Review of Salewa Trail Running Shoes

  You've heard it all before- how I have so much trouble finding shoes that fit me. I will say again that I never tell people what kind of shoes/boots are the "best." You have to find the brand(s) that your own feet will be happy with. Several of the major brands make my feet scream. I'd appreciate it if you don't tell me what kind of shoes I should be wearing.

For the most part, I'm not going to bother to review the shoes I wore on this hike. Most were fairly inexpensive (New Balance, Fila, and Walmart Avia which fit so well that I bought 3 pairs even though they are really cheap and didn't last too long), and they all did fairly well.. In the spring of 2020, I went on a shoe-shopping spree when I learned that I was not going to be able to get any of my favorite trail runners, which are New Balance 610s.

I spent a whole day in Grand Rapids and came home with 4 pairs of shoes that fit me and a major case of the shopping grumpies. Before the warm weather ended, I bought 6 more pairs of shoes on the hike. Having shoes that fit trumped having shoes that lasted a long time.

The Salawa running shoes were the only ones that cost more than $40. They were $100 even on clearance. I thought they'd be great given their full price and the reputation of the brand.

I didn't start wearing them, other than breaking them in a bit, until the summer of 2022. Because of their price tag, I didn't want to destroy them in the mud of Pennsylvania and New York. Three pairs of shoes totally disintegrated in that slop. So when the trails dried out a bit, I started wearing these.

First of all, I'll say that I don't like this kind of laces. They are that skinny elastic that you pull, then slide the plastic fitting down to hold it and tuck the elastic ends behind a flap on the tongue. I just can't imagine that this system holds up the same way a lace would, but I figured I could replace it with laces if necessary.

The shoes are lightweight and balanced well. They have good traction. They fit. They are high enough in the heel (one of my issues is nerves close to the skin that won't tolerate the heel counter rubbing on them.)

But here's the thing. They are stiff. They never softened up a bit. I can't say that they actually made my feet hurt, but neither were they ever comfortable. I ended up wearing them from time to time, but only for a few days in a row. I finally gave up hoping they would get better. I'm not sure if I'll even keep them.

I'll give them 5 out of 10.

In other news: I spent the morning writing the first draft of a different play that will definitely be under 10 minutes. I got an idea early this morning, turned on the computer and started writing. After lunch took some more stuff out of the car and started putting it away. Cleaned up some more space in the house. Contemplated a store run, but I have managed to put that off. I'll probably really have to do that tomorrow.

See Oboz Mt. Rainier Boots