Caldera Crushers: Minimalism is dead? We’re unsure – maybe it’s still on life support waiting for its own next big breath of fresh air (although read If These Shoes Could Talk, final page of ED#22 Trail Run Mag printed edition, and you might argue otherwise). Regardless, the big boys in trail shoe land are certainly putting the max factor back on the table following the tidal wave of fat-bottoms that Hoka had gumption to float into the market with. And – especially…
Grant Guise is bit of a gear expert – as an elite trail runner, he has professionally banged gear along trails and up mountains for years – he knows his stuff. And he was intrigued enough by murmurs of Patagonia beefing up its trail running presence Down Under. Here he gives the lowdown on the Patagonia Houdini jacket along with a brief four-one-one on just what the hell is the point of a wind shell anyway… (RUN IMAGES: Brook van…
Gear guru, Paul Day, is lucky enough to get his hands (and feet) on a bunch of run technology well ahead of the retail curve. We’re lucky enough to be able to get eyes on – and permission to publish – his insights, here investigating the latest (maybe greatest?) Stryd Footpod, where it’s all about measuring and reacting to your instant power output, more so than being dictated by your heart rate (which is kind of a horse has bolted indicator)….
When it comes to gear releases, trail running has come a long way – the anticipation surrounding the new Suunto Spartan Ultra GPS watch has been speculatively spectacular. The murmurs. The guesses. The pre-judgements. It’s the trail equivalent to the release of a new Apple Mac. The trainspotters and tech geeks go a bit manic. They wee themselves a little. Luckily we have access to our own ‘Q’ (hello Bond fans) when it comes to inspecting the intricacies of space-aged boxes…
Aggravated Assault First up: what the hell is the use of a pretty darn good trail shoe if it’s hard to come by, try and buy? Worse still, if you don’t even know that it’s in the market? When it comes to the Adidas Terrex Agravic I didn’t, until I walked into Run Stop Shop in Melbourne. And my eyes lit up. Spoiler alert: it’s a top end performer. But who knew? So when I tell you it’s a contender,…
If you follow the racing and social media exploits of any of our elite trail athletes, you may have noticed the random growth of strange white discs on their wearied post-race legs, as seen on a myriad of athlete Instagram and Facebook posts. What you’re seeing is the application of electro muscular stimulation (EMS), a new wave of self-applied treatment using old (but updated) technology that promises to refresh your legs quicker than Kilian can knock off a suburban Park Run…
IT’S A CLICHÉ TERM: FITS LIKE A GLOVE. USUALLY TAKEN AS A POSITIVE DESCRIPTOR, IT’S APTLY APPLIED TO THE SALOMON S-LAB SENSE ULTRA SG. THESE RACY NUMBERS CUDDLE YOUR FOOT, LIKE A FULL BODY CONTACT SPOONING SESSION FOR YOUR FEET. I MENTION THIS UP FRONT BECAUSE IT’S THE FIRST ‘FEELING’ YOU GET PUTTING THEM ON – A NOTICEABLE ‘WOW’ FACTOR OF SILKY, FORM-FITTING COMFORT. [the following review first appeared in Edition #21 of Trail Run Mag. Download now at www.trailrunmag.com/magazines] The…
Crush’n It: It’s been a while since the Merrell brand has in any serious way popped its head up in trail-land in Australia. With a fairly successful outing in the minimalist category years back (with its broadly well-received Trail Glove range), they seemed to disappear on our radars, content to concentrate on the urban wanna-be adventurer category (comfortable shoes for pavement to pub that give the illusion the wearer is about to head into the wilderness). [the following review first appeared…
I was never a shopper. Until I became a trail runner. These days, I’m a bit of a gear guy. Here’s the latest we’ve been playing with on the trails, as featured in the latest edition of Trail Run Mag, Ed#21, downloadable for free from www.trailrunmag.com/magazines.
Scarpa, one of the world’s best hiking boot brands, have so far not had much success breaking into the Australian trail running market so when Dan Slater got the opportunity to test out their top model, the Atom, he was intrigued as to whether they deserved a fair go. *NOTE: this one’s for international readers or those looking to get a feel for Scarpa trail shoes in general, as this particular model is not available in AU unless you’re an…
