running under the BigSky
Kind of late in the season, but for next year (plus snowshoes should be going on sale soon). I have a pair of running snowshoes (Atlas Race) that are lightweight and not overly wide so it makes running easier, the downside is they are very expensive- I got mine on a good deal from Sierra Trading Post, but was rather lucky I think
I need a lightweight, small shoe for a cross country race across the Bob Marshall where there is going to be intermittent snow (likely firm) and steep going (they will also spend more time on my back than on me feet-I hope! ). The Atlas running shoes would be perfect (size wise and weight wise) except they lack any serious grip on the shoe themselves and am afraid that w/ steep descents it could get a little Western!
This past weekend I tried out a pair of MSR Shifts, this is a youth snowshoe that they said can be used up Men's size 7 and 120 #. I wear a 10-10.5 and weigh about 180, so wasn't sure what to expect. Trying them on I found I had plenty of room to articulate my forefoot into the crampon (my guess a size 11 or even 11.5 would be fine???) as there was still adjustment on the rear strap.
The binding is very nice, very similar to my Lightnings except two straps on the forefoot vs three (three actually seems like overkill to me). They have a nice crampon step and the plastic deck has some aggressive toothed metal underneath. They are light (about 2.3 # for the pair) and small (about 20" long). On firm snow they worked great. I took them off at camp after I had been stomping around for awhile and promptly started postholing through the snow , so they definitely help.
I haven't run in them, but based on my prior experience w/ the Atlas Race, I think they would be great for running- light, narrow, good binding, good grip and they are well under a $100 a pop (I believe the Atlas running models are $200+, the Race ones $300+)
w/ my size 10.5 trail runners
you can see the nice toothed grip underneath in this pic
2023 goal 2023 miles √
2022 goal- 2022 miles √
2021 goal- 2021 miles √
some call me Tim
Looks pretty good to me. I've done a ton of running this winter in a pair of MSR EVOs(still doing great on their fourth season). With the tails off the profile looks pretty similar to the Shifts. I have to say I don't love those bindings with running shoes, but with that binding designed for a smaller foot it actually might work out well... you might not even have to put extra clips on to keep the straps from flapping
ME WEBLARG
definitely cuts down on the length of the straps- my Lightnings are too long (guess better than too short though )
they do look an awful like the Evo's, I going to try and get ahold of an Evo in hand and see if I can somehow rig these little guys to accept the Evo tails
Tim
Thanks for the info.
Nice pack. I have too many packs as it is (according to DW).
“Paralysis-to-50k” training plan is underway!
Refurbished Hip
Nonsense, there's no such thing as too many packs!
Thanks for the good info, Mike!
Running is dumb.
I started snowshoeing late season this year and also settled on a pair of MSR Evo's... My outfitter was running a nice deal on them so that pretty much made up my mind. While I have nothing to compare them to, I agree the shifts look extremely similar, and aside from the binding set up on the EVOs (which I feel is a little janky) I like them. Brilliant discovery on your behalf! Especially in terms of the price tag. Thanks for sharing - this will be helpful in the future.
packs are my weakness, no doubt about that
I am proud of the fact that I recently sold two of them, that only leaves me with a dozen or so
Thanks for the info! I've been wanting to try snowshoe running, but with the limited amount of snow we get some years here in KC, the price of the shoes I've been looking at was just too much (Atlas).