My love is to be on a trail, mountain bike or foot. I’m known for being an ultra endurance professional mountain biker, but I love to be out there in any form. The only problem is on foot, I trip on my own feet. I roll my ankle. I’m so clumsy.
I’m always searching for the perfect trail shoe. There’s a time and place for a full hiking boot. I reach for my boots for longer, gnarly trails. The rest of the time, I go for mountain runners. Sometimes I run, sometimes I hike, and sometimes it’s a little of both. This summer, I am on a quest for both the perfect boot and the perfect trail runner.
For a trail shoe, I wanted something light, but durable. I wanted something that would offer stability and grip. I also have high arches and wide feet, and I wanted something to accomodate my clumsy, large feet.
Enter the La Sportiva Raptor shoe.
For one, it attracted me because it looks cool. I need my shoes to have good function, but I want them to look good too. I have these funny memories of going shoe shopping with my dad as a kid and he’d always inevitably pick out the ugliest shoe, raise it up, and say, “Hey! How’bout these!” and I’d wrinkle my nose in disgust. The black with blue accent isn’t too flashy, but eye catching.
After a few hikes and runs, here are the key things that I liked:
- They offer just the right amount of stiffness. Sometimes stiff shoes feel too hard under my feet. These struck a good balance.
- They feel light on my feet. Some trail shoes that offer stiffness are heavy.
- They grip the trail – the soles are like trail velcro
- Offer really great heel support which is a challenge with a lot of women’s shoes. This added stability saves me from rolling my ankle
- They look cool, bonus!
- More water resistant than other trail shoes of the same weight
