Toe splay is so much more important than most people realize and is my biggest bug bear in running shoes.

I'm on a bit of an Altra kick this year so bear with me while I ramble: I really feel like Altra redid the Escalante 2.5 in a way that honors what people loved about the first and 1.5 versions. I'm enjoying it so much that I bought a second pair just to have once the first one wears out. My favorite Altra has to be the Escalante Racer, which is just the perfect shoe. It's light, breathable, and simple. Upper, midsole, outsole. No carbon, no problem. It's one of the purest running experiences you can get without going full minimalist or barefoot. God I just love it.

I have ran in the olympus 3.0 and the 3.5 and loved them. I used them for 20km's and onward, and mainly on the road. The extra traction and cushioning for steep down hills just saved the legs the next day. I found them ideal for 35km long runs where it was about covering the distance and not the speed. This is my favourite Max cushion shoe, I have also found that with the higher stack height you don't notice the heel to toe drop as much when compared to other Altra shoes.

I stocked up on Olympus 3's. Best shoe ever. Max cushioned but not squishy at all. Great energy return. I have run 4 half marathons in them over the past year.. Loving the Escalante 2's as well even though some seem to dislike it for whatever reason (wear them one time they will break in). They both have a forefoot rocker which greatly helps my big toe pain.

Another benefit of Altra shoes with such a wide toe box is that people with relatively common forefoot problems such as Morton's neuroma, can find instant relief as toes can splay properly. Really helped me after struggling with Nike Pegasus

This and my cousin Jami's have become my favorite running shoes review channels

I have the 2 years older variety of the Olympus. They literally helped heal some horrible plantar fasciitis! I don't know exactly how, but I think they played a big part. My toes used to bunch together and now my foot is healing as my toes are splaying open as I run. I remember giggling on my first run in them as I felt, for the first time ever, my toes opening right up! Worth every penny. But... they look a little cumbersome and goofy. So big! I don't care. Every day I hit the hills I'm by myself and I'm comfy! It's not a fashion show

I got these in black and grey for my Ultramarathon races (only for competition). The fit is fantastic. Not quite sure about the durability of the cushion itself (I believe it is A-Bound), but it is very cushioned out of the box and underfoot. They have the best fit of any trail shoe of this caliber, when compared to Hoka Speedgoats and other narrow shoes in the class. The traction is good for all but the muddiest and most technical trails. I give these a 9/10 easy. Very little room for improvement here. Maybe deeper lugs, more outsole Vibram coverage and a bouncier cushioning like Quantic.

Yessss!!!!! I am excited for you to be in this shoe and to see what you think as you wear it more! I am looking at either this shoe or the Timp 2.0 for a cushioned trail shoe.

Yes Andy i had the same problem with the laces in the Torrent 2 so i changed them, really loving them so far.

the way you describe the shoe "molding" around the terrain is a great way of putting it. the Saucony mad rivers do this fantastically and I didn't really know how to put it or what I was feeling until I saw a ginger runner review of a shoe (cant remember what shoe) but he described this sensation perfectly! good stuff and gald you found another great shoe that's working for you.

My OG Escalantes are still holding up after 800km. Favourite shoes to walk around after hard workouts. I also have the OG Escalante Racer (Boston '18) which is my go-to shoe when I recover from an overuse injury like ITBS last year. Zero drop, minimal cushioning and anatomically shaped toe box reset your gait and make for such a nice and smooth run. It's a joy to feel your feet and leg working as they should. However with weekly miles averaging 70mi in 2020 I cannot see myself using minimal shoes exclusively. I tried and always (3x) ended up with a stress fracture when I increased the mileage.

I’ve tried an Altra road shoe on a treadmill but as I’m used to a 12mm drop I went with another shoe with less drop to start working my way down. I felt it looked weird to start with due to the wide toe box but when I ran with them they felt fab. PS it’s fab people are sending you shoes to review as you always give an honest review

Great review Andy, happy to see you're being sent these shoes for honest opinions - afterall that's what your reviews are - honest! Keep up the great work!👍

Good review as always. I’ve just gone for a pair of Escalante 2.5’s and I absolutely love them and am now an altra convert. Would be great if they sent you a pair or a pair of the racers. Brilliant for promoting good foot strike and they’re stupidly comfy!

Great review. I'm a big Altra, and they have really improved the fit over the last 18-24 months. The Timp 2 is the best all around trail shoe I've had, they're maximal but light and fun when picking up the pace and handle road to trail really well. I think these would suit the kind of running you do in FOD. I'm about to reload and get another pair. Funnily enough just bought the Olympus 3.5 last night on sale but like the looks of the new ones (not the $). I've also got the Superiors too, I reckon you would really notice the zero drop in those, the higher stack zero drops make the transition pretty seamless. Thanks for the great review, looking forward to seeing your trail marathon and chuffed you're looking at this type of brand and race!

Great review as always! I can't wait to try these shoes. In terms of the laces, it seems a lot of Altra shoes have issues with laces, on my Torin 4, I almost lost my mind, until I replaced laces and since then no problems. It must be material they are using... Altras are awesome

Awesome review man! Really enjoying these too...And i´m having a hard time enjoying anything but Altra now. It was so obvious after racing a 75 k back in march (in the Timp 1.5). Smooth sailing with no pain or blisters. I really enjoy the Timp 2.0 on the trails and Escalante racer and torin 4 on the road. Just got the new Torin 4.5 plush and they too are reaaaaly comfy yet responsive. Looking forward to more Altra videos!

I love my Altra's but the only way I can ever get a good lock down is with a runners knot; I think the wide toe box along with the zero drop really needs the runner's knot to hold your foot back in the heel cup.

I agree 100% with everything you said on that shoe. 20k in and I really enjoy them a lot. But as you said the laces are very poor and don't stay tight. I have exchanged them for the laces of the Hoka Challenger ATR that I had left. Much better!!!! Apart from that, a gorgeous shoe to run in.

Got these when they first came out. I was very excited, up to this point I been wearing Altra Lone Peaks. I put on about 50-100 miles (per week) of trail running to hiking technical terrain in the Sierra Nevada from Spring-Mid Fall. Initially these shoes were solid, the high stack felt pretty good. But after about 150 miles on them the mid stack felt like it just flat lined, collapsed or something. After another 50 miles or so the side stability of the shoes just went limp..side to side stability was so bad and created so much stress one of the eyelets for the laces broke, first time I ever experienced that from a shoe. Also the shoe tread just shredded way too fast. Few smaller things: laces do not stay tight they constantly come loose, tip of the shoe peels off, and the tongue causes pressure points on top of your foot. Overall these shoes are pretty crappy. Went back Altra Lone Peaks. 10 years of trail running and hiking in the Sierra Nevada I rolled my ankle for the first time ever wearing this shoe. Took me out for 3.5 weeks and my ankles still do not feel 100%. The side stability on these shoes is very poor.

Amazing review 👍 Once I get through my adidas trail lineup I will definitely try them out. If you wanna try other Altra Trail shoes maybe do the Altra Timps. It would be great to know how they compare in your opinion. Also a comparison to the innov8 270 would be great. Way less cushion but also zero drop and wide toe box. Plus they are British 😄 thx for the great content 🙏

Altra torin 4 my fave road shoe ever. Altra paradigm 5 is an great road shoe too if you need a little bit of support.

Great review Andy. If you like the Altra, have a look at Topo Athletic. Similar wide toe box but better mid-foot and heel fit. I have run in Altra for years, but recently got into the Topo Athletc, and I actually prefer them.

It's a much better looking shoe than the 3 or 3.5. Looking forward to trying it after I use up my 3.5s which might be a while because I usually manage to get 500 miles out of them even on our rock Rocky Mountain terrain. The only thing is that sometimes the overlays on the upper would peel off slightly. Be interested in whether that still happens.

Thank you for your very detailed review. Do you think this shoe will be comfortable for long slow runs on roads?

Nice review. Look a bit wide for me though and probably am not enough of a trail runner to need a 400g plus easy day shoe when got plenty of road ones to get a bit more dirty! Any comments on the feeling in zero drop shoes? The only ones I might wear are spikes but then not for long. Having suffered from Achilles issues a lot then am always wary but perhaps less important off road when softer anyway than road. And nice to get some shoes to be sent for review once! Shows how much work you put into the channel.

Love your reviews. I would love your opinion on the Altra Escalante Racer :)

I’ve never run in Altra but am thinking of grabbing a pair for the rotation. I may not go with a trail shoe though as I’m in love with the Saucony Mad River, but you never know.

Shoe been sent to you- ohh to be KZfaq famous :P

I have 4 pairs of olympus 3.5. These shoes are the most comfortable shoe I've ever worn. The second comfortable would be the Asics nimbus 6. I'm also new to altra shoes. I use the shoes as my urban hiking shoes and work shoes. I hiked 10 miles yesterday day and it's like walking on clouds. The temperature was 93 degrees with 100 percent humidity. My shoes were dry as could be and I was sweating like a pig. I wish altra would put more rubber on the torrent plush. And I concur about the shoe laces. I really don't find the shoe that heavy I'm a 6.5 in my size. The olympus 3.5 is much lighter than the triumph 18. I'm considering road running with it.

In general there's no stability devices such as posting in the midsole to avoid the arch collapsing in trail running shoes. The stability elements in trail running shoe do not care for overpronation but more for ankle stability to avoid unwanted lateral movement in rough uneven terrain

I have Kayenta and Torin4 Plush. I feel I'm not enough runner to wear Kayenta as I feel my feet aren't strong enough to go with them. I like wide toebox and purchased Torin4 Plush and broke them in as 3 easy runs + 1 long run before doing 50K time trial (51,06km mainly on quality gravel road) I felt Torin being good guide after hours of jogging and protective as well and my toe nail losing scenario didn't happen because roomy toebox. Actually your review made me to think about Olympus 4 as sometimes heavy shoe does not feel too heavy ☺️

Just viewing this now Andy as considering buying a pair! Out of interest, will you be doing any follow up videos on them? Interested to see how they fair against Hoka Speedgoat or even just after a lot of mileage!

I like this shoe but the first lace eye in the inside does pinch on the foot knuckle of the big toe ( what ever that is called?)

Hi I know this video is old. But I just got these shoes I am wondering if I got fake ones, was yours Made in China too?

Hi really loved your review, I have a bad back and I have been using Bondi 6 for the support and high cushion. I would like to know what other shoes can you recommend with high cushion for wide feet. thanks a lot

Great review! I've never seriously looked into Altra or trail running because I am a hiker and road runner, but shoe has got me interested! Just a quick question; Is this shoe waterproof

Hi, do you still run in them? How do you feel about the Olympus now?

When you order trail running shoes do you order up a half size sometimes? I have run with Brooks, Reebok and Altra. Have always worn a size 8 but in half of the shoes mentioned my shoes touch the front occasionally on steep descents. Just curious your approach to ordering trail running shoes, vs. others. Have the Olympus 4 by the way and I am speechless after using them, a real game changer (for me at least).

Glad you made this review, last 2 trainers I’ve bought I’ve had no room in the toe box, Hoka rincon gave me instant blisters on the side of my big toe and the sl20 rub my little toes a lot, I’ll look these up for trails, any advice on roomy toe box road shoes? Cheers

Greate video thank you

I have no idea how people can run miles and miles on rocky stony ground! It truly amazes me, how do people concentrate for so long? I don't have weak ankles or anything but the thought of running for miles over rocky rough terrain !

Did you find the tong move over. I've changed my laces already.

Just got my first pair of Altras: the escalante racer. Taking them out on their first run in an hour!

yo, real random question. Do you think i can double these up as an easy day/short/form (basically a recovery/day haha) road runner as well as an easy day trail runner??

Hi. Sorry, I know this isn't related to the above video! If you had €300 to spend, would you go all out and buy the Next%( back in stock next week according to Nike.com) or buy the Endorphin Speed for €180 and another shoe for around €100-€120, something like the Novablast or 1080v10. Not really prepared to spend much more than €300 so is 1 shoe better than 2?? No races in the near future so thats why I'm leaning towards the Endorphin Speed and another shoe, and if you were to advise the Endorphin Speed and another shoe, what shoe would you recommend to partner the Speed. Sorry for the long post!

How are they doing? Do you use them in your rotation?

Will these be good on the joints for hiking and some occasional hill sprints?

Are there any other shoes you can recommend with good toe splay?

A heavy shoe indeed Andy 👍

Did you make a follow-up video on these? Can't seem to find it