If you haven’t run in a trail super shoe yet, it’s time to get on board. Brands like Nike, HOKA, The North Face, and now adidas are making it difficult for core trail running brands to compete with a shoe you’ll not just want to race in, but do all of your training in, too. Adidas spent a lot of time tooling a trail shoe around the same qualities that make its marathon super shoes so successful. Records are falling consistently in road running, and adidas predicts its first trail super shoe will have the same cascading effect on the trail racing scene; in some way,s it already has. Maybe the ..read more

No matter the distance of your outing or the kind of terrain that you’re navigating, what you’re wearing on your feet is critically important — imagine arriving at the perfect camping spot next to an alpine lake, only to admit that the thing that’s been on your mind all day is how much your feet hurt. This doesn’t have to be you; we’ve done all the legwork to identify the best hiking shoes for women on the market right now. Read on to avoid this scenario!  If you don’t have the ideal hiking shoe, things can go sideways pretty quickly making the trip of a lifetime painful, or even worse ..read more

“I’ve been lacing shoes a special way like this for 23 years,” Brian Beckstead, Altra co-founder and de facto shoe-tying guru, told me. Beckstead, I learned, had not only made a career of perfecting how running shoes work — and fit — he’d gotten his start lacing up runners’ shoes working at the Runner’s Corner shoe store. So, this reassured me I hadn’t pulled a few strings to speak with him for no good reason. Speaking with one another over Zoom, we were both looking at something I’d come across while perusing Reddit’s /r/coolguides — a trove of DIY guides and do-life-better infographics. It ..read more

Long before I thought of myself as an outdoorsy person (or had any understanding of what that meant), I was traipsing through Aztec ruins in Mexico, swimming across jungle rivers in India, and hiking through Nepalese mountains in my trusty Chacos. In fact, I only recently learned that the company’s iconic model was called the Z Sandal. To me, they’ve always just been “Chacos,” a name I frequently heard repeated from fellow travelers with a knowing smile. “Yes, we are both in the club,” they seemed to say. But why is this classic footwear so beloved? How did a sandal made by river rafters beco ..read more

Rain boots keep your feet dry and comfortable during wet weather conditions, but they also need to be comfortable enough to wear while walking city streets, hiking muddy trails, or working outdoors. In this guide, we explore the key features to look for when shopping for the best rain boots for women. Looking at aspects like materials, durability, and traction-enhancing outsoles, we tested some of the top brands so you don’t have to.  Our lead tester, Meg Carney is no stranger to the need for rain boots. She grew up in the Midwest and spent years there working in muddy outdoor conditions ..read more

Winter means different things depending on your location. From the snowy Colorado mountains to the dry Arizona desert and the perpetually wet Pacific Northwest, we put these boots to the ultimate test. Winter hiking can either be a miserable, wet sufferfest, or a fun, dry adventure through wild terrain. Much of it boils down to the outfit you choose, from top to bottom. Soggy feet will quickly leave you with numb toes, and shoes without traction will have you slipping and flailing all over the trail. Durable, weather-resistant boots are essential for effortlessly moving through the white stuf ..read more

How would you like to level up your running with the help of a professional mentor? Thanks to adidas Terrex, that’s what six lucky runners will receive this year — completely free of charge. The unique giveaway, part of the adidas Terrex Strava challenge, is tied to the launch of the highly anticipated adidas Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra this week. After winning dozens of competitions over the last 2 years, this marks the first time Terrex has made the shoes publicly available. To promote the launch, adidas Terrex is giving away six pairs of the technical trail shoes and 4 months of coaching, l ..read more

“If you take care of your feet, your feet take care of you,” the drill instructor screamed. It was 1982, and Steve Ammon was on the first of many forced marches as part of his training to become a Marine. True to that sentiment, for over 20 years the Timberland PRO AFT Design Director has been making feet more comfortable with the brand’s marquee cushioning technology. “Surprisingly, those words never left me,” he remembered.  As the head of design at the workwear powerhouse, Ammon has been instrumental in many of the brand’s innovations and product launches. Underlying them all, St ..read more

Rarely do I get scooped on the gear front. Ninety-nine times out of 100, the river of beta on the latest, coolest gear flows from me and empties into the ocean of friends, family, and the best damn readers on the internet. But when a friend in Colorado sent me a picture of her latest ski tour-hut trip, I stared in shock at her goofy, bright blue boots. They were unmistakable — no boots looked like those boots. I knew because I’d had a pair sent to me months prior. Fubuki boots are big, colorful, and deceptively well-designed because they have basically zero bells or whistles. And that’s ..read more

The seemingly inevitable splitting of the midsole and upper, or outsole and midsole, has been the death of countless hiking boots. With the Targhee IV, KEEN claims to have found a cure for this delamination. KEEN sent me a test pair of early-production Targhee IV boots, which launch on April 4 in the U.S. So, I laced them up and took them into the field for hiking, archery sessions, house projects, and snow shoveling for this first-look review. In short: The KEEN Targhee IV is a comfortable mid-height hiking boot with a short break-in period. A roomy toebox, iconic toe bumper, light leather u ..read more