Swedish footwear specialist Icebug has launched a range
of five trail shoes in the UK including its first pure mountain
running shoes without metal-studded soles.
Icebug made its name in its native Scandinavia with a range of
running shoes featuring tungsten carbide studs called BUGrip embedded
in the soles of ifs shoes. The studs give grip on slippery surfaces
like snow, ice and wet wood and grass, but on harder terrain, the
studs are pressed back into the sole allowing the rubbber to do the
gripping.
Squish and Grip...
The UK range, due to hit the shops next week includes the
Pytho in men's and women's versions, a £100 shoe complete
with 16 carbide tip studs in each shoe. Uppers use water-sheddiing
materials with a PU coating for, erm, water resistance, while
cushioning is courtesy of an EVA mid-sole complete with an extra
'Squish' unit at the heel.
The upper is also reinforced with a 3D exoskeleton for more
support. The studs themselves sit on soft rubber areas to allow them
to contract and are a T-shape so they won't rip out of the sole unit.
When pushed back, they shouldn't - say Icebug - press into the foot
at all.
Would have been great in the recent harsh weather conditions and
were used by Shane Ohly on his recent record-breaking Scottish winter
Ramsay
Round circuit.
Mountain Running Shoes...
The Pytho's a pretty specialist bit of kit, but the new
Navigator for men and its sister the, erm, Froggy which
is lasted for the female foot are aimed at more general mountain
running.
Unlike the Pytho they have a conventional rubber outsole with a
grippy looking tread pattern, but they also give you the option of
adding a temporary BUGweb attachment which has six carbide studs for
extra grip on ice and snow. The sole unit features grooves into which
the BUGweb locates securely and once on - they're matched exactly to
shoe sizes - it feels quite firmly attached.
Looking at the shoes, they seem like a good compromise between
thin-soled and stable, but harshly cushioned fell shoes and the sort
of cushioned but less stable trail-running shoes coming out of the
States. Cushioning is EVA, there's tough-feeling reinforcement on toe
and heel areas and a squish zone as well.
Colours are quite, erm, brash - think luminous pink for the gurlz
and hot red for the fellas. Price is £90 and the Bugweb
retails for £20 per pair.
Ideal Trail Walker?
We've saved the best for last, at least as far as walkers go. The
Gripmaster and Gripmistress - yes, they're Swedish -
are intended as a shoe for longer, more general trail runs perhaps
with a heavier load and have more padding, but we reckon they'll also
make an interesting lightweight option for walkers in the way that
Inov8 trail shoes have been adapted.
The shoe looks better in the flesh than in pictures, features
significantly more cushioning than its garish siblings and has more
reinforcement to the uppers as well. The mid-sole uses two grades of
EVA for, it says here, a 'combination of firm torsion and softness
towards the foot'.
And as with the Navigator, the sole can also take an optional
BUGweb attachment for ultra-slippery conditions. We're getting a pair
in for review, so watch this space. Price is £80 for both
Master and Mistress versions and fit feels medium volume / medium
width based on a quick kitchen try-on test.
All the above should be in the shops early April. More information
on line at www.icebug.se.
For information on UK stockists contact sales@arkconsultants.co.uk.
