If you’re like a lot of our customers, you want one great shoe for everything: mountain trail running, to Discovery Park, to the Magnolia Run The Bluff 5k. If you’re like Michael Miller, you add an addition onto your house for shoe storage.
For all those “one shoe for everything” folk, here’s our list of the Best Trail Running Shoes for the Road. These trail shoes will perform admirably in the mountains–and feel great when you hit the roads of Seattle.
- Pearl Izumi Trail N2 v2 – This model has become king and queen of the “do everything” shoes by consistently outshining the competition. The fit is amazing: accommodating wide feet but still pleasing narrow, low volume feet.
- Hoka Challenger – This model is the roomiest ligth-weight Hoka. Firmer than the Road Clifton, the Challenger still has ample cushioning for the pavement while performing better on the trail then the Huaka or Clifton.
- New Balance Hierro – Pictured above…We are a bit on an island touting the merits of this shoe, but at least I got Glenn Tachiyama to drink the Fresh Foam Kool-aid. He’s on board, and you should be, too!
- Salomon Sense Pro – Easily the fastest shoe on this list, it dishes out minimal in a sleek (but not too terribly narrow in the toe-box) package.
- Scott Kinabalu 3 – This shoe has fallen a bit in our estimation, adding a little weight…but it has the best grip and rock protection on this list, making it a highly desirable hybrid.
- Altra Olympus 1.5 – We still group this model on our Trail Wall…but let’s face it: it’s basically a road shoe because the traction is so bad. You’ll run right over rocks though, and not even know it, because this Altra has even more cushion than the Hoka Challenger.
- Saucony Nomad – The newest shoe of this bunch has been turning heads at the shop for it’s width and incredibly light, soft feel.
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