Customer Reviews Altra Rivera

I was really looking forward to trying this shoe but just couldn't love it. Felt too narrow and the tongue and heel area were too puffy for me. It just didn't feel right like the lone peaks or escalantes do. Ultimately I sent them back but I do think these have potential in their later model maybe.

I ordered these shoes a half size larger than normal and they still feel too small. My toe is jammed in the end of it. I wear them to walk but can't wait to get them off. Very disappointed

I've tried to love this shoe and I just can't get there. Initially, I liked the more connected ground feel and the closer fit in the midfoot but those are just not enough to overcome the downsides of this shoe. This shoe either lost room in the toebox or the upper material makes the toe box less accommodating. It doesn't matter which, the end result is that it lost the roomy toe box feel of the Torin. Probably more of the problem is the weird fit around the ankle. Rather than improving the fit, the upper material and addition of more foam to the ankle collar resulted in the shoe not flexing and forming to my ankles no matter how tightly, or which hole pattern I used to tie these shoes. I've now run through 3 pairs of these and just can't love, or even like them. Right now I'm just tolerating them to see what the next version brings because it looks like the "improved" ankle padding has been carried over to the Torin 5 and I don't want to spend $150 to go to that shoe for a feature that I know I already don't like. I've probably owned 4 - 5 pair of each version of the Torins from the 2.5 on, and love the Lone Peaks. I'm not eager to search outside of the Altra line as I've become a big fan of the zero drop and foot shape benefits, but I'm having a hard time sticking with it for road shoes.

I was hoping this would be the unicorn: the cushion of the Torin, the midsole (ego) of the Escalante. It's neither. A true Altra toe box would go a long way to making it close, but the shoe is far too narrow. If you insist on buying, buy a half size to a full size up. I wore these for a IM 70.3 last weekend, my toes got worked. These will be fine for short recovery runs, but they fall short of being a long distance, lightweight shoe with great cushion. I'll be going back to the Torin 4.5 (wish I'd loaded up on the 4's) for the year's remaining races.

Frankly I don't enjoy running with Rivera as it is too soft compare with the old Torin 4.0 and I found it nicer when you introduces VIHO . Now have to search online maybe I can source back Torin or VIHO. Worse still I bought this Rivera from Altra all the way from US. Unable to return as the return cost is too higher for me from Malaysia.

I should have listened to all the negative reviews, sending back This is not a traditional Altra shoe, it seems they are trying to reach the masses and have gone away from their loyal base. If I wanted a medium toe box I would buy Saucony or Skechers.

Have to go with the naysayers on this one. Been running in Altras since the first Instinct and Torin. Have multiple pairs of Torins, Repetitions (a grand and underrated model), Escalantes and Paradigms. Recommend to many friends with positive reviews from all. Sadly, the toe box here is still too restrictive despite sizing up 1.5 to a full size 13 (!?!) First time I've ever experienced that with an Altra model.

As a loyal Torin fan looking for some more cushion, I was excited to try these, but they'll be on their way back because they are too narrow. Not even going to try a run in them. The wide toe box that brought us to Altra is gone and now I'm gone as a loyal customer. I'm afraid VF corp has ruined this brand.

I didn't buy, just tried them on. So that I didn't. My feet were spilling out past the sole. I have a narrow heel, but 'naturally' wide splayed forefoot. I felt like I was trying on Adidas.

Why has Altra abandoned their user base by doing away with true footshape? I am not sure why they are marketing this as foot shaped because it is shaped like any other shoe.

I love Altra for the wide toe box. This shoe is the opposite, Altra please stick with what you do best.

I bought the Rivera, hoping the shoe was going to really exceed the Escalante. They have been a severe disappointment. I have been experiencing bad knee pain after running 2-3 mile distances. I wore them in a 10 mile race a few days back and they really caused severe ankle and leg pain. I have never had this issue with Altra shoes. The shoes have no real comfort and don't feel like the quality, Altra used to put into them. I wouldn't recommend these to anyone and I won't buy them anymore.

This shoe is the most uncomfortable shoes Altra has ever made. The reason Altra is,Is not this shoe. Most people buy them for the toe box, stop trying to make everybody happy. Follow the Golden Roots. Narrow squishy shoes are for other companies to make. Altra was built with purpose I hope that returns in future models. I've bought them since the Adam, Lone peak and the instinct. Bring that back. Please.

I was hoping this would be a replacement for Torin 4, but it is not. The toes are narrow and the midsole is up too far in my arch.

My local Fleet Feet running store is going to stop selling these because of how horrible they are. They are really hard and narrow. Altra is known for a WIDE FOOT-SHAPE toe box. We don't need anymore narrow shoes. Stick to what you're known for and stop making bad shoes.

This is a bizarre offering from Altra. On the one hand, an Ego midsole is a fantastic addition to a shoe that appears to replace the Torin 4.0. By comparison Quantic is not nearly as durable or responsive as Ego, and the former was the only weakness of the Torin in my opinion. On the other hand, the concept of a more slender foot-shaped shoe is an incredible contradiction that compromises precisely what has made the Altra brand what it is. Moreover, aside from a conventionally-shaped toe box, I also found it very difficult to achieve a lockdown in which my foot didn't slide within the shoe. Ultimately the Rivera is both too narrow in the toe box and too sloppy in the midfoot; I've never had either of these issues in an Altra product. I sure hope the Rivera is the outcome of a battle lost to some out-of-touch VF stakeholder rather than the direction of the Altra brand, and I'll be rooting for a substantial iteration in the next version of the Rivera that aligns the shoe with Altra's place in the market.

I have been an Altra fanatic both as a Physical Therapist and as a runner/lifter for nearly 7 years now. The wide toe box allowing toes to spread and intrinsic foot muscles to function properly is a crucial part of how I believe every shoe needs to be made. This shoe is NOT that. The toe box is not wide enough to allow for toes to spread fully to keep good contact with the ground, and appear to mimic that of traditional running shores where the lateral toes are forced internally, which is a perfect storm for rubbing, toenail issues, and plantar fascia irritation. This new shoe concerns me drastically that Altra will be shifting from the brand we have all come to know and love, to a brand that is just trying to fit in with trends. This shoe is a flop for me. And I will NOT recommend this shoe for me, my family, or any of my clients.

Too narrow. If you're going to make a narrow shoe just call it narrow, instead of using descriptors such as "streamlined" or "tailored". That way consumers who don't want a narrow shoe won't buy it. If you are going to offer multiple Footshapes to fit different feet, as you have claimed in responses to reviews, you should make it clear which shoe models fall into which category, and have a chart that shows how all of the fits compare. The first place your customers hear about your new fit system should not be in your responses to negative reviews, seems fairly obvious. I'm rooting for you Altra, I have been a loyal customer for over a decade and I'm hoping you find your way out of this, but you're making it really hard to like you.

Bring back the footshape! Why has Altra abandoned its original user base?

Have been wearing Torins for years, these are incredibly more narrow than the Torins and really don't fit my foot. Switching to Hoka Rincons for daily high mileage road shoe which is a bummer because I was excited for these shoes.

I am just so used to the great wide toebox and now this one causes inflammation on my right foot. I knew I should not have got it, but I had hopes. Many, many complaints about losing the original shape that brought people in. I'm a bit concerned about Altras future I know my little review won't matter to the company, but I see bring back the wire toebox and make more shoes like the tour and 4.5 with that amount of cushion available. Cannot get a Olympics 4 In my size forever. Pretty concerned