I’ll probably pick up some Virata’s this summer and see how those fare.
As for ON use on ice and snow, just looking at the sole, they look like they would be pretty sketchy on ice. I ran with the ON shoes today on grass. They felt more stable than Newton’s but definitely less stable than the Merrell and certainly Vibrams. Basically physics kick in here. The flatter the sole and thinner the better it is going to be on uneven grass. Newton with the lugs and the “edge” outside of the last lug make them a bit dicey on technical off road. Actually when I was with Newton, I had an agreement with that that if a race had a lot of uneven grass or trail, then I could use a conventional shoe for those races. They understood that.
I really like the Merrell Bare Access for treadmill running and also for general walking. I can’t explain why, but I don’t like a “too cushy shoe” on treadmill or for walking. At the same time, the problem with running fast with Vibrams on treadmill is that the treadmill does not conform to the shape of your foot like grass does. The Merrell on treadmill “almost” feels like Vibrams on grass. As I don’t have access to grass for ~4 months per year due to snow, this is the best ‘equivalent’.
I do have a chronic knee injury in my left leg from an accident in 2011. What I found interesting is that when I run with Vibrams on grass, my knee does not bother me. It seems to like the stability of the direct connection. On Newtons, the instability of “too much cushy” actually makes me do something in the knee where it hurts for my entire 10 min warmup process before the joint is “oiled up and lubricated”. With the ON, I barely felt this for a minute. I can’t explain what, but the initial padding with the “hard connect” that ensues, seemed to be a better approximation to Vibrams on grass.
Dev