REI Co-op  Swiftland MT BlueSky Trail-Running Shoes - Men's

The REI Swiftland MT Bluesky is an interesting shoe. It features an extremely nice, grippy vibram sole, which is by far the highlight of the shoe. It is about as grippy as any pair of hiking boots i have ever owned. The build quality is decent and the commitment to using environmentally friendly materials is commending. The part where this shoe gets weird is the upper. It feels like the designers were struggling between making a road/rail trail running shoe and a trial running shoe. The toe protection and support of the knit upper is not great. Because the support is not great it makes me want to avoid using it for trail running on technical trails. I took it out on some trails in the white mountains in NH and just did not feel extremely confident in the grip going over terrain with lots of roots. I also found the toe protection and foot protection to be worse than most other trail runners I have used. The grip, again, is excellent, but feels wasted because the upper doesnt let you put down the same kind of effort as the sole does. So the reasoning above led me to try it on the road/flat dirt rail trails. It performed well on rail trauls and tame terrain. I did not love the feel of the cushion and mid sole on pavement. So my general take is that it is a good shoe that needs to be designed either further into being a trail shoe or further into being a road running shoe. It is in no man's land as it stands now. Kudos to REI for keeping the environmental impact low.

Designers spent too much time on recycled product usage and not enough on design. Pros: lightweight, breathable. Cons: Narrow toe box, Heel to Toe drop is too drastic= 8mm, loose heel, super bright white. I will begin with the Pros. The shoe is well constructed and lightweight. There is plenty of cushion and a nice stack height. That is about where it ends for me. Cons: The toe box is fairly narrow. Being as this is constructed with a stretch fabric upper, my small toes on each foot pushes out over the sole. Many running/trail shoes have an extra set of eyelets further towards the heel as a way to "snug up" the heel. These do not, which means my foot slides forward and jambs my feet into the toe box which means a loose heel. Not ideal for downhill trail running. The 8mm heel/toe drop is too drastic. My preference is 4 or less, optimally 0. The white color is too white...especially for a trail runner. I had a huge mud stain on the shoe within 2 minutes, before I even left my property. I ended up dying them as a way of covering the stain and in an attempt to diminish the severe white color. It seems as though a tremendous amount of thought went into the materials used over practical usage. If you read the description, most is about WHAT is used to create the shoe and how it is better for the environment over how the shoe is good for you. Who will like this shoe: Runners with a more narrow foot. Those who like a higher heel-toe drop. Those very concerned over what materials are used in the shoe creation. Runners who don't mind their shoes being stained with mud/dirt. (Which I don't mind that much, it is just so noticeable on a white shoe) Who will not appreciate these shoes: Runners who like a more snug heel, wider toe box, and lower heel-toe drop.