Looks are the last thing I usually judge a shoe on, but to be completely honest, I thought the Altra Torrin 8 was a pretty fugly shoe when I first saw it. This is partly, perhaps, because the bright sole on the black & orange version I have been testing really accentuates the deep stack and makes the shoe look a bit boxy – to be fair, some of the other colorways are much more handsome, especially the white & blue iteration, which is very cool-looking.
Leaving such superficial considerations aside, I was looking forward to testing the Torin 8 to see how that enormous EgoMax midsole would perform on and off road. The Torin is intended primarily as a road running shoe, but intriguingly (and unusually for a road runner) it has zero heel-to-toe drop. It also appears to be designed with comfort very much front of mind, as opposed to all-out speed and performance (with a particularly wide toebox and a lightweight, highly breathable mesh upper atop that big spongy stack) so I suspected it could also work well as a trail running shoe in certain conditions.
List price: $150 (US) / £130 (UK)
Weight (per shoe): 288g/10oz
Stack: 30mm
Drop: 0mm
Lugs: None
Materials: Jacquard mesh upper, Altra EgoMax midsole, rubber Outsole
Colors: Black & orange / Blue / Black & white / Black / White & blue
Compatibility: Running and walking on sealed surfaces and mixed terrain (in dry conditions)
There are, of course, plenty of salient differences between road and trail running shoes, and the Torin 8’s toothless outsole is definitely not designed for tackling mud or technical off-road routes with slippery rocks and tree roots. But for high-tailing it along hardpacked, dry and dusty trails, and enjoying lots of mixed-terrain running adventures, this looked like a good option. And since I often have to run several streets to reach my local wild paths, I’ve been looking for some good road-to-trail shoes.
Design and materials
The Altra Torin 8 is available in Gore-Tex and non Gore-Tex versions. I have been testing the latter, and this is the style I would choose unless I was running regularly in snow. Not because they’re cheaper – which they are, a little bit – but because, no matter what brands and manufacturers claim, shoes definitely breathe much better without a GTX (or other) membrane, and that’s more important to me than waterproofing when I’m running. If you’re looking at using the Torin 8 as a walking shoe, a role it can fulfill (if you stick to sealed surfaces and easy, well-maintained paths), then the GTX version might be worth considering, but I still think this is a fair-weather shoe, so a membrane is a bit superfluous.
The chassis on the Torin 8 is made primarily from a synthetic mesh, designed to be both very lightweight and highly breathable. The heel is substantially reinforced with stiffer material to offer more support. There is also plenty of cushioning around the cuff, to buffer the bottom of the ankle, and the rear of the shoe offers a very good Achilles shield. The stack is so high on these runners there is little need for a protective rand around the side of the foot (and, of course, these shoes are primarily intended for use on sealed surfaces anyway, where this is less of a priority than on obstacle-strewn trails). For the same reason, while there is a toecap, it’s not especially rigid. The tongue is padded for comfort, but not integrated (again, because designers aren’t expecting runners to encounter lots of grit and sand).
Although the EgoMax midsole is a whopping 3cm high, there is no heel-to-toe drop on these Torin 8s, so the plush cushioning is distributed right along the full length of the shoe. They do feature a slight rocker, with the toe end lifting slightly to promote good cadence and forward propulsion as you roll through your stride.
The rubber outsole is made in-house by Altra. It doesn’t feature any lugs, but in place of trail-gripping studs there are grooves and channels running along the bottom of the shoe, to provide some torque on sealed surfaces and hard-packed terrain, and prevent you from aquaplaning in wet conditions.
On the run
I have spent the last month or more running across a mixture of landscapes and terrain types while testing the Altra Torin 8s. These are presented by the brand as road shoes, and I have been putting them through their paces on the unforgiving streets of London, but as I suspected, they also cope with dry trails very well.
And why would I wear these shoes on trails? The simple answer is that they are extremely comfortable. The weather has been hot and dry while I’ve been testing the Torin 8s, and the dusty hard-packed trails I have been exploring are every bit as solid feeling as the mean streets in the Big Smoke, so I have been very much appreciating the luxurious levels of cushioning offered by that stonking great 30mm stack.
Also, besides acting as a bumper, this midsole provides energy return and momentum (which is accentuated by the rocker), and the lack of lugs on the underside of the outsole makes for a much smoother ride.
It has also been unseasonably warm for several weeks now, and I’m loving the breathability of the mesh in the upper, which has prevented my feet from overheating and kept sweating to a minimum.
In the heat, feet swell (especially on longer outings) and I often struggle to find a shoe that keeps my toes comfortable, but I had no such problems with the Torin 8s. The toebox is really generously wide, and no matter how long I spent on the road or trail (usually a mixture of both), my feet never felt restricted or uncomfortable. At the same time, however, I felt like the shoe had a firm and secure grip on my foot.
There is nothing flashy about the flat laces, but they reliably stay done up from start to finish, which is something worth celebrating whether you’re pounding the pavements in a city or scrambling across remote and rugged hilltops. Interestingly, the Torin 8s boast the extra lace hole for use in bogs (to prevent you losing a shoe) but such a soggy scenario is definitely not the ideal terrain to be wearing these shoes in.
The outsole on these shoes certainly starts to struggle if conditions underfoot are in any way wet or slippery when you venture off-road, but you just need to be conscious of this and chose when and where to wear them. Because the tongue isn’t integrated, sand and grit can (and does) enter the chassis, potentially creating a bit of annoyance, but again, this only happens when you take them beyond the shoes’ comfort zone.
Also consider
If it’s cushioning you’re looking for, most Hoka hooves come with plenty, but the bouncy Bondi family of road runners feature an especially massive stack, with 39mm of midsole (with 4mm heel-to-toe drop) supported by a relatively grippy Durabrasion rubber outsole. Despite this height-bolstering buffer, the Bondi still only weigh 252g/8.8oz.
For
- Comfortable and spacious
- Recycled and vegan content
- Ortholite Hybrid (recycled) sockliner
- Lighter foam sole than previous models
- Low drop
- Grippy in wet weather
- Breathable
- Fun and vibrant design
Against
- A little heavier than your average road shoe
- May be too bouncy for the trails
- Not waterproof
For a more pacy shoe, designed to deliver speed on race day rather than facilitate all-day comfort, check out the Saucony Endorphin. These competitive shoes feature a carbon plate to supply some rigidity and stiffness, and reduce energy loss. They still have a substantial midsole, but there is a more aggressive 8mm drop, and the Endorphins are ultra light (210g/7.4oz).
For
- Extremely light
- Springy and responsive
- Highly breathable
- Attention-grabbing design
Against
- Sole may wear quickly
- Sizes come up small
