I love the Brooks Cascadia line: http://www.brooksrunning.com/prod.php?p=41232&k=82296

They feel great, are light and breathable, provide good traction and stability.  It's what I wear when I use a trail shoe.

Happy running!

Jay

effzee wrote:

I've had Brooks shoes before and they seem to run a little small, have to order a half size bigger than normal. Is that true for the Cascadia, too?

While I haven't noticed that the sizing is small, I will say that I wear the same size in my Cascadias as I do in my other Brooks (I also wear Adrenalines and Racers).  If you have worn Brooks in the past then I would go with the same size if they fit well.

Good luck and happy (trail) running!

Jay

LCDR Spencer Moseley wrote:

I never go into a running shoe store as the sale people know nothing of running or of shoes and are there to just sale you something.  they have no passion and do not understand a med arch support from no arch support, and have no idea what the toe box is.

I have found the opposite to be true if you go to an actual running shoe store.  These small specialty businesses are almost always owned by runners and the majority of the employees are also runners.  They will usually put you on a treadmill and video tape your gait to find a shoe that not only matches your foot shape, but also your running style.  If, however, you go to a generic sports shoe store (Foot Locker, Athletes Foot, Sports Authority, etc.) you're probably going to get poor service.

I've had different trail runners over the years, in most cases they aren't too different from a regular running shoe with the exception that they usually have a slightly more durable outer material, and some of them offer more "ankle protection". While I still use trail runners from time to time, (currently: Nike Air Max Assail 5's because they are on sale at nike.com) I'm just as happy running trails in regular running shoes, or my new vibramfivefingers, (really cool but take some getting used to. Awesome for fields and dirt, grass, sand, etc. - a little ouchy if there are lots of jagged rocks or pointy root systems on the trail).

Check out Zappos.com great selection and a righteous return policy (they pay the freight both ways).  Pay attention to the reviews - I  lost a big toe nail in a race because I refused to believe the posts saying the shoes ran a full size too small.

I love my Innov8's and hopefully you do too. I'm lucky enough to have grown up in a family that owns and runs a local running specialty store so I especially appreciate that most people still try and buy their shoes locally (at least around here anyway). I have a bunch of different styles of their shoes but I personally prefer the Roclite models to their other models mainly I think because the difference in tread format/style. I did my first 50k in a pair of Roclite 305s and had run previously to that in Roclite 315s and just a few days ago got a pair of X-Talon 212s that I must say as of the first 5 days of running in them love them as much as I loved my 305s. Similar tread pattern as the Roclites just lighter and definitely more breathable. Anyway as I said before, hope you enjoy them when you get them, they are great shoes and hold up well for me so I hope they do for you too. Let us know what you think of them when you get them.