Trail runners with a durable upper?

[Hatteras Jack]

Anyone have a favorite trail runner with an upper that doesn't develop rips easily? I think the solution would be to move away from this flimsy breathable mesh and into something more rugged. I think a lot of trail runners are designed for gravel trails, not rock gardens or steep staircases. It seemed like La Sportiva might be a good option, but sadly they don't really make shoes in my size (14W).

Background:
I typically run and hike up and down Boulder's steep trails, with summertime forays up to Longs and IPW. I have been using Brooks Cascadia for its last few iterations. It fits well and I'm pretty happy with the traction. Only issue, I seem to explode the upper on either side of the toe box. Maybe because of my style? I slam those descents. Down staircases and steep trails, I love to fly. I think I just put a lot of stress on the upper of the shoe. I really don't think I'm snagging it on rocks, I think it gets worn out because of the bending and stress that happens when I land on steep stuff moving fast. I also destroyed a pair of Salomon XA Pro 3D, a shoe that is literally designed for off-trail/rocky use cases - the stupid "quicklace" started to fray/grommets ripped out at around 100 miles.

Anyone else have this issue and manage to solve it? What's a shoe with a rock-solid upper (that ideally wouldn't break down even if I popped on some microspikes once in a while)?

[nyker]

I've had good luck with Sportiva and North Face Hedgehog trail-type shoes

[Conor]

I tend to rub a hole on the outside near the ball of my pinky. I take it as part of the trade off of wearing trail runners. I gain flexibility, breathability, and light weight, sacrificing durability. I wear saucony peregrine and go through about 3 or 4 pairs a year. They last 250 to 300 miles for me, and that is an acceptable usage for me. Not to mention, they fit me well. I tend to find them on sale for $55to $75/ pair - The benefit of a healthy shoe relationship paired with the interwebz.

I did try some altra lone peaks last year. They are marketed for summer scrambling and running. I wore a hole in those in just under 100 miles. In addition to a whole host of other comfort issues.

It looks like many shoe makers are starting to put more durable materials around the lower. Again, even my father who ran many road miles was happy to get 300 or so miles out of his shoes before they "went flat". Shoe technology is growing, so perhaps my expectations are bit too low for 2021.

[Hatteras Jack]

I tend to rub a hole on the outside near the ball of my pinky. I take it as part of the trade off of wearing trail runners. I gain flexibility, breathability, and light weight, sacrificing durability. I wear saucony peregrine and go through about 3 or 4 pairs a year. They last 250 to 300 miles for me, and that is an acceptable usage for me.

< 300 just sounds unacceptable...I think my expectations are just too high! I have been upping my mileage this summer, and I'm just not prepared to eat through a pair of shoes every month. Need a sponsor More realistically I should just start working at a running shoe store so I can cop that discount.

[justiner]

Generous use of Seam Grip as a prehab to the abuse you put on your shoes. I use Mutants as an example but you can use these for any shoes obviously

[thebeave7]

I run mostly in Inov8, and almost always the uppers outlast the sole/lugs. Typically get 400-500mi out of a pair. I've even resoled a few pairs w dot rubber for climbing, then I get 600-700mi out of them. And I'm really hard on my shoes.
Have a lot of friends who also run tons of Mt miles I Sportiva, mostly with good success.

Eric

[Dave B]

First summer in Brooks Cascadias, they've stood up to the ~300 miles I've put on them so far and still have at least another couple hundred in them. La Sportivas always seemed supper durable, but you need to have canoes for feet for them to not feel like a corset.

Altra's poor durability is a real head scratcher. I love the Lone Peaks, but poor durability and shitty no-grip outsole rubber makes them a no-go for me for anything beyond gravel trail running and easy hiking.

[Been_Jammin]

I had really good luck with Saucony Peregrines this season. Hundreds of miles logged and a lot of class 3/4/5 scrambling. They will definitely be able to go a second season. Their price point is way better than Sportiva also. They are worthy.

[AndrewLyonsGeibel]

You guys must be hard on shoes. I put at least 1200 miles on my altra lone peaks before getting a hole in the upper. Yes the midsole was crushed out and the outsole had zero lugs left on the forefoot. They were actually showing the midsole in places. The king mt 1.5 has served me well for hiking/scrambling although a lot of people don’t like the newer versions. The outsole is not grippy at all though so I don’t really like using them for slabby stuff.

[nyker]

Depends on the terrain and use, I had one pair where after descending a few volcanoes on ONE trip, the soles were about useless from the scree and sliding down a few thousand feet each. The uppers were still fine but soles trashed after less than a hundred miles, but maybe 30,000ft vert descended.

[Dave B]

You guys must be hard on shoes. I put at least 1200 miles on my altra lone peaks before getting a hole in the upper.

There's gotta be a foot shape or stride component to Altra durability. Folks either complain about them falling apart after 100 miles or praising them for lasting to 1,000. Seems like there's very little in between.

[SchralpTheGnar]

If your shoe size is 14W are you like 6’10”? you might be outside the normal range of trail runners that test their products, most trail runners are like 5’5” and weight like 95 pounds.

That aside I’ve had good luck with saucony and acsics in various models, average between 500-800 miles 50-100k vert per pair. I’m about 6’ 175lbs with a size 11.