It’s road running season friends. That means it’s time to free yourself from long unrelenting hours on the dreadmill and hit the wide open roads outside. With the wind at your back and the right road running shoes on your feet, your warm weather run routines will transcend earthly delights to something straight from the storybooks. Our team put heavy miles this Spring, and narrowed down our list or roadies for four favorites to carry you through your summer miles.
Altra Running Solstice
If you’ve been looking for a new short distance everyday favorite, your search is over. Designed to assure unencumbered mobility as you navigate the urban jungle, the brand new Altra Solstice is responsive, good looking and affordable. Like really affordable – which is great because you need that extra coin for your summer vacations.
Featuring an engineered mesh upper and exposed EVA outsole, the Solstice ensures you stay light, fast, and properly supported whether you’re trucking through fartlek training or simply crushing a blood-pumping, fast one-miler on your lunch break. Matching a 23mm stack height with the now legendary FootShape design and ZeroDrop build, the Solstice is ready to ride. If you have ever considered Altra, this is the perfect shoe to get you hooked.
Altrarunning.com; $90
Saucony Kinvara 9
Nine years ago the first Kinvara pioneered Saucony’s design philosophy. Today, the evolution of Saucony’s most popular minimalist option, continues the brand’s efforts at getting you back to the purity of running naturally through modern design.
A 4mm heel-to-toe offset (23mm stack height in heel / 19mm stack height in forefoot) delivers a more natural ride, letting your feet and body do more work while relying less on the shoes’ cushioning and stability features. But when you need it, the Kinvara 9 offers an energetic rebound our team loves. The smart kids at Saucony outfitted the Kinvara with a newly redesigned, seamless mesh upper, complete with minimal FlexFilm overlays for subtle structural support. Agile, nimble, sexy and smart the Kinvara 9 is an absolute gem that will actually encourage you to put in more miles.
Saucony.com; MSRP $110
Hoka One One Cavu
Once you stop admiring the CAVU for it’s aesthetic value, you’ll quickly come to appreciate it for the supreme cushion and premium stability for which the HOKA ONE ONE brand is globally adored. Part of the brand’s new Fly Collection, the CAVU (men’s and women’s) epitomizes lightweight performance.
CAVU offers a versatile running shoe with a bold and simple look. A little lower, and a little lighter than its category mates, Cavu features HOKA ONE ONE’s much lauded ‘intelligent’ PROFLY™ cushioning—softer in the heel for shock absorption, and firmer in the forefoot for propulsion and energy return. Open engineered mesh not only offers a comfortable fit and maximum breathability, but it keeps things fresh when the mercury rises and the sun beats down. Whether you’re aiming for big miles, or a run around the park, the RMAT outsole provides lightweight, soft ground contact and responsive cushioning.
hokaoneone.com; MSRP $110
inov-8 ParkClaw 275 GTX
If you want to keep your training consistent during this time of year, you’d better have a dependable pair of hybrid shoes sporting GTX – because let’s be honest, Mother Nature doesn’t always agree with your running schedule. Towards those ends, the new ParkClaw 275 GTX has the soul of a trail runner, but performs like a roadie. In other words, it’s the shoe designed to reflect the realities of where and how you run.
These versatile kicks feature GORE Invisible Fit Technology (GORE-TEX membrane bonded directly to the upper) for 100% waterproofing to keep you protected during summer thunderstorms or those transition-to-trail days that include a few creek crossings. As well as improved construction, the GORE Invisible Fit technology means these shoes have a faster dry-out time of up to 50% so you feel confident and comfortable in all weather. The brand’s Powerflow+ midsole technology delivers impressive cushioning and energy return no matter what terrain is underfoot. Add in Inov-8’s iconic outsole grip optimized for road running, and you get dependable traction whether you’re running over stairs, dodging food carts at the farmers market, or blitzing the greenbelt.
inov-8.com; MSRP $150 (without GTX $130)
Altra Running Duo
We rarely include two shoes from one brand… but the all new Duo from Altra warrants the additional inclusion. In the Duo, Altra beautifully blends a max cushion build with a feather light weight for an impressive cushion-to-weight ratio.
Whether it’s for men or women, Altra builds all of their shoes on a zero-drop platform and a foot-shaped design. But the reason we love it is the maximum versatility it offers. From big mile training days to slow recovery runs; from tempo runs to race days, the Duo easily accommodates them all. The blown rubber outsole, injection molded midsole and airy mesh upper all combine for a run that feels as good as it looks.
Altrarunning.com; MSRP $130