Mudclaw 275

I crossed the Pyrenees in a pair of Inov-8 G275s (now discontinued). Upper gave out before the sole, but I did need to replace them after \~500km or so. You can probably stretch them for longer but I was getting foot issues.

Worth noting that G270s are very passive lug-wise for inov-8, have stopped being made, and inov-8 have gone massively downhill in the past few years, including but not limited to using a new factory with massive QC issues and replacing the excellent mudclaw with the mudtalon, which falls apart and much worse on rough terrain. The classic mud shoe of theirs was the mudclaw, which is coming back for sale this winter, however it is being made by their new shitty factory, so it remains to be seen if they will survive a week of running.

I feel the 'new' range is just uninspiring and feels old fashioned. I tried the Trailfly Speed which was heavy with a dull foam. Standard Trailfly was heavier with more dull foam! They just aren't competitive with other shoes out there. La Sportiva Prodigio shows how a modern all round trail shoe should be (and it's been a massive success). It's a shameas they used to be one of my favourite shoe brands, I went through 4 pairs of the G270's loved that shoe. Numerous Roclite, Mudclaw, X-Talon. I just don't consider them as an option any more. I live in the Lake District and not many of my friends wear them either any more. Mudclaws used to be the go to. See a lot of VJ, Terrex, Nnormal, La Sportiva and Hoka now.

okay, one brand no one has mentioned - Inov8. The mudclaw and mudtalon are great, althought rubber on the X-Talon Ultra wasnt great for wet obstacles or rocks in my experience. but if you want the best grip on the planet, buy some VJ Ultra / iRock / MAXx shoes. they are epic.

Altra MT King or Inov8 mudclaw. Big cleats and fast draining are what you want. Wool based socks like Hilly merino work fine when your feet are soaked. If you have the right footwear just go route one through the middle of everything with a big smile 😃 

First and last time I ran in mud like that in a pair of lone peaks I fell on my ass at least 3 times. Mudclaws are the way forward.

If you mainly run on deep loose mud then look at Mud claws by inov8.

Inov-8 Mudclaw - wonderful shoe for muddy/snowy conditions, though not sure if for longer ultras.. I hate them with passion when I have to run with them on a dry trail/road, but I haven’t tried anything better for mud. Bonus points for being indestructible. EDIT: just read „tomorrow” - well, I certainly wouldn’t risk anything new for a 100k!

I run Obstacle Races in inov8 Mudclaws, don't go waterproof or they will just hold water after an obstacle, also some shoes have gusseted tounges which stop debris getting in around it and I prefer.

You've gotten some good answers so far. It kind of depends what you mean by "minimal". Actual "minimalist" shoes - zero-drop and zero or near-zero cushion - have a small market share and are a fairly niche product that definitely take some getting used to, and would not be found in most running stores. But I have a feeling that you're just talking about lower-stack shoes. They are becoming a minority of trail shoes as higher stack heights become more popular, to be sure, but there are still plenty of shoes out there like the LS Bushido and a fair portion of inov-8's lineup that are <25mm stack. These shoes are generally meant for either very technical terrain, where you need every bit of proprioception you can get, or soft ground like fell running (which I believe describes the race you're talking about). I have had both Bushidos and Mudclaws and they are excellent for their intended purposes (rocky technical trails and soft ground, respectively) but personally would not take either out for a long run on hard packed dirt. Some people do just prefer being lower to the ground. The higher stack a shoe has, the less proprioception you'll have and the more unstable you'll be (both due to the shoe's height and your inability to feel the ground.) It's a tradeoff.