Saucony KOA TR review

Working at a specialty running shop, I'm lucky to be gifted shoes from time to time to test and give feedback. Some feedback for the shoes has been good and some feedback has been REALLY bad. This time around I was gifted a pair of shoes that actually are a new venture for Saucony. This review below is a review of the Saucony KOA TR.  I am a big fan though of trail shoes as I like a shoe that is light but with a firm/stiff sole. These are considered a road/trail hybrid shoe, so these were going to be fun.

Below you will find the good, the bad and for whom I would recommend these shoes. 

***Disclaimer: I was given these shoes to try and review with no anticipation of a good review. The review is my own opinion and not that of Fitness Sports***

Looks:

Right out of the box, this was a beautiful shoe. The navy blue and orange is a really nice departure form the traditionally dark gray or black color of most trail shoes. I'm not usually a fan of blue shoes, but the slight black and grey accents makes it a very attractive shoe for people that put a lot of clout in what their shoes look like. 

The 4mm offset of the shoe with a TON of underfoot cushion makes the shoe appear to be a flat shoe. The shoe has a nice rounded toe box which has the appearance of other shoes that are known for their wide toe box. The "flexfilm" upper is a really lightweight upper material that has been on many of the shoes to give a really breathable upper with no seams to cause issues with blistering on the interior.

A sewn on stretch material over the tongue is a great addition to prevent rocks, dirt or debris from entering between the upper and the tongue. 

An insanely robust heel cup with reinforcement on the outside of the shoe really did worry me that it was going to be too stiff. But the heavily padded interior heel have me the impression that the inside was just going to be too soft and my foot would move around.

The laces were an appropriate length and are not made of the stretchy material that we've been seeing in laces over the past couple of years. 

The outsole consists of, what appear to be, hundreds of individual lugs that are reminiscent of other hybrid shoes in the past. The thing that concerned me just at first glance was how flexible the outsole of this shoe may end up being for a trail shoe. The multi-directional lugs were showing that Saucony had confidence in what the shoe was going to be able to take on steep downhills. With the wide base and foot shaped design of the outsole, this shoe would be one that worked for my neutral/supinated gait.

Overall, beautiful shoe.

With the shoe on:

Slipping this shoe on was actually quite amazing. The concern that I had with the heel was completely erased when my heel sat perfectly into the roomy yet secure heel. I was completely blown away as I have narrow heels and need to use the heel lock in EVERY shoe I wear. 

The great amount of cushion of the midsole is complimented very nicely by a full length EVERUN topsole under the removable insole.

The toe box is BIG without being ENORMOUS like the Altra shoes I've tested in the past. Although the shoe has the large toe box for my narrow toe set, it was not sloppy. The shoe tapers really nice through the heel.

I was a little concerned that the sewn stretchy material on top of the tongue would lead this to be a really tight fit from the first step in. I was again pleasantly surprised that it hugged the foot nicely and I was able to not be required to crank the laces down to get the foot secure.

Walking around, the shoe did feel really flexible but I would have to give it some time on the run to get a real idea.

On the run:

I've actually had the shoe for quite a while now, but with the number of shoes I have and the type of training I've been doing I wasn't able to give the shoes my full attention right away. I wanted to make sure I had at least 100 miles on the shoes before I gave them a full review. I've done so and have had a great time wearing them. 

I do a fair amount of training on gravel and pavement so the shoes would get put through the ringer on those surfaces, but because they are listed as a trail shoe...what better place to take them than on the trail. The trail that I took them on was a non-technical dirt trail with sections of REALLY rooty areas and a couple of creek crossings.

Going uphill I didn't get the grip I thought I was going to get, but with the shorter lugs that is to be expected. I was however surprised at, even with the amount of cushion, how much ground feel I had in them and that was really great. I was able to bomb downhill to really test the cushion and the downhill lugs on the heel. The shoe is really nimble and light on foot. The cushion was great and served the purpose really well for a hybrid shoe.

I've put a ton of miles on this shoe on gravel and I feel that this is where this shoe really shines. It is stable enough to not have the feeling of moving around on uneven surfaces. The ground feel that I had during the trail runs was present, but didn't notice any stone bruising. The shoe climbs probably better on the gravel roads than it does on dirt trails. The flexfilm has been really great at not allowing gravel dust, rocks or dirt into the shoe. 

On the road, the shoe feels like a trail shoe. Even though it has hundreds of flex points in the outsole, the shoe is "stiffer" than your typical road shoe. The part about running this shoe on the roads that surprised me was even though it is more in the realm of a trail shoe, how fast it can actually move. On one 10 mile tempo run, I was actually clocking 7:00/mile for nearly 5 miles of that days run. Wearing a size 13 it is tough to gauge the actual weight of the shoe without weighing, but the Saucony site lists it at 10.3oz which is nearly 1 full oz heavier than the HOKA ONE ONE Challenger ATR 3's which are my typical go to shoe. The strange thing is that at an ounce heavier, you don't really notice the heavier shoe. It's really responsive at a higher cadence.

The good:

I think I've highlighted most of the really positive aspect of the shoe, but here are a few more

• The heel cup. This thing is freaking awesome!!! Not a single bit of movement from the heel. I have a super narrow heel and have to wear the heel lock lacing technique in EVERY shoe that I own. I've never even considered doing it to this shoe
• The wide toe box. As stated earlier, I've worn Altra's and can't make them fit my feet because the wide toe box has lead the entire shoe to just feel sloppy. Saucony nailed it with this shoe. The taper from toe to heel is superb. I've worn thin socks, thick socks, injinji's and traditional style socks and the foot doesn't move around at all
• The 4mm offset is great. As stated, I tend to gravitate to the 4mm or 5mm shoes as they have worked well for me. Without having the rocker of the HOKA that I'm accustomed to, it did take some getting used to not having that propulsion
• The laces. Weird...I know...but I really like the laces
• The outsole is great with no abnormal wear when going between road, trail and gravel. 
• It's a stylish looking shoe that when it goes flat, I will find myself not making these mowing shoes :)

The "not so good":

• When wearing the shoe during scorching hot weather, the shoe holds sweat terribly. It doesn't drain a single bit. The flexfilm is a very great and breathable material, but I ran the trails with a feels like temp of 105° and was sweating like a crazy person and the insole just kept shifting all over the place
• The flexibility of the outsole. I know that I said I liked how it felt on the trails, but if it is being marketed as a trail/road hybrid, I would almost like to see the shoe be a little stiffer
• In that same category, it's missing a rock plate. I know that it does have roads in it's category so adding a rock plate wouldn't be very advantageous, but it was kind of a bummer not to have that

Honestly, with every shoe or piece of gear that I test, I try to find things I hate about them. I think that gives a more honest review than just saying that something is all rainbows and unicorn farts. I tried REALLY hard to find things about this shoe that I didn't like. The things listed above were just more annoying than con's. The issue with holding water and shifting insole could very easily be solved with some drainage holes at the base of the outside on the lateral side. Problem solved.

Who should wear this shoe:

I would recommend this shoe to anyone who does spend a significant time on gravel roads or buttery smooth trails. For more technical trails or ones that require a rock plate, if you are wanting to stay in the Saucony line, the Peregrine or the KOA ST (which I haven't worn either) are much more robust and able to tackle more technical footing.

This is a neutral shoe, so if you require more stability this may not work for you. The wider platform can add some feeling of stability, but this is not a stability shoe. It certainly has a wider last than those of most of it's competitors in the market though which is a benefit

Buy it?:

I would say at $130 MSRP, if you are looking for a really nice hybrid shoe to put a lot of miles on, this would be a great buy. Solid shoe. Built like some of the hybrid shoes of the past while integrating new technologies. It's a really great shoe and one that I would recommend.

Please make sure to shop at your local running shop or independently owned specialty store if possible. If in the Des Moines, IA area and want to try a pair on come to Fitness Sports and look for Brad :)

Thanks so much for reading and please leave me a comment with any feedback or questions

Stay Strong, Run Long

Tha Messenjah