Montrail Badrock Review
First Impressions
The Montrail Badrock comes from the footwear subsidiary of Mountain Hardwear. The shoe is one of the newest in the company’s extremely extensive line of stability trail shoes. Where most companies have only one or two products in the category, Montrail boasts 10 different shoes tailored to specific conditions and terrain.
Out of the box, the Badrock inspires confidence. It looks solid and well put together. It’s billed as a hybrid shoe, capable of handling a variety surfaces, from road to trail.
Features
The Badrock packs a ton of features into its very eye-catching package. The shoe’s stability features include the company’s FluidPost system under the instep to help control pronation. There’s also a special midsole design that provides addition cushioning and directional control. It comes in either burnt orange/titanium or yellow/black and looks great in either combination.
Underfoot, you’ll find Montrail’s Gryptonite outsole with large lugs for traction. The shoe looked like it could take on any kind of terrain. On many runs I found myself seeking out tree branches and dirt bombs to crush as I did my morning miles. In fact, the company includes a forefoot Trail Shield to aid in your encounters with said impediments.
In addition, the Badrock was noticeably better ventilated than the other shoes in the test thanks to its mesh upper.
Fit
The Badrock has an extremely wide toe box and is great for those with wider feet or that just prefer a less confined fit. It runs true to size and uses a pretty standard lacing system. Because of the width of the toe box and heel, I found that there was a little more side-to-side movement inside the shoe – along with some heel lift in uneven terrain. Adding an aftermarket insole – like those from Superfeet – definitely helped snug up the fit.
Final Verdict
Although it looks beefy, the Montrail Badrocks were the lightest shoes in the test at 650 grams per pair. That light weight coupled with great ventilation and the rugged construction makes this a shoe you can take just about anywhere, from road to trail and back again. If you’re looking for a versatile hybrid shoe or have wider feet, definitely give these a try.
