Top Women's Trail Running Selections for 2014 Issued by OutdoorGearLab

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Sept. 20, 2014 - PRLog -- OutdoorGearLab.com recently announced the results of the 2014 Editors’ Choice awards for their top women’s trail running shoes highlighting the best, best value, and best products for certain applications. The OutdoorGearLab review Editors chose the following winners after extensive field-testing in the Cascade Mountains and some in-home tests as well. Eleven popular products were subjected to head-to-head tests to determine which stood out in performance across these metrics: foot protection, traction, stability, comfort, weight and sensitivity. The selection of contenders tested ranged from technical trail runners to barefoot models and a few transitional designs that fell somewhere in-between. These designs were meant to take runners off paved surfaces and onto the dirt, sand, gravel and snow.

The award winning products:

Editors’ Choice - Saucony Peregrine 4

The OutdoorGearLab review teams favors the Saucony Peregrine 4 as being a great shoe for transitioning to a barefoot design. The Peregrine 4 is an upgrade of the Peregrine 2 with the new model being a lot less weight and sporting the new powergrid heel, which has increased comfort and cushioning. According to Gear Editor, Valentine Cullen, the Peregrine 2 is a great lightweight, inexpensive product great for many different types of running.

Top Pick – Salomon Speedcross 3

The Speedcross 3 wins Top Pick for being a true trail runner. Though it didn’t perform exceptionally well on the paved surfaces, the Speedcross 3 was ready for any sloppy surfaces like steep trails with gnarly terrain or wet and muddy routes with roots and rocks. It has very sticky rubber on the soles and a deep tread pattern for extra traction on rough or slick surfaces. Gear Editor Amber King reports, “The Speedcross 3 is a great product for getting you the distance you want to go safely over any terrain that you want to run on. It has a lacing system that offers a quick fit and the lightweight materials that it is constructed from shed water, snow and mud easily.”

Top Pick – Hoka One One Stinson ATR

Also a Top Pick award winner, the Hoka One One was granted this award for being the most comfortable model tested. Gear review Editor Amber King says, “Its extra large sole is not the most attractive to look at, but once testers tried running on it they found it to be by far the most enjoyable in the area of comfort of all the products tested. The ATR is lightweight and breathable and transitions from road to trail well. These maximalist shoes have a sole that is 50% bigger than conventional models and while it offers a super amount of comfort, it lacks in sensitivity and stability. The extra large midsole does absorb bumps and rocks on the trail and on long runs we tended to end up really appreciating that. It also has a conveniently quick lacing system and an extra protective toe box.”

Best Buy - ASICS Gel-Kahana 7

This traditional trail runner proved to be an excellent product for its price range. Gear Editor King explains, "The Kahana 7 has is an amazing model with great traction, an extra wide toe box and it is versitle enough for hills and pavement. Its construction was above average and we especially loved the price. On the down side, this was the worst contender for resisting water and it wasn't very breathable, so it is not the best choice for wearing on warm days."

OutdoorGearLab, LLC, based in Cheyenne, Wyoming, creates the world’s best outdoor gear reviews through detailed comparison reviews. The website, www.outdoorgearlab.com, is a free resource for outdoors enthusiasts who participate in activities such as skiing, running, climbing, biking, hiking, backpacking, and camping. The review Editors perform thorough head-to-head tests of popular outdoor gear and apparel in different categories, then publish the results in comprehensive reviews. Each product is scored across a range of weighted metrics relevant to that product's category, then competing products are ranked, and awards are given to top performing, highest scoring models.