I am very happy to bring you this review because purchasing these shoes was like all my christmases had come at once...
This year I have had a pretty hard time finding comfortable trail shoes due to my wide, flat feet, which my wife affectionately describes them as deformed. To be fair they are not great, but they work.
I am a big fan of the Saucony brand, I love what they are doing by disrupting the market with their shoes that are on par with some of the bigger brands like Saloman, Brooks, Nike, Adidas, Hoka One One for example, but they are not as well known. They are kind of in a similar position to Inov 8.
Spending most of my time previously running in the Saucony Peregrine 10, I instantly snapped up the Peregrine 11 when it came out, however the upgrades that Saucony made did not sit well with my wide feet. Bad news.
I begrundingly started to look for shoes from other brands such as Brooks for the answer to my problem, that was however until I stepped into the Up and Running store in Cheltenham.
I have to say the guys in Up and Running really knew their stuff and when I told them of my predicament they disappeared out the back of the store and came back with 2 pairs of shoes for me to try.
I don't even remember what the other pair of shoes were that I tried on but I just remember seeing the guy return with a Saucony box and thinking, why has he bought me Peregrine's to try on?
To my surprise out of the box came the Xodus 11's, which I had no idea even existed. I put them on and they fit like a glove, incredibly comfortable and plenty of space for my flippers. Anyway I bought them in a snip and have enjoyed every run in them since.
So on to the review...
First a little technical detail about the Xodus 11:
Weight: 354grams (Mens UK 10)
Mid-sole stack height: 27.5mm/31.5mm
Drop: 4mm
Lug Depth: 5mm
Size: True to size (I bought a UK10.5)
Toe Box: Very Good width
Price: £125 (Currently retailing online at £140 so shop around)
Colours : Black, Yellow or Grey
I have put just under 80 miles in these shoes already on various terrain, so I have a good feel for how they perform.
The first thing to notice about the shoe is the weight, 354grams is a lot of weight when you compare it with other shoes. I reviewed the Inov 8 Trailfly Ultra G300 Max a while ago and I thought that was heavy at 300grams but, as I wrote in that review, I didn't notice the weight when I was running and the Saucony Xodus 11 is no different.
I do not feel the weight of these shoes when I have them on, in fact they feel bouncy and responsive.
There is a reason for that weight in the shoe, if you look at the stack height of the shoe you will see there is a lot of cushioning underfoot, and that's because this shoe has been made to go the distance. This is for long runs, ultras, where you are going to be on your feet for endless hours, and boy does it perform that job well.
The sole of the shoe is clad in the super sticky PWR TRAC rubber and the lug depth is 5mm so there is pleanty of grip on all terrain. I have run this on tarmac, dry mud, wet mud, boggy fields, gravel, rocks and it has performed really well.
There is a rock plate built into the sole of the shoe for added protection when you are running on the technical terrain.
The mid-sole of the shoe is comprised of the excellent Saucony PWR RUN+ PB Compound offering great comfort underfoot.
The upper of the shoe seems very durable and looks like it will last some time, I obviously cannot see how that's going to play out just yet but once I have another 100 miles on the show I'll update you.
There are plenty of overlays around the toe area and along the side of the shoe for added protection so you feel safe and secure on the rough stuff when you are kicking stones or tripping on tree roots.
The lacing system is standard but I had no issues with laces coming loose, and the nicely padded tounge in the shoe is gusseted so you get a very comfortable fit without movement.
With my wide foot shape I was able to get a very good lockdown in the shoe, and other reviews that I have read on this shoe suggested that other people have also achieved a good lock down and comfortable fit. I had no lateral movement when running and no issues on hills where your toes might push against the top of the shoe.
The Saucony Xodus 11 really is a great shoe, and like its predecessor, it looks to be one of the shoes of 2021/2022.
Conclusion
This long distance shoe will not be for everyone, some will not like the weight and others will prefer less cushioning, but the Saucony team have made a shoe that can tackle anything over the course of a very long run where you might encounter a huge mixture of train and weather that will test you to the max, and you'll want a shoe on your feet that you can trust. The Saucony Xodus 11 could be that shoe!!
Until next time,
Rob
Comments