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Italy, Rome
1 Level
745 Review
54 Karma

Review on Adidas Terrex Agravic Black Yellow Men's Shoes by Jason Holt

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Good quality - bad design.

These shoes look like very durable shoes. I was pleased when I took it out of the box and looked at it. I thought these were great sneakers. This is going to be a long review containing the history of the Adidas running shoes I've had and leading up to the current shoe I bought (Terrex Agravic Gore-TEX). The first pair of Adidas I belonged to the Adidas Thrashers (Trailrunner pictured above in black and yellow). I wanted to do more trail running. When I saw these shoes in the store, I immediately wanted them. They looked perfect for the type of race I was aiming for. Inspired by the running shoes, I increased the frequency of my runs to a few or more times a week when I found the time - 2-4 miles over rocks, over mud, up and down muddy hills. I was sad when I ended up wearing them. I was going to buy a new pair and found that Adidas had discontinued them and replaced them with some kind of backpacker-runner hybrid called Acadias - something like that. I cried a little inside but bought new ones. The Acadia's upper wore out better; but overall the shoes felt heavier and chunkier - a bit closer to the Wanderer (see black and orange shoes above). In the end, the soles actually wore out faster - maybe because I was dragging my feet more in heavier shoes (I don't know). Maybe the weather was warmer and I was running more dehydrated. Who knows. After that I tried cheaper Sauconi shoes which were almost completely worn out and after about 250 miles I started getting blisters on my feet. At this point I was also running longer distances (3-7 miles at least 3 times a week) to fully open myself up. I started dreaming about the good old days and my Adidas Thrashers: great profile, strong looking upper and light enough. If only they could bring back high-end shoes similar to these. Maybe designed for long distance running I would definitely buy them - maybe even two pairs if they discontinue them. Call them Thrasher Ultras or whatever. So I started looking again at Adidas for good trail runners. I just ran a half marathon in limping shoes and it showed. Alongside my 2-3 week regular trails and trails, I'm also preparing for two big races, a marathon and a mountain run, which total about 15 miles in length. After several hours of searching for shoes online and checking stocks at various stores near me, I estimated the size and ordered the men's adidas Terrex Agravic Gore-TEX trail running shoes. I usually buy 8 1/2s from Adidas (at least for Thrashers and Acadias). I ordered 8 of these shoes. That's crazy; but they were still 1/4 size bigger. For Reais, 3/4 sizes are too big (because they say they are a size 8 but are actually 8 3/4). It would be ok if I could tighten the laces a bit. But the laces didn't reach far enough to tighten the sock, if at all. The laces don't tighten very easily. Like they were made for someone my shoe size with a very big foot. Perhaps the designers thought that feet in Gore-Tex would get warmer and sweatier, so increasing the blanket in the toe box could make it cooler. Maybe they expected everyone to put very thick pads in and need extra space. ? Whatever the reason, there was too much material on the top of the sock for me - my foot seemed to rock up and down in my shoe. With an extra 1/4 size, that's too much. The ends of my feet can't get that fat. Imagine what will happen on the track. I have to send them back. I simply ordered option 2 to replace them: Adidas Terrex Speed Ultra Trail Running (240g). They definitely don't look that steep, so I don't feel too harsh attacking a steep rocky trail. But hopefully they fit better, are good for the longer distances I'm running and have a smaller toe box. Also, they should be about 100g lighter and people report that they are quite durable. Just take a look. If I've missed something and am thinking about shoes out of ignorance, let me know. The back half of the shoe and the bottom are very cool. They have become the perfect shoes. If the others I've ordered (which will arrive here in a few days) fit about the same or have the same problem, I'll keep one for myself, figure out how to modify the shoes, and send the rest back. These thrashers gave me a real edge in trail running and made me brand loyal.

Pros
  • Running
Cons
  • Slightly wrinkled