Trails come in different shapes and sizes; that is the great beauty of trail running – every trail presents its own unique sets of obstacles and challenges.
Conquering these trails requires the right kind of shoe. As diverging philosophies – traditional cushioned versus minimalist – drive shoe design, selecting the shoe that fits your particular needs can be challenging. How much cushioning do I need? What type of tread will provide the best traction under most conditions? Which platform – traditional or minimal – fits best?
Fret no more. The ProGrid™ Peregine trail runner from Saucony® may have made your search for the optimal trail shoe a little easier. By successfully integrating the cushioning and protection of traditional shoes with the benefits of a lower profile, more minimalist design the ProGrid Peregrine will have you taking the long loop on your next trail run.
Winner of the prestigious Runner’s World Editor’s Choice award in the April 2011 Trail Shoe Guide, the Peregrine was also featured in Backpacker Magazine, as the perfect shoe for those cross-training in preparation for their next backcountry expedition.
With such praise coming from the outdoor community, our review team was happy to work with Saucony to offer our readers a review of the ProGrid Peregrine.
On Performance …
Our Gumption Runner spent weeks – long hours and miles – with the ProGrid Peregrine snugly tied to his feet. The Peregrines are relatively lightweight (10 oz for a size 10), comfortably stable, yet agile. Throughout the testing period – from countryside fire roads to hilly trails; from wet and muddy foliage, to dry rocky riverbeds – the Peregrines tackled the local trails with ease.
Built on the same last as the ever popular Kinvara, the Saucony Design Team added a touch more volume to the forefoot of the Peregrine. Like the Kinvara, the Peregrine has a low profile and a 4mm heel-to-toe drop differential which brings the runner’s foot lower to the ground providing a more natural and stable running platform. While our Gumption Runner generally wears a more traditional shoe, he found that the lesser 4mm differential to be comfortable and required only a minimal adjustment period.
Let’s face it, when you’re out blitzing through the backcountry you’re bound to get a little dirty, wet, or both. Protecting your feet from the elements, the Peregrine features a dense mesh upper that aids in the battle against Mother Nature’s little unwanted gifts that like to find their way into the shoe and beneath your foot.
On the inside, a moisture-wicking anti-odor and antimicrobial textile lining protects your feet not only from the elements but from that sweaty foot-funk and those bubbling blisters year around. Add to that a gusseted tongue that helps to guard against the intrusion of unwanted dust and debris.
And, on the outside, the Peregrines protect your feet from rocks and roots too with its External Bedrock outsole (EBO) plate. According to Saucony, their EBO is sandwiched between the outsole and midsole. Moreover, the perimeter of the outsole is lined with XT 900 which is a carbon rubber material that increases traction without sacrificing durability. Finally, the entire outsole has a sticky rubber compound that enhances traction and grip.
Room for Improvement…
First, while the EBO plate excels at protecting the foot from rocks and roots, it does so while sacrificing some flexibility from the outsole of the shoe – not a major issue, but something to note for those who prefer to truly feel the trail underfoot. Also, the same deep technical lugs that provide outstanding traction for both uphill and downhill runs retains mud and clay on wet trails. Our Gumption Runner found that after traversing a few muddy sections of trail, ascending a steep hill with mud clogged lugs reduced traction and added a few extra ounces to the shoe.
Our other critique concerns the width of the shoe. While these shoes run true-to-size, runners with a wider foot may find that the Saucony ProGrid Peregrine isn’t the best fit in terms of width. In the opinion of our field team, the shoe also has a more narrow toe box than other “minimal” shoes limiting the natural splaying of the toes. For those trail runners who sport wider than normal feet, we would like to see Saucony expand its line to include wider versions of the ProGrid Peregrine.
Bottom Line…
The ProGrid Peregrine from Saucony strips away the over-built, over hyped pretense of the traditional trail shoe letting you bound through nature with a balance of comfort and performance that can be appreciated by trail running guru and novice alike. This is a trail runner at the top of its game.
MSRP $90 available from www.saucony.com