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Running Gear
Women's Trail Running Shoes
Men's Trail Running Shoes
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Trail Running Shoes
About running gear at Alpenglow Sports
Any conversation about running gear starts with your shoes. Alpenglow sports educates our customers about fundamental shoe technologies like cushioning, plates, rubber compounds, and more. An understanding about how shoes work is the first step in choosing the right shoe for you.
What makes a fast shoe?
All else equal, a lightweight shoe will be faster than a heavy shoe. We have an incredible trick to identify the fastest shoes on any shoe wall. The trick is to take a shoe and bend it: If the shoe breaks quickly, in an angular fashion, it's a fast shoe. Fast shoes break in a sharp angle because of a combination of cushion, construction, and materials.
Understanding Shoe Cushioning
The simplest way to differentiate shoes is by their level of cushion. There are three levels of cushion: maximum cushion, over cushioned, and traditional cushion. Simply put, a taller midsole will deliver more cushion which will absorb more impact. How much cushion is right for you? Choose a traditional cushion shoe for race day, an over cushioned shoe for daily use, and a maximum cushion shoe for your biggest days.
Read our article Shoe Cushioning, Explained to learn more
How plated shoes work
Plated shoes have a strip of rigid plastic or carbon embedded in the sole that adds additional durability, stability, rock protection, and even propulsion. Plates run either the full length or 3/4 length of the shoe and are sandwiched within the foam of the midsole. The use of plates started in the road racing game, with studies showing notable speed gains in plated shoes versus those without. In trail running, our speciality here at Alpenglow Sports, we turn to plates for more benefits than just speed.
Read our full article to learn about plated shoes
Shoe advice from Alpenglow Sports
Louis is an ultrarunner who joined Alpenglow Sports from the San Francisco Running Company. Here is his philosophy on shoe choice:
"I think too many runners have "all their eggs in one basket” when it comes to trail running shoes. Or they see a sponsored athlete wearing a shoe so they feel they have to wear that shoe. It may or may not be the best fit for them. I’ve found, as with many other close friends, that if you switch it up and run in 3 to 4 different trail shoes your body will benefit from it and be less likely to get injured. That was the philosophy of the shop I used to manage.
Think of a golfer, they have many different types of clubs to utilize depending on what the situation calls for. The same can apply for your running shoes. On recovery days you can use a shoe with more cushion like The North Face Summit Pro and for more technical trails I use a shoe with better tread and sticky rubber. Think of the La Sportiva Jackal 2 or Dynafit Ultra 100. Just a few of the many shoes I keep in my quiver."
Explore our Shoe Technologies Blog to learn more about Shoes at Alpenglow Sports.