New Balance Summit K.O.M….Leadville Replacement?

Hmmm…   I had not seen those yet.  I was wondering what I would do when my current pair of leadville’s died on me.  I just threw away the previous pair because they no longer had any tread, and my current pair was the last I could find in my size anywhere.

Rock plate – check, Neutral – check, Toe bumper – check, Not a super pointy toe – check, size 15 4E – check.

Thanks for pointing them out.

These are brand new, released this month, so I’m not finding a lot on them yet.  I did discover that they’re built on the discontinued 910 last, so it’s a different shoe than the Leadville.  Never ran in the 910 but my understanding is that it was a little less robust than the Leadville.

I’ve been hiking in the 910v4 for awhile now (did our Sierra hike in them, as well as the Trinity hike the week before). Heel is a touch loose, but not enough to cause any issues. I like them.

I picked up a pair from the local new balance store when they first came out at the beginning of July. Depending on the last I normally wear a 13 in New Balance. Leadvilles, Vazee Rush, and Fresh Foam Arashi all fit perfect in a 13. I went through a couple of pairs of the Vazee Summit V2’s and found that in a 13 they were way too tight and had to step up to a 14. I tried on the Summit Unknowns in a 13 when I picked up the KOM’s as they were what I orginally went in to check out. The Unknowns seemed to fit more like the Vazee Summit V2 as the 13 was too tight and they didnt have a 14 in stock to try. I supinate so neutral shoes work best for me. I did the footscan for giggles while I was there and my feet are 303x105mm and 305x108mm so pretty close size wise.

I tried on the KOM’s and they fit pretty well. The tongue is thickly padded when compared to the Leadville or the Vazee Summit V2. If you run your laces tight it can put a little more pressure than is normally comfortable on the top of the foot. In a size 13 I’ve found that I have had to wear a thinner sock than I normally do. I tried on 14’s and they were just too big so no goldilocks size for me. Overall fit is good through the midfoot and heel, although they could benefit from a little wider toe box. I find the heel fits better in the KOM than in the Leadville, as the Leadville lacks the extra eyelet in the rear to run a lace lock. Cushioning is pretty stiff, I haven’t had a chance to do more than a 6 mile run in them since I’ve gotten them so not sure how well they will fair on a long day. I’ve got about 40 trail miles on them so far, running on mostly hard packed single track that you find here in front country of the San Gabriel mountains in the LA area.

I’m heading to Spain for a couple of weeks and plan on taking them to do some runs while tagging some high points in the Basque Country and for a trip into the Picos de Europa National Park to hit the summit of Torre Cerredo. I’ll post up after I get back on how they faired.

Feedback post trip on the KOMs would be much appreciated.

Cheers

Thanks everyone.

Jake, we probably run/hike the same trails.  We should get together, I’m in Altadena.

Wisner – I guarantee we do hit the same trails. I’m in San Gabriel and usually hit the Mt. Wilson trail in the mornings before work a few days a week. I usually head a bit further out on the weekends doing loops from Eaton Saddle or from Chantry Flats. I’ll touch base with you after I get back from my trip towards the end of August.

I think the KOM’s were on sale at the NB brick and mortar stores about a month before they hit the rest of the retailers. I will say the KOM’s feel a little more planted than the Leadvilles did. I’m going to chock that up to the revised tread pattern and using the Vibram Megagrip outsole. One other thing I’ll mention is that they don’t breathe as well as the Leadvilles since they have more layers and overlays and less mesh.

I’ll report back after my trip and let everyone know how I feel they did on the limestone and marl of the Central and Eastern Cordillera Cantábrica.

Thanks Jake, keep in touch.  Have a great trip in Spain.

Figured I’d post a follow up.

Having put some more miles on them including some hikes in Spain and a few more runs and hikes since I’ve gotten back I rate them as a solid meh. Traction and cushioning wise I like them. The fit is only just so-so. Toebox is a bit tight compared to the Leadville in the same size, and unless I was wearing really thin socks they were almost too tight at the end of a day of hiking. The lack of ventilation is a big drawback. They make my feet feel swampy compared with the Leadvilles and Vazee Summit V3’s which both breathe quite well. The other knock I’m going to have to stick with as a solid do not like is the thick tongue – when laced tight it puts too much pressure on the top of the foot. For those looking towards these as a Leadville replacement I’m going to suggest looking elsewhere.

As a footnote – since I liked the Summit V3’s I’m going to give the Summit Unknown’s a shot in a 14 and see how those fare.

I just hate that when shoe/apparel companies make a product I like they soon discontinue it. I usually buy several when I find something that works well for me.

Sue & I have been known to buy 3 or 4 pairs at a time after testing one pair.
Sometimes from NB direct, sometimes from one of the close-out companies like Joes Official NB or Sierra Trading Post (I think I go that right).

Cheers

I have had the KOM’s for about a month now, and just finished off a 50 mile chunk of the AT in Virginia.  The KOM’s dealt with rain, wet weather, steep ups and downs, rocky terrain, mud, and a few creek crossings.  Here is my brief comparison between the KOM’s and the Leadville V3’s based on about 200 miles on the Leadville’s and 50 miles on the KOM’s.

As has already been said, the Leadvilles have more mesh allowing for the shoes to dry faster and feel less swampy than the KOM’s.

The KOM’s have a high rubber toe cap and lower portion of the upper, so it can breeze through shallow puddles without getting your socks wet.  While this is a nice thing, it makes it so your feet don’t breathe as well.

The KOM’s seem to have a slightly tighter toe box, but not by much.

The KOM’s have more structure to the uppers, allowing them to lock my heel in tighter than the Leadvilles.  No matter how I laced and tightened the leadvilles, I would start to get heel blisters and toe cap blisters after a few days.  After 50 miles on pretty steep terrain using the KOM’s, I had neither heel or toe tip blisters.  The heel cup just seemed to be better fitted to my particular foot.

The KOM’s seem to have better cushioning and a better rock plate than the Leadvilles.

So, my verdict, I think the KOM’s are great except they just don’t breathe as well as the Leadvilles.  While I don’t like how swampy they felt and how long they took to dry while I was moving, (granted in humid and occasionally rainy weather) I was impressed with how well they kept my heels from slipping around and how good they felt when I was crossing some bad rocky ground.

I ran into a southbounder who was on her 2nd pair of KOM’s.  She was sold on them.

The KOM’s just haven’t worked out for me personally. I figured I’d give them one more shot and last Sunday I did a 15.5 mile loop which consisted of running the first 9 miles and then hiking / bushwhacking / hiking the last 6.5. Grip was good and the soles of my feet didn’t feel overly beat up the next day. But even with super thin socks, the toe bang on my right foot was noticeable. I think I may loose the toenail on my big toe of that foot as a result.

Oh well.. Time to try something else. I have  a set of La Sportiva Mutants inbound to give a go. If anyone wants to give the KOM’s a try and you wear mens size 12.5/13 shoot me a PM as I’ll let mine go for cheap.

Thanks for all the updates on this.  3 months later and my Leadvilles are beat to death and I haven’t pulled the trigger on a replacement.  New shoe anxiety, I take no pleasure in finding new ones.

PM incoming Jake, I’ll check yours out.

The Leadvilles were a stability shoe, KOM are not. This may be a big deal to some.

There is a pair of new Leadvilles V3, in a size 10 D, right now in Gear Swap, just in case somebody is looking for a pair.

Update…picked up the Summit K.O.M.s and really like them so far.  I actually think they’re a fairly solid replacement for the Leadville, just plan on sizing totally differently.  I was wearing the Leadville in 13 D.  To get the same feeling in Summit K.O.M.s I had to get 14 2E.  Granted, I think my foot has spread even more since the Leadvilles. The toebox is definitely smaller than the Leadville, but this can be mitigated with sizing up/wider.  Despite going so a size/width bigger, the midfoot and heel feel good and locked in, almost better than the Leadville.

I definitely think it’s a shoe that should be on the LW backpacker’s radar, especially for those that want width options through 4E but don’t want the zero drop of an Altra.  Even at 4E I doubt the KOM toebox is as wide as an Altra, but it’s good enough for me.  I’ve always wanted to love Altras (owned Lone Peak 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0) but the fit and foam always feel soft and sloppy to me.

good to hear!

there hasn’t been a ton of reviews of this shoe, though i’ve looked. it’s still strange to me that they killed off the leadville for something so similar.