Tried, Tested and Reviewed: Topo Mountain Racer 3

Decisions decisions. When you love your road shoe, but it doesn’t quite cut it when we shift in to winter and you need something that delivers a bit more grip….

I’m fortunate that I live somewhere with a nature reserve and the trans-Pennine trail on my doorstep. It provides lovely run opportunities and I confess, I’m rubbish at just sticking to pavements. At this time of year, my trail footpaths are often slippy, a little muddy, and if I go on the TPT for a few miles, I’m definitely in for a few mud patches. My normal runners are an absolute dream, but from November through to spring, they just don’t cut it on a lot of my runs.

Enter the Topo Athletic Mountain Racer. Oh my word, I am in love. They’re super comfy, narrow in the arch and wider in the toe, and rather funky aesthetically too. Although a lower drop than my regular roadshow, I have transitioned really easily and happy to say I’ve managed to manage to crack out some speedy miles in them. I admit I was a little worried that as a ‘trail’ shoe, they’d be a little heavy and slower, but no worries here, they have delivered. They feel really light, good push-off and give you that piece of mind grip when you need it.

A perfect combo if you’re looking for a trainer that transitions from pavement to trail, or simply just standard pavements. I’ve ran almost 200 miles in them so far, and pleased to say they perform every bit as well as they did on day 1. A great all-rounder, super comfy and possibly my new favourite. I’ll definitely be buying a second pair.