New Shoes

del

Thanks Rick! I'll check those out. I might be able to make the leather versions work as a work shoe at school. A zero drop shoe I could wear under slacks would be great!

Merrell Sonic Glove
I'll toss one more shoe into the mix. I don't see it on Merrell's website, but it can be found at a number of online retailers. It is similar to the Trail Glove (lighter that the Ascend Glove) but it uses a soft shell fabric for the upper. I think the sole has the perfect balance between flexibility and protection from pointy rocks.

Coming from the original New Balance Minimus Trail 10, I like them much better. They might not breath quite as well but I never have to worry about the shoe full of sand I got in my NBs just from walking around my back yard. Not to mention the mesh on my NBs that blew out on both feet in the exact same two places.

I've had my Sonic Gloves for a little over a month now and with daily causal use they are showing zero signs of wear. Granted that's not heavy trail use, but they've impressed me so far.

I dig my superiors because of the wide toe box, and I found the Merrells and the NB to be way too narrow. Your feet may vary, of course.

I don't know how durable the Lone Peaks are, but the Superiors are pretty fragile, about what I expect out of light trail runners (500 miles?)

Just wear some huaraches ;)

" I found … the NB to be way too narrow."

From the New Balance web site –

"New Balance offers the majority of our shoes in multiple widths, from narrow (2A) to extra-extra-wide (6E). We're the only manufacturer to offer so many width options, ensuring you the best possible fit."

Obviously, not all sites and stores carry the full line of widths. And I suspect not all models are covered by the full line of width.

But if you like what you hear about a NB shoe, poke around to find if it's available in the width you need.

Sorry, assumed we were speaking of the Minimus series, which if memory serves is not offered in wide (4e) sizes?

Anyway, I suppose I was thinking more of the wide toebox in proportion to the rest of the shoe, like the Altras.

First hit from Google –

EE covers a lot of people.

I just got a pair of ascend gloves, which I'm excited about. Very similar to the trail gloves, but more protection underfoot. I loved the ground feel of the trail gloves, but there was too much poke through & I got bad bruising (stress fracture). I'm going to be using these largely as a training tool for running, specifically on shorter more technical rocky runs around here where a shoe like this ups the fun factor IMO. I'll report back as spring arrives & I use them more. On a side note, I went down a half size & I'm really liking the closer more glove like fit. My toes are close to the end, but I don't plan to use the for long days anyway. Unrelated pet theory: wearing a shoe that fits really well (closely) & locks your foot in place reduces foot swelling on long days/trips.