Inov-8 Mudclaw 270
I was looking for a trail shoe with performance qualities for racing short distance trail races and high-school cross-country. However, as I log higher mileage than most short distance racers, I needed a shoe with durability. The Inov-8 Mudclaw’s lightweight (270g) and extremely flexible properties were great for speed. My first run with them highlighted their greatest quality- their tread! Inov-8 claims this shoe is, “ideal for ascending, descending and contouring on steep wet mixed terrain, especially grass and mud.” The shoe definetly lived up to this claim. The mudlcaw performed incredible on the wet, rocky, muddy, and often icy trails. The superior grip gave me the confidence to push hard down hills and through technical sections of the trail. I pushed these shoes to their max, training and racing well over 700kms in them during the year. Although they were most effective in my shorter 5km races, they saw me through my first 25km trail race and 30km training run. The cushioning is minimum and it took me a while to adjust to this. Running the short sections of pavement that often connect trails was uncomfortable. These are performance trail shoes with fantastic grip.
