Help I am in a shoe funk. I have been trying so hard to find long distance trail running shoes that I love as much as the Pearl Izumis. I have tried Topos and liked them but moved back to Salomon Mission due to plantar fasciitis. There isn’t a big variety of trail running shoes in the stores and it is laborious to read, guess, order, receive and hope they work. I have tried Salomon X alpine which I really wanted to like! Too narrow. Also tried Salomon Sense Max that just didn’t fit right.
I like the cushion of the Pearls, the wide toe box of the Topos. I run on varied trails. I have a super high arch and my ideal heel to toe drop is 4-8. I am not training for an ultra now but prefer the cushioning of the long distance shoe. Any insight is appreciated.
love REI and the fact they closed! And continue to pay employees 👍
@Deebo thanks for reaching out and for your kind words about our closure! And sorry to hear about your shoe funk...we have reached out to a few employees who are avid runners, and we'll make sure you hear back from them here in the community within the next day or so.
Hey @Deebo! Finding the perfect shoe to establish a long-distance relationship with is certainly not easy - you might kiss a lot of frogs first! My go-to pair for >10K is Brooks Cascadia 12 - they are lightweight, sturdy, sticky soles, moderately cushioned and HTT drop is 8-10. For longer distances, I need more support/cushion and opt for either Brooks Caldera or Hoka One One Challenger both HTT drop of 4-5 with maximum cushion. Depending on the terrain you want to tackle (these are designed for the beaten path), you might also try the Hoka One One Speedgoat, a comparable fit designed for more rugged trail conditions.
Some of our partners also have great tools available to help you avoid the painful at-home try-on debacle. Here's a link to the Brooks Shoefinder: https://www.brooksrunning.com/en_us/ShoeFinder
Hope this helps! See you out there!