Over the two and a half years I’ve been writing my blog I’ve received a number of communications via my Blog’s contact page from companies asking me to promote their organisation or products in my posts. This isn’t the reason I set up my blog so I’ve always declined and in any case most of these enquiries were for products that weren’t associated with running. In my Blog I’ve only ever advertised “Lemon Zest” who kindly built the website for me and “Team Nutrition” who supported me during both times I completed the Brathay 10 marathons in 10 days challenge. Anyhow, this December I got another of these enquiries but it was a little different, it was associated with running and regarding a footwear brand I’d never thought of trying before.
The enquiry didn’t come from a running shop but the outdoor shop “Cotswold Outdoor”, a shop I knew very little about but I’ve since found out they have an impressive chain of 69 shops up and down the country as well as their online business:-
http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/
They offered me a pair of the new Salomon XA PRO 3D trail shoes to trial and review. I’ve never had a pair of Salomon trail shoes and frankly had never even considered them before so why not take them up on their kind offer? It would be interesting to compare a new make to other brands I’ve previously used and reviewing a pair of shoes for the first time could be fun too.
I was invited to their shop in Deansgate, Manchester for a fitting which I gratefully accepted. After parking in Manchester I walked through St Anns Square and unexpectantly came upon a spectacular display of Chinese lanterns which must be part of Manchester’s preparations for Chinese New Year just a couple of weeks away. As well as running one of my other passions is taking photos and I couldn’t resist taking one of these beautiful red decorations in the square.
I arrived there today wondering what sort of reception would greet me. I took a copy of the email correspondence thinking I’d get there and no one would know what I was talking about it and think I’m making the whole thing up. I couldn’t have been more wrong. They had a part-time member of staff on hand and waiting to serve me as I arrived, as I walked into the shop he had a big grin on his face. To my complete astonishment it was my old running friend Barry from Swinton Running Club! He guided me to the footwear section of the store and we caught up on running gossip.
There is a nice feel about the Cotswold store, the staff are very pleasant and they offer excellent service. If you ever need any outdoor clothing or footwear it is certainly a good shop to look in. They measured my feet in a fairly old fashioned way using a metal measuring device with sliders. They say this is so they can check my shoe size and it helps them fit me with the correct shoes. They even had a little wooden ramp you could go up and down to simulate a hill and check how your new shoes felt on an incline. Shoes are no good if your feet slide to the front and you bang your toes into the front of the shoes. Size eight and a half fitted well and passed the slope test. The only other question was which colour? I’m not usually a fan of red (especially being a Man City fan) but the red ones did look nice and bright, so red it was.
Now for the techie bit, the shoes seem to fit the foot snuggly holding it well but still giving plenty of room. On the slope there wasn’t any sliding of the foot in the shoe. There are some funky laces which are very thin but still look plenty strong enough and have a slider to tighten and loosen them so they can be taken on and off quickly without the need for tying. There is an interesting rubber cap at the front of the shoes to protect you from stubbing your toes on rocks. The cushioning is noticeably firmer than road running shoes but I think this will be fine for an off road shoe. The sole I’m told is designed to disperse water and not to hold mud. It certainly seems to be made out of a very tough material and have plenty of grip, a few miles in the mud will tell. The upper is made from a quick drying breathable mesh which looks very similar to many other trail or road shoes and looks fit for purpose.
So all in all, looks and feels like it should be a good trail running trainer. I’ll report back after I’ve given them some proper outdoor treatment.
Saw these kid’s ruck sacks and thought they were fabulous. If my children were just a bit younger I might have bought them one each. Still might come back for one myself!
