Prior to the introduction of the Altra Olympus, I may as well have told the Altra folks, “Shut up and take my money!”
Because I’d worn (and loved) other models of Altra shoes, I was pre-sold on the idea of a max-cushioned zero-drop trail shoe…it was just a matter of getting my hands on some.
Until the Olympus actually arrived at Seven Hills Run Shop, that is, and I tried them on.
Compared to the other Altra shoes I’d worn (Superior, Lone Peak 1.0, Instinct), the pronounced forefoot rocker on the Olympus was a major, not-so-pleasant surprise. Just standing in them in the shop, it felt like the shoe wanted to tip me over forward. After running around in them on a couple occasions in front of the shop, I ruefully decided the shoe just wasn’t for me.
A few weeks later, however, Seven Hills held an Altra demo day, and I was able to give the Olympus a proper test-drive.
And…I loved them. They were exceptionally comfortable out of the box (the zero-drop design really works for me), and the tippy rocker effect? Gone ~ it was just never a factor in actual trail running conditions. Several miles later, I was ready to buy…which I totally would’ve done, had they not been on back order for several weeks.
Finally, this week an eagerly anticipated shipment of the Olympus arrived at Seven Hills, and I nabbed them. Compared to my other max-cushion shoes (the Hoka Conquest and Hoka Mafate), the Olympus feels more stable underfoot in the variable conditions found in our local trail haven of Discovery Park.
From wide pedestrian paths to single track to beach running to tree scrambling, the Olympus soaks up impact without compromising the ability to respond to what’s underfoot. The cushion is deep and comfortable, but doesn’t steal energy pushing up off of it. I’m keen to try the Olympus during some of my upcoming trail events. I expect they’ll reduce fatigue over longish miles, and take some quad-killing wear and tear out of the steep descents typical of Pacific Northwest trail running.
It took me a while to come around to the Altra Olympus. But it was well worth the wait.