Customer Reviews Altra Escalante Racer

...but when I do it's because the product is just freaking incredible. I became an Altra convert the first time I tried on the Lone Peak 2.5 years ago, and have worn several Altra shoes (both road and trail) for hundreds of happy miles since. I kinda want to keep these a secret so that I can get a discount on the overstock when they're discontinued, but I feel guilty not sharing the love and these are just too good not to. The uppers are so much lighter, more breathable and just better than the standard escalante. There is a firm, fairly minimalist feel to the underfoot, but on pavement and even on relatively smooth trails they float along with no issues. I didn't run Boston this year, but there's a good chance these will be on my feet for every race I run for the foreseeable future, at least until they fall apart on my feet. No signs of that happening yet!

This is what the Escalante should've been from the get go! The sloppiness of the standard Escalante upper is gone. Additionally the racer breathes such that the shoe is no longer a sauna. I got rid of my standard Escalantes in less than 100mi, but love these! I hope Altra makes the racer a part of it's standard lineup (rather than a Boston special).

This was the shoe I have been waiting for. I have been running in Altra shoes since the Adam (remember?) and I prefer medium to light cushion. The One was a great shoe but the Escalante was even better. Great cushion, light weight and responsive. Too bad the Escalante becomes a sloppy shoe very quickly. Don't even think of a track session in them. Maybe 1 size down from regular Altra is better? Foot goes right, shoe goes left... So I was very excited about Boston Racer. After the first 2 runs they started to ease out like the Escalante. But then they stopped stretching and still sit tight. And man are they nice on the track! Feel super light and perfect cushioning for speed work. I now even prefer them to my Nike Streak LT3. I so love this Boston! It is what I appreciated in the original One and the Escalante. If you feel the origianl Escalante just stretch and stretch, the Racer is much tighter in the same size. I use 11 in mot Altras but 10.5 in original Escalante. Glad I did not get the Racer in 10. Putting on the orignal Escalante now is like wearing Hokas, I feel at least. Big difference in cushioning. Now if only they would put the EGO sole in the Vanish-R. That would make a killer shoe.

I have been running almost exclusively in the Escalante on the roads since its release. In my opinion it was the best shoe Altra had ever made. Well, now it is the second best. The Escalante Racer is lighter, more responsive and the upper knit is just better for me. Being primary a trail runner this is the first shoe that has made me WANT to run another road marathon.

The Escalante Racer is everything it says it is- it fits my feet like a glove, no loose areas, no tight areas, pure comfort. Not to mention light as a feather too. I can easily run with better form in this shoe, and it feels faster as well. I hope Altra continues this model for a long time.

Just received the Escalante Racer, my first Altra and zero drop shoe, and will be adding feedback/updates to this review when I test them on road and track. They are great looking and blue is a versatile color that's compatible with most colors of running apparel. Since the star rating is non optional I rated the Escalante Racer based on appearance and fit but an update will follow. The yellow midsole/foam and the 18 logo add to the great appearance of the Escalante Racer. I'm 12 D(M) US and they are true to size and width according to Altra's relatively wider toe boxes. I've been and still running in 2mm/3mm drop, and hopefully that would ease the transition to zero drop.

Ran a Half Marathon with the Escalante Boston Racer right out of the box, no break in at all. They were so light, so bouncy, and the ventilation was phenomenal. Surprised it was even possible to improve the Escalante platform, but Altra managed to do it. Perfect racing shoe. I'd be curious how they will hold up as time goes on as they are so minimal in construction, might just save them for use in races.

I love the Escalante but the upper was too loose on turns and on tempo runs. This racer really is that. I ended up getting two pairs and have heard rumors there are more "Race" editions in the works. I plan on using this for all of my 1/2 and 26.2 races this year.

Greetings Runners, Backdrop: average 30-40 miles a week at a sub-2 half marathon pace. Purchased two pairs of original Escalante which anointed me an Altra convert. 3 weeks in with new shoe... This shoe doesn't feel like a direct descendant. As per my Escalante review, the Escalante almost feels like a clown shoe until one starts to crank & the a-ha moment kicks in. As is described with the Boston Racer, this shoe is quite a bit firmer. It is noticeable lighter (for those of you counting grams). The mesh breathability has been a long time coming as I recently ran 10 miles at a hotel treadmill (no outside course) & the old version were essentially puddles. Those are the initial takeaways at less than a month in...firmer, more breathability, & for those who read about studies of running economy, slightly lighter. My question to Altra: would it be possible to stock the to-be regular edition Escalante's with outer mesh? A good Patriot's Day to all.

Take the best attributes of the One and the Escalante, mash them together, and you get this shoe. Light, fast, springy, with just the right amount of cushion. These have worked well for me in both speed workouts and long runs and I look forward to racing in them. The only thing that I don't like is the large "18" that has been splayed across the sides (looks like the number on the side of a NASCAR) but I'll certainly live with it given the overall quality.

This was my third pair, first two I loved and was excited for my third set. I have loved the light weight, breathable, flexibility, natural foot shape, and zero drop. I have used my previous pairs to train and race everything from 5K to marathon. The only problem I have had is my newest pair, something in the heal is different and not matter what I do they rub and give me a blister. I have put 55miles on them trying to break them in and still no luck but I'll keep trying.

Have a pair of wmns from a few years ago, love how flexible the soles are for ideal movement. Was excited they released in an all black but in men's sizes so I got them, size is fine but the sole is definitely stiffer. Also wish they made them with a closed knit for colder months. All white too!

I bought the Escalante Racers thinking I wouldn't be wide enough. They fit just right. I'm yet to rough them up running. Great for walking around in.

great shoes. favorite pair of running, exercise, walking, and weekend running errands shoes. horrible new colorways. go back to the lime green/black, grey/blue, white/orange/red.. and hire an all new team that oversees new color releases, because you keep missing the mark on that. i skip buying new releases because the colors just ruin it every time.

These are awesome shoes. I use them for cross training and my martial arts warm up in the morning. Light weight, lots of toe room, and close to a barefoot shoe. Like the Escalante 3, they are a bit too tight in the mid shoe, but I can deal with it since I only wear them during training and not as an all around shoe. My one big complaint is the poor choice of colors. Seriously. No black?

I've purchased 5 different varieties of Altras this year (Escalante 3, Rivera 2, Torin 6, Lone Peak 6, and these). I haven't enjoyed any as much as my original escalantes. The current Escalantes have a little too much stack height, are a little too firm, and the fabric is a little too dense/firm. By comparison, the Racers at least get the stack height and foot contour close to the earlier Escalantes, albeit with a little less cushion. Be aware that the fabric is actually mesh/nettingso while it does a great job keeping your feet cool, your feet will be cold in cold weather and your socks will be instantly wet with any water or precipitation.

My favorite shoe for the last 3 years. Only problem I have currently is that the laces are much shorter now. I've written customer service a few times and was told to buy laces from a third party. If you use the runner loop on the show you Cant even tie them let alone double knot them. Also not crazy about the current color offerings. Bring back the black or white version.

Great for any activity where you use your feet.

New Altra shoes are awesome, not to flat to mess up my calf again. Let's me easily land on balls of feet and kiss the ground with my heel. When I started with a flat flat minimalist shoe, I only ran on my toes and pulled a muscle in my calf in the first mile. I switched back to my ASICS and the heel was to big not giving me a chance to land at the sweet spot of the balls of my feet without hitting my heal. The heel on these are perfect, not to much, not to little. I took a star away because customer service ghosted me. I asked about military discount, they told me yes 15%, then kept having me go back and forth adding info to the shopping cart. After the third add of info, they stopped responding. I gave up, looked in my email and used a 10% off code for creating an account. If you didn't want to give the military discount, you should have just said so instead of giving me the run around. I still bought them.

Shoe is great- but Altra can't design a shoe to save it's life. Every single product line they release more and more hideous shoes and refuse to create something people actually want to wear. How hard is it to use neutral colors?

I have gone through probably about a dozen of these things. As far as fitting the philosophy (as I see it) of the company, I think these are the Altra flagship shoe - minimal, light, comfortable, big toe box. It has the right amount of foam stack to allow lots of miles (both fast and slow) but it's minimal enough that when that foam starts to break down, I don't get weird pronation issues. It just gets less soft. Which in my mind is the right way for a cushioned shoe to break down. That being said there is a trade-off, because that breakdown does happen very quickly so your first 200 miles are much different that your last. The main reason why these are so much superior to the non-racer Escalante version is that when that model's foam breaks down, you get weird imbalances. It rides completely different in the late stage uses. The racer is a much better shoe. Also, this shoe has the weirdest stocking issues. Maybe it's not as profitable as other models and that's why, but it's seems like whenever I need to buy a pair all that's left is some weird color way or nothing at all. The longevity on this shoe is very low, which is fine, but then keep it in stock because frequent customers are going to need to shop around while waiting and may find another shoe that works. Lastly, please fix the color way thing. No one actually wants a bunch of weird colors. Shoes are for training, and subtlety looks a lot cooler, cleaner.

Fantastic shoe. Love the toe room and the uppers. The tongues slip badly though. Altra designers: gusset the tongues or add eye loops on them like Topo.

Let's get this out: I'm tired of models changing drastically every few years. Just when I find a shoe that's perfect, it changes. LP 7s are not LP 5s and these Escalantes are not quite their predecessors. What brought me to Altra was exactly what made those shoes special: zero-drop, just the right minimal amount of protection from the trail/road, wide fit, and tough as nails - I've abused my LPs and Escalantes and have never had them fail. Altra's recent regression to the feature mean has been frustrating. Now that I've got my feelings out, let's get on to the shoes. Overall, the shoes are butter when running on the road. The fit is solid, the sole is minimal, they are light, and I barely notice they are there. In other words, they're great running shoes for my feet and style. I'd like to use them daily, but... ... (the cautious optimism part) I'm not convinced they're going to hold together. The mesh is very sparse. My city runs typically take me on road and gravel paths. The holes are big enough to fill the shoes with dirt over a short stretch of trail. I worry that this will break the shoes down faster. I also don't trust that the mesh will survive a brush with a curb, rock, or root. While the shoes are great when I'm cruising on a road, any change in terrain causes me to switch to careful rather than carefree running. Maybe I'm just paranoid and the shoes will be as bomber as the others or maybe, given the "Racer" appellation, these are meant to be for special occasions only?

After ruining the Escalante (the 3 is awful, collapsing toe box, no road feel, loss of flexibility, switch to standard fit) and the Solstice (now a gym shoe), the Racer is my go to for now. The Racer is still what made Altra. Foot shaped. Flexible. Zero drop. For Runners.

I use these shoes for running outside on pavement and in the treadmill at the gym and they are perfectly comfortable. I've tried barefoot shoes and for whatever reason they gave me a lot of discomfort. I'm sure I wasn't running correctly but no problem with these shoes. I didn't want shoes with a lot of cushioning since that just seems unnatural. I still have my Escalante 2.5 which have some cushioning but Altra was sold out in my size and the reviews on the Escalante 3 said that there was too much cushioning so these seem like the perfect choice for me. I took a star off just for the price.