When mentioning to co-workers, friends and relatives that I qualified for XTERRA Worlds and will be out of town next week, many of them come up with some kooky questions. Yeah, you get the usual questions. How far do you race? Will you be swimming in the ocean? Are you worried about sharks? Of course, they’re usually answered with something just as kooky in return, such as: As far as my legs will take me. No, we’ll be swimming in a cenote. No, because I will be wearing chainmail. We love joking around like that.
But when fellow XTERRA triathletes or trail runners hear about racing in Maui, the most common question I get is: What shoes will you be wearing? My answer: I’m not sure yet.
You see, back at the beginning of the year, I managed to get my hand on two different pairs of shoes, both from Avia. At first glance, these two pairs of shoes have very distinct, different usages.
The first pair is a pair of Avia Avi-Stoltz trail shoes. If a great road shoe and a great trail shoe were to have children, they might just be twins to the Avi-Stoltz. Included in the team of designers was two time Olympian and three time Xterra World Champion Conrad Stoltz (hence the shoe name). I’ve raced in all kinds of trail shoes. Most of my complaints have been around the fact that most trail shoes are unusually bulky which equates to being unusually heavy. I like a rugged shoe and all, but they don’t need to be as heavy as combat boots. I had enough of those when I was in the Air Force.
The Avi-Stoltz are as light as road-running shoes. They have a very light, airy upper that drains as well as it ventilates. The toe box has decent protection up front and the heel (as well as the tongue) features long, rubbery finger grabs making it easy to slip on in transition, even with wet hands. Couple them with a pair of black, Nathan Velocity Laces and you’re all set to race.
The sole features serrated edges for great grip on a variety of terrain. I’ve raced in them on numerous trails in numerous races including XTERRA triathlons and XTERRA trail runs. Below you will see (from left to right), XTERRA Panther Creek, XTERRA Francis Beatty Trail Run, and XTERRA Canada Nationals. These are but a few of the races I’ve ran in them. Combine that with the COUNTLESS hours I’ve been wearing them in training and you have a pair of shoes that just about ready to be retired.
Click here for more info about the Avia Avi-Stoltz
The other pair of shoes that I have had the pleasure to wear while training and racing is a pair of Avia Av-Bolt II. At 8.5 ounces, this is one of the lightest shoes I’ve used to date. These shoes were made for triathlons. Whether it’s the speed laces or easy to grab heel and tongue (same features as the Avi-Stoltz), you’re sure to be quicker in these shoes.
Since I don’t race a whole ton of road events, I wasn’t sure how much use I would get out of them. One such race was the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure 5k in Charlotte, NC where I came in 6th overall out of about 1500. These shoes definitely allowed me to run better, faster & stronger.
However, after some poking and prodding by Coach Mel, I have been talked into trying the Avi-Bolt II shoes out trail running. I know they’re made for the road (I used that excuse with her), but they are just as fast on the trail. Granted, if you are going to be in some really gnarly trails, mud or anything that requires some extra grip, these may not be the ones to choose (instead, go with the Avi-Stoltz). Read Mel’s post about Nationals and you’ll see what I mean. However, if you’re mountain bike will have tires specific to the course, why wouldn’t you choose shoes in the same manner? Aren’t shoes the tires for your feet?
Click here for more info about the Avia Avi-Bolt II
Through numerous hours and miles of training on the trail lately, I have been running in both the Avi-Stoltz and the Avi-Bolt II shoes. It really depends on the terrain and the conditions. I can say that both of these shoes rock!
So which one will I choose to run the XTERRA Worlds course in Maui?
To be continued…
Be a Warrior!












