Asics has such a robust presence within the street working world that I generally overlook their contributions to mountain working and path working. The Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 ($140) has been a most glorious addition to my quiver, significantly as I slowly ramp up miles for adventures on the rocky, dusty, and generally muddy Entrance Vary and high-country trails of Colorado the place I dwell.
Should you relish extremely cushioned, easy using, and grippy sneakers to hold you over rocks, roots, hardpack dust, medium spicy jeep roads, some mud, occasional snow, and up and down the mountains and molehills, the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 is a close to good possibility.
What I additionally actually respect about this 8-millimeter drop shoe from the outset is that it looks like a shoe that may please a variety of runners’ toes, our bodies, and preferences, particularly for these of us with wider toes and a not-exactly-gazelle fashion of working.
The precise weight for a males’s dimension 9 is a hefty 11.1 ounces (315 grams) and this mannequin has a stack peak of 35.5 millimeters on the heel and 27.5 millimeters on the toe.
Whereas there are higher choices for important mud/snow/ice, fell racing, and velocity, it’s a most-terrain path working and mountain working shoe and really versatile in case you’re touring or wish to hold your working quiver pared down.
A sizing word, I’m discovering my optimum dimension to be a half dimension smaller than many of the sneakers I put on, together with La Sportiva, New Steadiness, Brooks, and Saucony, however a half dimension greater than Salomon.
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The Asics Gel-Trabuco 11. All pictures: iRunFar/Bryon Powell
Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 Higher
The mid-plus-volume higher of the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 is constructed from a extremely breathable, quick-drying, and versatile mesh (50% recycled supplies) with skinny TPU overlays within the conventional Asics design, offering construction. The protecting rand is on the extra substantial finish and runs from the toe via the midfoot-forefoot junction. The outsole extends up into the center one-third of the toe space as effectively, creating robust safety towards toe stubs, branches, and cacti. I’d very a lot respect this shoe for runs in Arizona and Utah.
Skinny overlays help the lacing system and promote a comfortable match via the midfoot, creating extra stability and management with off-camber working. I discover the laces to remain safe with a double knot, and I’m in a position to regulate the match through the laces via the midfoot and have it keep as I favor.
The mildly padded tongue is gusseted about three quarters of the way in which and protects the highest of the foot from the laces and dries comparatively effectively after submersion. One added element is the elastic loop that acts as lace storage or routing to maintain laces safe. I’ve not discovered this to be needed.
The heel cup is kind of agency close to the midsole however will increase in flexibility towards the Achilles, which boosts consolation with out sacrificing confidence and management. Mushy padding via the ankle collar provides leveled up consolation round my ankle bones, which provides to the convenience of sporting the sneakers over lengthy miles. A stout webbing loop in the back of the heel counter makes it straightforward to get them on/off or safe them to a fitness center bag.
A lateral view of the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11.
Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 Midsole
My distinctly middle-aged toes respect responsive cushioning and safety, however my physique nonetheless doesn’t love maximalist sneakers, important rocker bottoms, and the decrease drop of most of the sneakers on the market. The Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 hits the candy spot of safety and cushion whereas nonetheless permitting me to push the tempo on flats and rocky downhills thanks, partly, to the midsole expertise.
A easy, detachable Asics insole provides simply sufficient help for my high-arched toes, however I definitely wouldn’t object to extra substantial arch help right here just like the OrthoLite insoles typically present in different sneakers from a number of years in the past. That is the one side I’d enhance on this space of the shoe.
This model options 2 millimeters extra foam than prior variations with the change to Asics’s very responsive FF BLAST foam within the midsole. This coupled with the gel within the rearfoot improves the influence absorption and smoothness of the roll from heel strike to toeoff. As a heel striker, I like the texture of this experience. A skinny, versatile rock plate may be very efficient at heading off any intrusions via the outsole, which makes it a shoe you’ll be able to simply put on for 50 kilometers in all kinds of terrain.
A lot of my working has been on dry, rubbly, and hilly trails that I’ve actually put the midsole to the check. With over 175 miles within the shoe, there aren’t any indicators of compression traces or change in consolation. These are simply my present shoe of alternative when my coaching plan includes massive hill repeats with lengthy, poundy downhills, and so they’ll be with me as soon as our increased mountains open up as effectively.
A medial view of the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11.
Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 Outsole
The Asics Gel-Trabuco 11’s improved ASICSGRIP compound is proving to be one of many extra grippy and sturdy outsoles of my present path sneakers, maybe on par with Vibram’s compound at the very least at this level in my testing. Regardless of all of the rocks they’ve been subjected to, I’ve zero indicators of damage and there stays some pliability to the tread with finger strain. One would possibly suppose that this stage of sturdiness would make the shoe stiff or unyielding underfoot, however that has not been my expertise. The outsole flexibility is enhanced with small cutouts all through the only real, which additionally serve to scale back the general weight.
The opposite replace to the outsole on this model is a barely wider platform throughout the bottom of the shoe. I discover this promotes stability with out creating awkward or sudden tipping factors if I discover myself stepping off a chunky path or rock edge. This base built-in with Asics’s adaptive steerage system permits the Gel-Trabuco 11 to adapt to the terrain higher than what I discover with maximally cushioned sneakers. It supplies simply the correct amount of torsional management for my foot to shortly accommodate to camber, rocks and roots, and in any other case wonky terrain, which provides me extra confidence significantly on downhills.
The grip and traction supplied by the 4-ish-millimeter tri-blade and chevron-shaped lugs is great for many of what I run on together with hardpack singletrack, rocks, rubble, roots, some mud, and quick stretches of snow. I’ll definitely take them on the sections of the Colorado Path and Continental Divide Path in addition to my typical 13er and 14er coaching mountains this summer time.
The outsole of the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11.
Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 General Impressions
General, I actually respect the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11 for longer days with extra miles and smiles. The consolation and easy, rolling experience, to me, attracts from Asics’s street heritage — however the grippy, high-traction outsole and rock plate make this can be a worthy path shoe for mountain and ultramarathon experiences, significantly for these of us who worth cushioning and safety.
It’s not fairly an all-mountain, tremendous burly rock hopper such as you would possibly want for primarily off-trail journey in tremendous rocky terrain, however most of what I do doesn’t require considerably extra construction. I do discover them to be extra responsive and simpler to run my model of quick in than sneakers just like the New Steadiness Contemporary Foam X Hierro v7 — learn our New Steadiness Contemporary Foam X Hierro v7 evaluation — however barely much less nimble and speedy than one thing just like the Nike React Pegasus Path 4 — and right here’s our Nike React Pegasus Path 4 evaluation, too.
I additionally favor the extra conventional form of the Gel-Trabuco 11 over the rocker fashion that includes closely in many more recent path sneakers available on the market at the moment.
I typically wax poetic in regards to the Montrail Vitesse line from my early ultrarunning days, but it surely looks like this may very well be a extra cushioned, slightly-less-burly cousin to that shoe. Certainly, I’ll be shopping for myself one other pair of those as soon as they’re retired.
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Name for Feedback
- Are you working within the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11? What do you suppose?
- Should you’ve been working within the Gel-Trabuco line, how does this mannequin examine to prior variations?
- What could be your most distance or time comfortably sporting these sneakers?
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A high view of the Asics Gel-Trabuco 11.
