TRAIL SHOE REVIEW - LA SPORTIVA Anakondas

Just the name conjures up images in my mind of a mud loving, water dwelling snake. So if they have named them after an awesome animal like this I better try them ..... 

These are the next shoe in my La Sportiva collection. They are designed for short course mountain runs & vertical K`s.  They have a much more aggressive lug pattern than the Helios. They also have a 4mm drop so are classed as a minimal shoe.

I was blessed the day I received these shoes as we received an awesome downpour of rain. You beauty let’s give these things a real test. First thoughts when slipped on... MMMMM comfy. Very interesting heel cup (I will explain shortly) 

I decided with the rain I would take these to one of my favourite trails. Stoney Rise Walk this trail has it all, steep, technical, Rocky and most of all CLAY. There is nowhere to hide on this trail. Usually done as climb (160mtr ascent over 900mtr) I decided for a real test let’s run down 

As soon as I hit the clay these shoes did not disappoint. They stuck to the clay, rocks & any other obstacle like glue. I hit the bottom of the trail a little surprised not have taken a nice swallow dive at some point and thought the next test was to run up & see how they felt as a climbing shoe.  After all, this is what they were designed for. Weighing in at a touch over 300 grams men`s US size 10.5   Again they were excellent. Nice and light the aggressive lugs were grabbing without any trouble.

They have a nice stiff toebox which came in handy as I am very good at kicking the rocks on my way up a climb.

The stiff heel cup was great they felt snug & I felt all my energy was not being taken up by extra padding. They reacted so well to the climb, enough cushion to protect my feet from any sharp rocks but thin enough that I could sense what was happening under foot. 

I really like the slightly wider toebox in these shoes. My deformed little toes are not trying to escape. I have a problem with having slightly wider feet and my little toe`s always wear holes through the side of my shoes. It actually hurts quite a bit until there is a large enough hole for my toe to stick completely out.

NOTE: Do not attempt to run on the bitumen with these shoes... They will chew you up and spit you out. You don`t see an Anaconda slithering down Bourke street.. These shoes are designed for the rough stuff. The more aggressive the terrain the better they perform. 

I would say anyone who enjoys Mountain / Technical or just steep trail running would love these shoes. Running in the rain the water beads off them & they drain so well. I cannot wait to hit some scree & snow in these shoes :)

GOOD FOR: Short/Middle distance steep runs, Technical trail up  down. Racing fast 

NOT SO GOOD FOR: Longer runs, Also if the laces loosen the stiff heel cup causes a lovely rub on the Achilles. Make sure you get a proper fit when buying these shoes  

I also ordered my shoes a half size larger than normal. They seem to fit nicely. 

Happy Running.

I bought these myself from Bogong Equipment in early 2014.

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