La Sportiva  Mutant Trail-Running Shoes - Men's

This is a great do-everything shoe for me. Backpacking, running, hiking, scrambling. Well cushioned yet very stable. Perfect level of trail feel for me so my feet don't wear out (not a ton of feel despite the lack of a rock plate.) It breathes very well yet keeps dust out. Great for everything in Colorado and Utah up to low 5th class climbing. Very sticky soles and it edges decent. It's a bummer that this shoe gets lower ratings from people who never tried the right size. Ignore them. If you size this based on Euro sizing it's not far off, and sizes the same as other LS footwear. I'm normally a 45, in La Sportiva I'm 45.5. I do not have a narrow foot. It's average width and higher volume and this shoe feels great. It's worth noting La Sportiva is off a half size in their Euro to US conversion. 45.5 is a men's 12 according to them, but it's 11.5 everywhere else. Like all Europe-based brands you should buy based on the Euro size and not their conversion size.

Almost 20 pairs of these, I literally trust life and limb with these shoes. Enormous grip on dry terrain and rock. They have just the right amount of protection under foot to land on sharp rocks descending without worrying but also feel features on technical scrambling. The toe and top protection will keep your bones intact if you catch a foot. They are stable but not tippy like the Bushido. For the revision I recommend sizing down a half size from the previous version. For the most performance on rock it comes once the lugs are a little rounded off. Out of the box the lugs are too tall and shifty. On snow and mud the deep lugs are great.

Quite bummed with this new edition the Mutant. I have owned 8+ pairs of the past model and always reached for them on days in alpine or any run that had some scrambling. It was always a super durable, reliable, and a shoe that just fit my foot nearly perfect. Once I saw this new edition I was excited to give it go but was a little disappointed right when I tried them on even before I got a run in. The toe box has more volume and almost felt like I needed to downsize a half size while the midsole is also noticeably softer. I ended keeping them and actually liked them pretty well on my first outing (9 mile run in the La Plata mountains). I decided to take them on a 46 mile fast packing trip in the Wemincuhe Wilderness this weekend and experienced terrible ankle bone pain. The new model has a raised plastic strip on the overlay at the ankle bone where the old model had more soft (nearly elastic material). I will provide a photo below of the difference- while it is subtle it made a huge different on the fit for me. I ended up having to cut a section out of the shoe as the pain on my ankle bone was just too much to finish out the trip. Super bummed and maybe this new model will work better for others or I just got a dud. Either way, less than ideal and I guess I'll just be spending more time in the Akasha II. I wanted to love this new model and am an overall big fan of LS and primarily run in the brand. Hope others have better luck than I did but there is definitely noticeable differences between the old model and this updated version.

I've had these for about 8 months and love em. They have done me well scrambling on the Front Range of Colorado, running on slick and rocky trails in NY/NJ, and on some muddy trails in Hawaii. They're very comfortable to run in and have enough stickiness for scrambles. Edging is decent enough and the lugs make for very good traction. Buying a second pair and highly recommend these. For the casual hiker they'd be more than sufficient for a hiking shoe, and more advanced trail runners/distance hikers/scramblers they are very much a "do everything shoe".

I bought about 8 different pair of trail runners for backpacking/hiking, and these were the ones that felt the most comfortable and fit my foot the best. Took them up in the San Jacinto’s and went off trail for 3-4 miles trudging over endless thorn bushes and massive downed pine trees, and these things were amazing.

These are shoes for serious mountain travelers and runners. Forget mushy midsoles and treads that are fashionable but dysfunctional when your fit hits the fan and your mission matters. Mutants are my shoes of choice when the mix is equal part trail, off-trail and scrambling. This shoe handles mud, dirt, scree, rock, slabs and snow like no other. Size up a half or whole because the unique ankle wrap, lacing and heel pocket keeps you in the sweet spot, without slosh or deformation.

I bout these shoes about a month ago to use on a thru hike, and have been testing them out on 2-3 day backpacking trips. The main issue I’m having is the toe box feels incredibly cramped. After a long day of hiking, my toes are numb from being squeezed by the toe box. It’s a shame since the red of the shoe performs really well. They don’t slip around me feet, they have gray grip, and they dry out quick. Might want to order up a half size.

Great high alpine shoe. Like with ANY piece of footwear, get yourself fitted or at least try on multiple sizes. You want around 1/2” of room past your longest toe in order to have proper room. Sportiva shoes having euro sizing allows for you to really perfect fit. I have a narrow foot so I had size down 1/2 size (from 44-1/2 to 44). The side lacing allows for you to really get these perfectly snug around your midfoot.

Hands down the BEST running shoe for wet/slick rocks and roots IMO. Yes, it runs small and yes, it doesn't fit everyone's foot - but what shoe does? I loved the old mutant, and the new one's are an upgrade for me - bummed other's experienced a decline in fit with the new model - I feel your pain - I've had to switch shoes in the past due to a model upgrade that just didn't work for me...but the silver lining is that despite the hassle of finding a new axe, you'll land on something even better. That was the mutant for me. Rubber is a bit soft and wears quickly, BUT that's also what makes it super grippy I bet! This is my go to shoe for any mountain run with wet rocks and roots. To save the rubber, I use a different and less expensive shoe for dry runs and keep my eye peeled for sales and deals on the Mutant. Lacing system takes a bit of getting used to, but boy howdy does it work!

I really like these shoes in theory. I wanted to get a pair of these and I realized they only go up to a 47.5 and I typically wear either a 48 or 48.5 in La Sportivas. I tried the 47.5 to verify and I can report they're too small. They seem well made and they appeared to stick to my floors so I'd love to test that out on trail. Really hope someday La Sportiva give us larger foot people a chance at these.