toes might actually make some sense in a shoe with a wide toe box. I often used Chaco sandals for both hiking and sometimes running in the mountains. When I used the Z1 Chacos (without toe straps) my feet slid around a lot on the footbeds, especially in the rain. Using the Z2's though (with tow straps) my feet are very secure all the time, even in the rain. Japanese high-rise construction workers and tree farmers also use light split toe shoes for safety and more agility when climbing. Could be the split toes in these shoes might hold the feet more in place, though I haven't used them or even seen them.

[William Parker]

Bookmarked this discussion. I'm not a long distance runner, but I just picked up a pair of the Pure Grit 2s for HST from Crescent Meadow to Whitney. Pairing with the MH Seta Strapless Gater for Scree. I wear the Pure 2s for regular running. I'll do a write up on how they (and I) fared when I get back. Cheers until then.

[Jacob D]

Thanks for the write up Eugene. I thought I'd bump this and see if anyone is still paying attention.

My second pair of Pure Grit's are in the sunset of their life and I'd been looking around at available options. I tried on the 2's today and they just didn't feel quite right to me. Maybe slightly narrower and a little firmer mid to forefoot… I dunno, they just didn't give me the same warm fuzzy that my original two pairs did. In the originals I really like the snug fit on my mid foot and the roomy toe box. Their weight and also the minimal drop (I don't handle zero drop well) are perfect for me.

My only complaint with these shoes has been traction on wet/frozen stuff. Wet rock surfaces are bad news as is anything frosty or frozen, albeit trouble for most shoes in that case. I'm really considering picking up a 3rd pair of the original models (they're still around and bargain priced) and putting some sheet metal screws threw the bottom for added grip. Whatever I get will be my shoe for the upcoming Zion traverse in spring.

BTW, I've backpacked in them some and I like them a lot for that… except on slippery rocks of course.

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