Altra Escalante - I'm very impressed with this new shoe; Ego sole turns the road into the plushness of a Woodway belt

Triathlon Forum
1

Altra has come up with a new sole material that I like better than what they use in their Paradigm shoe, and better then what’s used in the Hoka Clifton, Adidas Boost, NB Fresh Foam or Brooks Pure… and I’ve liked all of those shoes.

https://www.altrarunning.com/ego

I was most recently in the NB Fresh Foam 1080v6 which had a nice wide forefoot, but I felt there was a tad too much weight in the heel and the forefoot could have been a tad more cushioned… for a heavy 10+ oz shoe.

The Altra Paradigm required I wear a half size up. I didn’t like the way the heel fit in that larger size. My correct size, though, fit well all around, but it rubbed my morton toe causing toenail issues when running at higher speeds.

The Hokas, newer Brookes Pure, and Adidas are all too narrow in the forefoot for me.

So, these Altra Escalante’s are OK in the half size up and they use a stretchy knit upper which allows me to tighten down the laces with no issues with hotspots from the laces or from sides of the shoe, so I have a nice fit - though a my true size with a tad more of a point in the toes would be ideal; more on that below. But what I’m liking is the sole material. It’s a 25mm sole from forefoot to heel. I’ve liked Altra’s even cushioning throughout their shoe since their inception; I believe I started wearing their first model back in 2010. Though, heel strikers do not fair well in Altras due to sheering off the heel in a mere 100 miles or so.

This 25mm sole on the Escalante, though, feels like 30+mm of cushioning, but without riding high above the ground - they feel low. I’m loving how the forefoot feels: plush but dense with a lot of responsive spring. I’d describe the sole as feeling similar to what’s found in the OOFOS clog but it feels a tad thicker and also denser, so less compression, and a more responsive spring. And, they’re 8.2oz, which for a 25mm shoe with a full carbon rubber bottom, is pretty light. (note: the top runners in Hawaii are typically in 7.6 - 8.0 oz shoes)

What I’m hoping for next: I’d like to see their One 2.5 shoe made with this new sole material. The current One 2.5 is 23mm, but compared to the Escalante’s 25mm, it feels like 10mm. So, it seems they could make the One model with ~15mm of the new cushioning with the minimal carbon rubber bottom that the current One employs, the same glued upper construction and material as the One (the Escalante’s woven material may not be great for super hot and humid conditions, but I have not tested that hypothesis, yet), and maintain the sub 6.7oz weight while providing the best compression and responsiveness of any road flat available - They’d have a winner aimed at marathoners and ironman athletes.

The Escalante does appear to have a slightly more pointed toe area to allow for morton toe, but I still need the half size up. If they could just extend that point a tad more, I could wear my true size and have a better fitting shoe overall. Yes, that would spoil the foot shaped aesthetic which Altra pushes, but I’m not suggesting making any part of the shoe narrower … just a bit more of a point for that morton toe. Last, The tongue is made of the thin woven material that the rest of the shoe is made of, so it doesn’t hold it’s shape well while you slide your foot into the shoe, but it’s great once the foot is in. This presents a problem if you intend to use these shoes for triathlon with regard to quick transitions. But, with my previous stated desire for an updated One racing flat model, I’d go with that updated flat for racing if it gets made.

2

I just bought a pair this weekend. Last year I tried the Instinct, but ultimately felt it was too hard and went back to the Nike Pegasus.
I definitely like the wider forefoot of this brand.

So far with 2 days of walking around, the Escalante feels like I am walking in pillows and I love it!!!
Will try my first run tonight.

3

I’m excited to try this shoe, just ordered a pair. So far it’s gotten great reviews. For my duck feet Altra is pretty much the only shoe that works. It’s taken me a long time to figure that out haha.

4

Love the ego foam, not wild about the Escalante (but to be fair I’m not wild about the Hupana either). I’d buy a “ONE” series shoe with Ego foam in it, as long as they kept it sub 7oz.

5

Is it the spandexy woven upper that turns you off?

Would you add anything to my suggested ego foam One model in my OP?

6

Thanks for the write up. I’ve been wanting to try these for a while, but they weren’t out when I needed new shoes so I went with the Instinct 4.0 instead. I loved the original Instinct. The 2.0 I found to be too soft. The 3.0 were disappointing as they only put rubber on certain parts of the sole leading to faster wear. I like the 4.0 so far. My one worry is how well the upper will last. My gait tends to lead me blow out the inside of the shoe near the ball of the foot where the upper meets the midsole. Depending on the shoe it’ll happen between 100 and 600 miles. I’ve used knit uppers from Nike and Sketchers and found they last a lot longer.

7

Could you explain what you mean by “correct size”, that you keep referring to?
Thanks.

8

I wear a 10.5 in all shoes, except the Altra in which I wear an 11 to get the Morton toe length I need - their shoes are too flat across the top when looking down at them
.

9

I love them too. The one 2.5 is amazing but ultimately not enough cushion for me for long miles. Torin fit me well but I have trouble getting more than about 250 miles out of a pair. Escalantes seem like they’ll give me the ride of the one with almost the cushion of the torin and hopefully some better durability. Only have about 20 miles on them so far so interested to see how they stand the test of time. Did some speed work the other day and they really shined.

As for sizing I am 11.5 in most shoes but 13 in most altra models. However, escalante seems to run slightly bigger than torin and I might need to try my next pair in 12.5.

10

Is it the spandexy woven upper that turns you off?

Would you add anything to my suggested ego foam One model in my OP?

Sort of - I’m not a fan of the lifestyle look run shoe. I’ve run in shoes with the stretchy woven uppers and on the right shoe they’re great. I’ve never considered Altra shoes to be so snug that a knit upper was necessary. They add unnecessary weight and heat vs other material IMO.

If the Escalante had a different upper on it and was closer to the hundred dollar range, I’d buy it - put it against the Kinvara/Zante/Hupana. I also think your suggestions for the ONE are solid.

11

The One 2.5 is currently in my rotation, and I’m loving it for shorter or faster runs. I’ll probably use it as my race shoe this season.

Everything I’ve read about the Escalante so far seems great (hot feet is not a big issue in Sweden), and I’m just waiting for this to be avaliable here.

Altra has shown the One 3.0 tho, and it looks like it’ll essentially be the same shoe but with a slightly reinforced upper, which makes it a tiny bit heavier. I guess it’s because a lot of their customers use it as a training shoe, but I think that with the Escalante they could keep the One as a pure racer.

BTW, does anyone know how the sizing conpares between the Escalante and One 2.5? Altras are hard to find in physical stores here, and their sizing seems quite inconsistent across the board.

12

I found sizing to be the same. The Escalante has a tad more point for the big and middle toes

13

My one worry is how well the upper will last. My gait tends to lead me blow out the inside of the shoe near the ball of the foot where the upper meets the midsole.

This is a common problem with Altras. I’ve had this happen to three pairs (One 2.0, 2.5 and Superiors). They seem to fix the issue in the Superior 3.0 and I’m waiting for a new model of the Ones hoping the address that issue before making a purchase.

14

If the Escalante had a different upper on it and was closer to the hundred dollar range, I’d buy it - put it against the Kinvara/Zante/Hupana. I also think your suggestions for the ONE are solid.

Anyone actually run in both the Escalante and the Hupana? I do 95% of my running at home on trails but am looking for a ‘travel’ running shoe. When I travel I don’t want to have to bring separate casual vs running shoes, but given how fugly most of the cushioned running shoes are (looking at you hoka) that is typically an issue. Hupana isn’t exactly great looking, but better than most hokas. I’ve been running in altra lone peak 3.0’s on the trail side and have been pleased enough to think about trying the escalante for my ‘travel shoe’.

15

I love these shoes. Honestly feel they saved my feet from tons of damage. Short Story.
Stopped by my buddies store Fleet Feet DelRay on my way to my first Ultra Packet pick up last Friday.
Was wearing my normal race shoe, that I also used the previous weekend at the Fort Lauderdale marathon.
Had a toe nail that was bothering me so it was a great decision to stop and buy the Escalante, bought a 1/2 size bigger.

Did a trail 100 miler with them and they worked nearly perfect. Being a wide shoe they handled the soft sugar sand very well and also felt good on the
hard pack dirt area. Only problem was when running over roots, which they are not designed for. During the race I switched out a few pairs of socks to keep my feet dry in the hot and humid weather. When the race was over I didn’t have a single blister or even a sign of one coming up, the toe room also allowed to not lose any toenails.

Two thumbs up for these shoes.

16

I ran about 50 miles with them so far and also love them.
Similar feel to the Clifton (very soft but not spongy), but with wide toe box. I had lots of big-toe issues with the Hoka’s and Altra are much better in that sense.
Specifically enjoyed them on a tempo run last week where I was going about 20 seconds per mile faster than normal (then again, there are so many other contributing parameters; I would not say its the shoe)
I actually like the upper and the look, we’ll see how it feels when it gets hotter

17

I’ve been running in Altras for about 4 years. I’ve had several models: 3-Sum, Torin, Olympus, One, and several iterations of the Paradigm. I bought the Escalante’s and ran in them for the first time last night.

My Impressions:

The shoe felt very springy and responsive compared to other Altras. The shoe is much less bulky than the Paradigm and slightly less bulky than the One. When looking at them on my feet, they appear to be more narrow than other Altras, but they doesn’t feel that way at all. They are a slightly more traditional looking shoe with a more attractive shape but with the same Altra features. I believe the knit upper just removes the bulkiness look to the shoe. I wear a 12.5 in other Altras, and when I initially tried on the Escalante in 12.5 I thought it was too big. However, after more wear I realized the extra room I thought I was feeling was that knit upper, not additional space.

Despite their springiness and plushness, Escalante’s are still a moderately cushioned shoe as I could clearly feel the road more than I had anticipated. This shoe felt much more cushiony than the original Torin, Altra’s “High Cushioned” shoe. I’ve been running in the Paradigms for so long that even after a short 4 mile run I could feel the additional toll the Escalante’s took out on my feet. If I was going to make them my everyday training shoe, I would have to ease my way into them. I woke this morning with some soreness I have yet to experience after running in my Paradigms. But this is to be expected with a moderately cushioned compared to the max cushioned Paradigm.

I will most likely put these Escalante’s in my rotation as a short run shoe, and they will likely replace my One’s as my race shoe. For sizing, I would recommend initially selecting the same size as you would for other Altra’s, which for me is about a half size up from other brands.

I hope Altra brings this new sole material to its other models. I like the Paradigms a lot and I would like to see a less bulky looking shoe with the same max cushion in future editions.

18

I agree:

I’d like to see a Paradigm with this material, which would mean less stack height than the Paradigm, but a tad more than the Escalante. I’d also like to see a tad more room for Morten’s toe. Also, while I like the knit material, I like the One upper more for it’s wicking ability and because the knit/elastic stretches a bit more than I like, especially through fast turns - I don’t think this shoe would fare well on the track. I did a long run this past weekend over some pretty big chunks of gravel and I would have benefited from a tad more cushioning/protection from the rocks.

I’d then like to see a revised One, the design of which I discussed in my original post, using the Ego sole material.

Those would be the only two shoes I wear. I wouldn’t mind.

I will say that the Ego material really does make a hard road surface feel like running on a Woodway treadmill belt. That’s some serious food for thought for those considering a Woodway to protect their knees.

19

How firm is the connection to the ground with this new sole on the Escalante?

20

I got my first Altra shoe – the Paradigm – a couple of months ago and I am completely addicted. I’ve been a runner since the early 70’s, running almost entirely in Adidas and New Balance, but as long as Altra stays true to their design philosophy this will be my new permanent brand. Being an old guy, I look for absolute maximum cushioning because I’d rather have the midsole absorb impact than have my cartilage do it. It will be interesting to see how new materials evolve into the max cushioning Paradigm and Olympus shoes.

I just ordered the Tokala for work. Very nicely made, will fit in OK, but I’d prefer all-black. Actually the mens version has a hideous white and neon stripe in the midsole, which rules it out for work, so I ordered a womens size 12. But all-grey or all-black would be better still.