Whether you’re traversing single tracks along California’s coastal mountains or trouncing the trails of Arches National Park in Utah, the Merrell Ascend Glove will have you feeling wickedly fast and light as you sprint up the trail, leaping over rocks and skirting around hikers as you go. With the Ascend Glove, you get the benefits of barefoot form with the comfort and protection of a lightweight trainer.
On Performance and Design…
Part of Merrell’s minimalist minded M-Connect series, the Ascend Glove offers a zero-drop build that’s cushioned for longer runs and more demanding terrain. Designed to be lightweight and durable, the Ascend Glove shoe stays true to your natural stride with its barefoot profile.
Leaving those narrow footprints in the past, the Ascend Glove has a wider toe box that better follows the god-given anatomical shape of the foot. This allows toes to splay as they were intended to, while the midfoot through the heel region of this runner has a glove-like fit making for a comfortable and secure ride.
The natural zero-drop profile underfoot is complemented by the MotionMesh upper that strives for a sock-like fit and airy, breathable comfort for the full 360-degree barefoot experience.A tighter inner mesh keeps debris out while still providing excellent water drainage for those moments when running through the stream is unavoidable or necessary.
A 10.5 mm stack height gives underfoot to protection from all but the most brutal of rock encounters. When the trail gets vertical, and the terrain sketchy the Vibram® outsole with its mildly aggressive lugs give multi-directional grip and inspire confidence underfoot.
Notes from the Field …
Merrell’s Ascend Glove attacked hilly terrain and gobbled up tricky barely-there trails, exceeding our expectations along the way. Despite our field tester’s positive experiences with these trail runners, the Ascend Glove’s wider than average fit prevented him from elevating the shoe to brag-worthy status.
While our tester appreciated Merrell’s barefoot like design, the Ascend Glove proved to be slightly too wide through the midfoot, thus allowing his foot to shift ever so slightly inside the shoe. Recognizing that had his feet matched the “Merrell Fit” (as so many feet do) this would have become his go-to trail shoe. As with any shoe that you intend to spend long, heart-pounding hours in, finding a well-fitting shoe is paramount. So, be sure to try on the Ascend to ensure your feet match the “Merrell Fit.”
The Bottom Line …
For those who find Merrell’s Ascend Glove fitting, it is a solid performing minimalist trail running shoe that has a perfect blend of performance, flexibility and protection allowing you to tear up the trails with confidence, no matter the terrain.
*Gumption Gear Review received a product sample of the item featured in this review from Merrell at no cost, and receives no monetary compensation for this or any related review. The item featured was provided solely in return for our honest views and opinions.