NorthernRunner.com Blog

This week I’ve reviewed the Hoka One One Bondi X. The new Bondi X is a maximal cushioned shoe with a carbon plate, which is a strange concept at a glance! Maximal cushioned shoes are typically designed for longer, slower runs. They give that ‘running on pillows’ feeling and allow you to feel like you could keep plodding along forever. Carbon fibre plate running shoes on the other hand are snappy, responsive shoes. Designed solely for speed. So, adding the two together makes for an interesting ride. The fit is... Read More

The difference between the Brooks Adrenaline GTS 21 and the new Brooks Adrenaline GTS 22 support road running shoe is a question we’re getting a lot at Northern Runner in-store and online. The Brooks Adrenaline GTS is now in it’s 22nd edition. These are a road running shoe designed for the mild pronator. An everyday training shoe, designed for your easy runs and long runs. This is a shoe that has been so popular that Brooks were careful to make changes very minor over the years. However, midsole technology has... Read More

In this article we’ll describe in our opinion, the difference between the Lone Peak 6 and the Lone Peak 5. Origin The Lone Peak was Altra’s original trail shoe and came onto the running shoe market over 10 years ago. Developed by Golden Harper and Brian Beckstead, the story goes that Brian was trying to finish a 100-mile event and was suffering with various injuries, pain and blisters. The higher milage was defeating his feet! The pair discovered that a lot of the problems were caused by running shoes with... Read More

What is the Best Hoka One One Trail Shoe? Rightly or wrongly, people often look for the “the best” shoe, whether it be trail, road, cross country, or anything else. The best Hoka trail running shoe depends on various factors, including where you’re going, what you’ve run in before, what your feet are like and more. Trail runs vary considerably and often consist of sections of road, hard packed tracks, farmers’ fields, or muddy single tracks. No one trail shoe is ideal for all these types of terrains. You must... Read More

Scarpa’s ‘Ribelle’ is a range of footwear that is designed for the most technical mountain conditions. The Ribelle Run is the running shoe within that range and has been designed for fast running over technical terrain. In my opinion I found them to be a very versatile trail running shoe. They are not just a ‘race shoe’ and are comfortable to wear on a variety of terrains and distances. Scarpa was founded in 1938 in Asolo Italy and over the past 90 years has made climbing and walking footwear. As... Read More

Icebug is a Swedish brand that was founded by a mother and son in 2001. The aim was to develop shoes that would grip in all conditions to reduce the chance of slipping in the Swedish off-road routes. They started developing shoes with metal studs in the sole to grip on ice and have developed the brand to offer grippy shoes for all surfaces. The Icebug Acceleritas8 is designed for those looking for a minimalist shoe that grips well enough for fell/trail Running in wet conditions, Swimrun events and obstacle... Read More

The classic fell shoe is light, flexible so that they can bend to the shape of the ground to give maximum traction. The studs are small and pointed to bite into soft ground. The rubber is super soft to stick to wet rock. The fit is snug to prevent the shoes from moving around on your foot as you traverse uneven slippery terrain. This is great if you are racing over a short distance and have a narrow foot. If you are going to be out for longer then a... Read More

Whenever a new shoe gets an ‘upgrade’ there is always and element of panic by those runners who loved the previous version. Well, you don’t need to panic about the new Supertrac 3. For those not currently enjoying running in a pair the Scott Supertrac 2/3 is our most popular trail shoe in store. This is because it combines a good grippy outsole that will cope with British mud but, also have enough cushioning and a durable enough sole to do a bit of tarmac on the way to your... Read More