Forums >Gears and Wears>Are Trail Shoes Warmer?
Canadian runner here. SmartWool socks, normal running shoes, and I run all winter long without cold feet.
My guess is that waterproof or goretex shoes maybe a bit better against the wind, and wind matters when it's really cold.
I double up on socks in the winter. I wear a thin pair of Under Armour socks with thin wool socks over them. My feet stay pretty comfortable that way.
All systems Go!
DavePNW,
Dexshell Ultralite Waterproof Socks. We got 6 inches of snow last Sunday in the western burbs of Chicagoland. On Monday I went for a run on the local prairie path with these socks and my normal running shoes. The temp was just warm enough to make it heavy slush most of the way. My shoes were soaking wet, but my toes where dry and toasty. I only expect to wear these socks just a few times a year -- couple of times in December and a few times in March. Once the temps stay below freezing and I think my feet will stay dry, I wear smart wool socks under my normal running shoes.
Be safe out there.
Ha no, he lives in the Chicago suburbs, he just runs HMs all over the place. GR Marathon was actually my first, and still one of my favorites, other than the fact I was totally miserable for the last ~8 miles. I love SmartWool socks, but I finally stopped buying them, because they seemed to get holes way faster than others. This morning for 6 miles my route was completely covered in slush, at 32 degrees. My feet got completely wet & frozen pretty quickly, and stayed that way throughout the run; some toes were still numb for quite some time afterwards. Would the right socks have made a difference?
Ha no, he lives in the Chicago suburbs, he just runs HMs all over the place. GR Marathon was actually my first, and still one of my favorites, other than the fact I was totally miserable for the last ~8 miles.
I love SmartWool socks, but I finally stopped buying them, because they seemed to get holes way faster than others.
This morning for 6 miles my route was completely covered in slush, at 32 degrees. My feet got completely wet & frozen pretty quickly, and stayed that way throughout the run; some toes were still numb for quite some time afterwards. Would the right socks have made a difference?
trail runners not necessarily warmer unless they have waterproof liners. Ive run in snow last 2 days & wore smartwool socks with my ASR GTX trailrunners & was fine. as long as water/snow does not come in from the top. yesterday it was cold, snowing & windy so wore wore base layer thermals under water proof pants & 3 layers on top including my WP cyclying soft shell. not quite as cold today so wore thermals under normal running pants & thinner wind jacket instead of cyclying shell. yesterday wore face buff (very glad i did), but not today. WP gloves both days. don't think shoes matter one way or the other against the wind, just cover up elsewhere as best you can.
conditions probably not as extreme as where you are. im near foothills of Cascades Western WA