New Balance Minimus 10v4 Trail
Anonymous runner · Jul 17, 2019
5/5
Overall
I love these shoes. I moved up to the Minimus series from running in Vibram Fivefingers for a few years. I found that the Fivefingers simply didn't give me any acceleration on downhills because I couldn't let my form slip up and ride out the hills. The minimus and minimus trail series offer just enough support while also providing me with the zero drop responsiveness and feel for the surfaces on which I run. I've raced all the way up to 25k trail races in these and they were fast and held up well. The laces snapped and the instep has started to degrade a little bit, but I tend to run in one pair every day and I wear them out by running through the soles. Essentially, because I love the minimal support, I just run until I can't any more. They don't have a ton of traction/lug support, but I would gladly give that up for the feel of the terrain underfoot. I decided not to run in them in a recent 50k trail race simply because 5 hours on my feet required a little more support. I run on roads in them as well and they feel like racing flats (though they aren't as stiff as the flats I wear for shorter road races). Overall, a great training shoe for the trails. They look a little unorthodox, but I don't really care. Also a pretty high pricetag. I rated the cushioning low because that's not their priority. The laces snapping also was an element of the durability. I love them, though. I wear a 12 and they are nice and snug which I appreciate.
- Comfort
- 4/5
- Cushioning
- 3/5
- Durability
- 4/5
- Appearance
- 5/5
- Value
- 4/5
