600km review of the Mount to Coast H1 - Like a RAV4 on your feet
Shoe Model and Size:
Mount to Coast H1
Eur44, US Size 10. I am a size 10 in most shoes and this fit as true to size. More on this below
Profile:
185cm (5'10"), 175lbs, avid lifter, 10 M shoe size, 170 cadence mid-foot striker, 70-80km a week of running with a few hours of sports/lifting and endurance training.
My favourite runs are slow 90 minute runs as im training for my first trail 50k.
Fit/Comfort Notes:
Accomodating and comfortable, no areas of irritation and could run on them for hours. The toebox took 10km to break in, the foam is extremely comfortable and I hope MTC makes another pure Circlecell foam. I have a naturally wide forefoot and lean towards Altra and Topo, but these have been fantastic as a regular shoe.
Shoes that fit me well: Mizuno wave rider 29, Asics novablast, altra experience flow, MTC H1, Asics Kayano 29, Saucony Peregrine 15, dynafish xiaonian, north face vectiv 3.
Shoes that fit me poorly: NB SC V3 (toes go numb even up half a size), Saucony Endorphin Speed 3 (toe box)
Why I Bought it:
I live in the east coast North America and we have very snowy slushy and disgusting winters. I wanted a runner for days where I was not treadmill running when the weather was more mild. Marketed as a gravel shoe, the idea of a grippy road runner was way better than doing road runs in a trail shoe. It completely aced it.
I like to commute 5km easy runs to work, so these have been my go-to commuting shoe.
I live in a big city with no trails, so these were my happy medium.
Total Distance Ran:
600km
Type of runs:
Generally 1-2 hours of easy to 10k pace runs. I usually do 4 runs a week on these. I did 1 track run and 1 treadmill run (more on these later.) My runs are usually between 4:45 to 6:30km pace. Longest run was 22km@1:45 but I will do longer runs this spring and summer.
Weather:
Disgusting slushy+snowy+muddy+rainy days. As it agets hotter and sunnier, I will be using these less and tranisitioning back to my road models.
Ride:
Like if PEBA and SCEVA had a baby. It is not the bounciest and most explosive shoe, but its also an extremely resilient and comfortable foam that always feels good the next day. I never feel unstable, never feel like im banging my body on the pavement. This foam is very unique, I have nothing in my library to compare it to but its well loved for a reason.
Positives:
- Versatile to the point of being a rotation killer. I am down to 3 shoes now, and 1 is purely for track/treadmill workouts
- Its actually very light for a daily
- Amazing fit as someone with wider toes
- Bouncy with a gentle rocker
- I love these for my daily training
- 0 wear...anywhere. This outsole is just insane. CPU is the future. I AM NOTORIOUS for ripping holes at my achilles - these are built so well
- Best looking shoes in my closet bar none
- Great walking shoe
Negatives:
- The foam is too soft/thin at the toes for sprinting or track workouts. My one 800m repeats workout gave me a blister on the inside of my big toe (both sides.) I could feel the abrasion on takeoff but I powered through it because I love the shoe,.
- There is a very prominent arch upon first step in. It was jarring at first but went away after 2 runs. I lowkey wish it was more pronounced because I have a high arch.
- The pinky toe bumper was very stiff at first and I almost quit before I started because of it.
- The upper isnt the most breathable - this can also be a positive but my city is very moist in the hot summer so I will be saving these for the fall soon or retiring them for dog walking and rainy days.
Stability:
Somewhere between stable and neutral - never had sore legs after runs and my ankles and feet always feel fresh. Its a wide base and semi-firm foam.
Durability:
Not sure how it could get much better. Theres 0 wear on the upper, 0 on the sole and I am not the lightest guy.
Other shoes I like:
Asics novablast, topo cyclone 3, brooks hyperion, salomon sense ride 5, altra experience flow 2, dynafish xiaonian
Shoes I did not love:
Brooks glycerin 20, asics kayano 29, nb sc trainer v3, salomon specter
Summary:
I took a gamble on this shoe from an unknown brand. The boys at conversational pace convinced me and I am glad they did. I was not surprised at how the shoe took 3 of the top 5 spots at cocodona 250 this past weeked - it's just an extremely reliable workhorse.
Moving forward I will probably keep these as my easy daily run/commuting shoes - but I am looking to add a super comfy cruiser as my mileage gets bigger than its ever been. I think my next buy is the ON Cloudmonster Hyper 3 or the upcoming Adidas Hyperboost Run. If MTC released an R2 with circlecell that would be an instant buy.