Mount to Coast’s Minimalist New Ultrarunners Are Built to Last

Yeti Zhang, Mount to Coast’s Head of Product, says that even though they’re building shoes tailored to the ultra running community, other runners aren’t excluded. “We’ve made shoes that function at a high level for everyday runners logging high-mileage training weeks or athletes who want their shoes to last longer before breaking down and needing replacement,” he says.

Since the launch in April, I’ve been running shorter distances in my S1s (my R1s are still in their box until I can ramp up my mileage again). I’ve noticed more consistency and stability in my footfall and rebound, with no drag or clunkiness tripping me up. My knee and ankle pain is still a bother, but that’s likely due to me skipping my stretches and not the shoe. Mileage-wise, I’ve logged only about 100 miles on roads in these, meaning they have plenty of life left.

Aesthetically, both shoes are strikingly sleek, offered in black, white, or black and white. Given that conversations about color palettes eat up designers’ time, this limited range allows Mount to Coast to focus on performance over trendiness. Zhang says that the brand’s simplicity was inspired by the minimal ink and rice paper of Eastern Asia’s Zen Buddhist landscape paintings.

Source: https://www.fieldmag.com/articles/mount-to-coast-running-shoe-review