Altra Samson Anyone?

I ran a couple of hundred road miles in them over the late winter and really enjoyed them. ElyDave has a pair and he's planning to use them for a 70 miler in July.

If it helps I find the ground feel of Samson's to be like Bikila's whereas the Adam's are more like KSOs.

Enjoy!

Well, I am not an experience Samson user, but I do have a pair. Problem is, they are still brand new on my shelf. With warmer weather and other reasons, I have no excuse to use them for running. Maybe later.

I do like them. They fit well and I like that you can remove the insole. The one problem I had was some rough stitching and extra material at the bottom of the tongue. I was able to trim a little and with more time for the shoes to break in, I probably won't notice it. Good luck with yours.

I've never worn these shoes but they are already the most frustrating things I've ever come across!!!

Not really the shoes fault though.......Having heard they size very differently to the Instincts(which I love) I'm waiting for them to hit shelves in Australia so I can try them on before then purchasing them from OS at a much reduced price to what they will no doubt cost here because Aussie retails jack the prices up astronomically on everything. Unfortunately while I wait I've watched the AUD go from $1.10US down to $0.98US. GRRRRR Hurry up and arrive here already!

Anyway, in the mean time I look forward to hearing more from people who have run in them for a while.

I just bought some Altra trail shoes for running in the rough Georgia mountain trails...while I was at the shoe store I also picked up a pair of the Samsons to replace my winter shoes... the toe box shape is just much better than any of my older shoes...tried them out today for 5 miles on a medium rocky trail...pretty nice for a shoe for everyday slow running, similar feel as Vibram Kso's but one toe. I probably won't run in these again anytime soon but the forefoot shape alone sold me.

Jim,

Chris is right, I do have a pair. My choice when replacing my trail gloves was these, more trail gloves, new balance minimus or inov-8. I've seen mixed reviews of Inov-8 and they were more expensive so went out the window, I was a little disappointed with the uneven wear on the trail gloves, so they went out the window as well. The New Balance have had great reviews and seem to have responded to feedback from the last release and reinforced the wear areas (Merrell need to take note here), and the Altras - not available in the UK, which really pi$$ed me off because I liked the look of them.

So I bought the new Balance zero drop trail version, which I also rate very highly (they're not as narrow as people make out, just look it due to the colours I think). I also managed to get hold of a pair of the Samsons which I was intending to use for road work and light trail, and as Chris says on my upcoming
70-miler.

In terms of fit, I've had no issues whatsoever, I went half a euro size up, so I could wear them with socks and they fit great. Nice and wide at the toes, and the heel claw thing is great, it's a nice snug fit but not obtrusive and really works to stop your foot sliding about. They're really light and well ventilated, but then let in water easily because of that. Grip wise they are great on road, wet or dry and I have also found them great on light trails, packed gravel, field margins that kind of thing. They'll be no good on wet mud and may even struggle on wet grass, but I didn't buy them for that - that's what the NB are for. They also seem to be very well constructed and I think the soles will wear very well. No blister issues for me so far.

In fact I like them so much, I decided to travel light to Rome this week and flew in these and used them in the evenings out of work as well. I'm planning on travelling to Australia with them next week as well.

Overall I think they're a great shoe and if I had the time I'd even think about importing them into the UK to sell over here as I think they'd go down really well.

Cheers

Dave

ElyDave said:

So I bought the new Balance zero drop trail version, which I also rate very highly (they're not as narrow as people make out, just look it due to the colours I think).

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New Balance does make 2EE and 4EE versions of the NB Minimus Zero's. They make a 2EE in both road and trail and I think the 4EE is just in the trail. Merrell needs to take note of that as well. I hate that the only Merrell product offered in a wider version is the TG. I also think the NB shoes fit better and are more anatomically correct throughout the whole foot. I really want to buy a pair of the Zero Roads but unfortunately they are just not in the funds right now. I have tried them on and run around a little in them and they seem to be pretty comfy and not hurt my foot, but as we all know foot pain from shoes doesn't always show up for a couple miles.

NickW said:

New Balance does make 2EE and 4EE versions of the NB Minimus Zero's. They make a 2EE in both road and trail and I think the 4EE is just in the trail. Merrell needs to take note of that as well. I hate that the only Merrell product offered in a wider version is the TG. I also think the NB shoes fit better and are more anatomically correct throughout the whole foot. I really want to buy a pair of the Zero Roads but unfortunately they are just not in the funds right now. I have tried them on and run around a little in them and they seem to be pretty comfy and not hurt my foot, but as we all know foot pain from shoes doesn't always show up for a couple miles.

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The wider versions of both NB and MTG aren't available in the UK for some reason (or weren't last time I looked anyway)

Weird. That sucks Dave.

PK I have every shoe Altra has made and I wear the same size in all of them. I know some people aren't doing it that way or feel they don't fit the same but for me they have all been the same size.

Hasel the insole is made of a product that Altra owns called A-Bound. It's a composite rubber that has a very low compression rate. Something around 10% or so. That means it won't break down or deform under your foot. I've had mine in for a long time and they still haven't molded at all. I love that. The Samson does have an EVA foot bed though which the Adam doesn't. The EVA is only 3.5 mm and is between the A-Bound insole and the outsole.

Jimmy Hart said:

PK I have every shoe Altra has made and I wear the same size in all of them. I know some people aren't doing it that way or feel they don't fit the same but for me they have all been the same size.

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That's good to know. I must admit I found it strange to think that Altra would have made the shape and fit drastically different on different models of their shoes. If they don't get to Australia soon I might just take the chance and buy without trying. It worked for my Instincts. The aussie reseller keeps telling me they expect to have them within 4 weeks but the first time they told me that was over 3 months ago! On top of that the only retailer they have in Sydney right now is all the way on the other side of the city too!

I do know that distribution to Australia was achieved so they should be popping up all over soon but that kind of stuff takes time and when you're small like Altra it might take longer than some others.

As to the fit. The Samson sole is slightly narrower than the Instinct but length wise it should be the same; perhaps slightly shorter but just enough in my mind to give it the right fit. It's a minimal shoe and you don't want to give a lot of room at the toe in a minimal shoe or it will flop around. I'm willing to bet you'll be happy with the same size Samson as your Instincts.

I have a pair of Samsons that I use for my long road runs. They are a great fit for my feet (unlike NB and Innov-8) and I really enjoy them. They are not super-minimal but I was looking for some cushion to help with my longer days.