ASICS - Gel-Venture Series

I like ASICS, currently use Gel Venture 10s, I do put insoles in to give better arch support, but otherwise I can pull them straight from the box and go ref games. I know some people that have multiple pairs for a day of games, swapping every game or so, I've never tried that.

I've owned Gel-Venture 7 for 6-7 years and although I'm not trail running in them I've used them to travel to many many different places (Swedish forests, South African bush, Roman streets, commuting in the Netherlands etc) and put some serious miles on them and they've held up until now and "finally" age is starting to show. I've got the 9s above as well in another colour (these shoes just work for my feet) and since my old ones need replacing I'll probably get another pair. Not that I only wear these shoes but it is my "main daily" shoe. Make of that what you will. I know it's an oldish thread but I must immortalise how happy I am with it.

I've owned Gel-Venture 7 for 6-7 years and although I'm not trail running in them I've used them to travel to many many different places (Swedish forests, South African bush, Roman streets, commuting in the Netherlands etc) and put some serious miles on them and they've held up until now and "finally" age is starting to show. I've got the 9s above as well in another colour (these shoes just work for my feet) and since my old ones need replacing I'll probably get another pair. Not that I only wear these shoes but it is my "main daily" shoe. Make of that what you will. I know it's an oldish thread but I must immortalise how happy I am with it.

Waterproof: I find the Asics Gel Trabuco GoreTex are among the comfiest waterproof shoes I have ever had. They are trail running shows. Older versions were more low-key, the new ones have a horrible "goretex" writing on them. TropicFeel AT Hdry are also pretty good. Non-waterproof: Asics Gel Venture 9. There is now a version 10 Columbia Drainmaker XTR The Columbia are more ventilated than the Venture 9. I use the Columbia in the summer (I can also wear them without socks) and the Asics Venture in the winter, when I don't need waterproof shoes. Depending on where you're going, would something like waterproof show covers / gaiters be an option? There are people who wear GoreTex in the Florida summer - I'd die. But if you are going somewhere when it can rain a lot one day and get very sunny and hot the next, waterproof show covers might be an option. Functional but ugly... The RunRepeat website has excellent reviews

I brought these as a dressier option for a 3-week UK trip, intending to wear some newish Asics trail runners as an outdoorsy shoe. Asics is usually my go-to comfortable shoe brand, but that pair wrecked my feet within the first week. The Mizzles took on full duty and were a godsend.

ASICS gel venture in 4E width. They’re cheap and very wide. New Balance also makes extra wide shoes but I haven’t worn them.

extremely popular here in denmark for fashion, my personal trail runner type shoe is the asics gel venture 6, salomons are too narrow for me. :( loveeee them tho

Fellow Pennsylvanian here... and this struggle is real! I'm somewhat in the same boat as you as I've been trying to find shoes that are protective against the rocks and roots of our region while also being durable enough to get your money's worth out of the shoes. Here's my progression of footwear over the past 5-7 years or so along with some insights you can take as suggestions. None of these options are zero drop though except the Merrell trail gloves. Adidas Terrex - Pros: good coushion, plenty of padding and protection against rocks. Cons: not wide enough for my feet and they changed the cut of the heel stabilizer to be too high. Merrell Trail Glove - Pros: out of box comfort and very light. Cons: not at all good on rocks. Asics Gel Venture - Pros: out of box comfort and good tread. Cons: not durable, not wide enought, bad quality control. Merrell Moab Speed 1 - Pros: great durability of shoe body, available in wide sizes, and sufficient protection against rocks. Cons: tread is not durable. However, this is probably my favorite trail runner and I wish it was still in production. Its a 500 mile shoe with 300 mile tread. Brooks Cascadia 13 and 15 - Pros: quality tread and good rock protection. Cons - not as wide as I'd like in their 2E size and the heel lock fabric deteriorated quickly causing blisters on my heel. New Balance Hierro V7 - Pros: good coushion and heel support. Cons - that damn flappy thing on the heel, lack of padding in the tongue, durability. Brooks Cascadia 16 - Pros: great rock plate, awesome tread, and wider toebox in 2E size. Cons - shit quality. Regardless, I went through 3 pairs and just dropped the 3rd in the trash after hiking up Old Rag in Shennandoah a week ago. 500 mile tread on a 250 mile shoe body that is not worth the cost. Merrell Moab Speed 2 - Pros - lightweight and PA approved rock plate. Cons - durability and the redesign in general. Wore these on a 260 mile section hike and they messed up my feet and gave me blisters on top of my toes. Was fully refunded though. Merrell Nova 4 - arrives in the mail today in advance of a 120 mile AT section in central Va in a couple of weeks. Might move onto Topo Terraventures or Ultraventures next.

I have Merrell Trail Glove 7s. I think they are usually $120 but I got a sale color at right around $100 at the outlet a few months ago. It looks like right now they only have one women’s color on sale and no men’s colors, but if you keep checking back they may have something. That said my go to hiking shoe is the ASICS Gel Venture. Since it’s a trail runner, it doesn’t last all that long but they are cheap and I’ve gone through so many pairs.

I just wear inexpensive Gel Ventures and they work fine for me. I did a hike today and was struggling over what shoes to wear for it because I knew it would probably be wet and gross and I just wore them and had no real issues. Yeah they got wet, but otherwise no complaints. I’ve run through so many pairs over the years. FWIW I am a heavy supinator so I do better in thinner soles.

I have ASICS Gel Venture 10 which are comfortable and cheap but quite heavy and slow.

Thanks! I’m about to buy my first pair of Venture 10s in a few minutes — just getting started with trail running. Hope you’re still rocking yours!

Hey! Yes, I’ve already used them on 7 different trail runs of up to 8 km. I’m quite new to trail running, so I might not be able to give a full-on expert review, but here are my thoughts: The grip is really good — super solid on all kinds of terrain. That said, they do feel a bit heavy on my feet. From what I understand, most trail running shoes are heavier than road running ones anyway. For example, the weight difference with the Hoka Speedgoat 5 is only about 30 grams (320g vs 292g), so it’s not a huge gap.

I was wondering about starting trail running and began searching for a good pair of shoes that weren't too expensive. The ASICS Venture 10 was the one I chose. I wasn’t on a very technical trail, so I could enjoy the downhills without fear of slipping (and I went quite fast). They’re not too heavy (I would say they’re pretty light for me) and provide great protection against rocks. That’s my contribution as a beginner in trail running. I hope it can be helpful to someone.

With my odd feet these are the only shoes that sub 2 times the price that fit my feet and running style properly (in 12-EEEE) (as a point that's half a size up over my running shoes, I'm an 11.5 US normally). I wanted to get more expensive ones honestly, and tried a lot, but yeah ended up back to these.

ASICS gel venture 10 comes in extra wide. I have somewhat wide feet and mid level arches and they fit pretty well. The gel Trabuco in standard is also on the wide side.