Altra TIMP 3 Trail Running Shoes

Product Information

TAYLOR: Not all is good in the hood. I’m not sure that I have ever been audibly frustrated with a shoe before this.

Mike P: An Altra for the people! I think this shoe will do really well for Altra. It looks great, rides great, and feels great on foot. I’m not an avid Altra user, but I am a fan of forefoot space, and these will definitely be part of my rotation going forward. I tended to think of each model of Altra trail shoes as having its own specific niche. LP for hiking, firm feel with super wide toebox. Olympus for max volume and cushioning. Superior for lightweight, more traditional natural feel. Timp 4 upper wraps more over the sides of the foot, contributing to a slipper like feel. Also more upper material, looser in the front, MTN Racer 2 with very thin tongue does give some lace pressure across top of foot]

Rawlings Running Cap

Fit 10: Fit is true to size, doesn’t feel sloppy, and hugs the midfoot while still allowing ample room in the toebox. Works well even with a medium-volume insole or orthotic if you need it. The shoes have maintained that lovely flexibility so the shoes bend with your feet. You never feel like you are fighting against the shoe to get on your toes while running up a steep climb. Speaking of Hoka, for a moment I mistook the drainage holes on the lateral parts of the Timp’s forefoot to be something akin to Hoka’s earliest models, where the wearer could actually drill their own holes into the lateral aspects of the shoe’s foam to create more inherent stability. But that’s an aside. I didn’t get to test these guys out in wet conditions yet so am unsure how they would have drained, but it seems they thought of every trail condition with this shoe. Scarpa Goldengate: These are 6mm from heel to forefoot. The toe box is quite broad but not as rounded as an Altra shoe. Here is our review:

More cushioning underfoot, feels more protective on rougher terrain than the previous Timp(s). Still, it doesn’t feel like “a lot of shoe,” something most Altra fans will likely be happy about Shannon The previous Timp was just kind of there, somewhat technically oriented, but not quite comfortable or cushioned enough to appeal to most. Altra seems to have focused on the technical mountain side of the equation with the new Mont Blanc, and moved the Timp more towards the smoother, comfortable, and cushioned side. It is definitely the most versatile Altra trail shoe right now, and should appeal to both Altra and non-Altra trail runners alike. Thankfully, for me at least, the new Timp 4 feels completely different than its predecessors. The increased cushioning is readily apparent just standing in them, as well as much improved flexibility even with the big slab of EGO MAX midsole. My gripe about previous Timps feeling flat underfoot is completely gone with the Timp 4. The combination of likely a bit more contoured footbed + Ortholite insole + deep flexible midsole cushion really feels great underfoot. Still a pretty incredible trail shoe for mountain running, just maybe not as good as the last versionMy first step-in feel was WOW. This is quite a soft shoe, with Altra’s signature ample toebox which to me has always felt great, and with enough shoe underfoot that I knew it would be do well for a variety of distances and terrain, but still light enough to appeal to those who don’t like the feel of a ton of shoe. I had high hopes for this Timp already.

The structured foot-bed on top of the Quantic midsole supports the arch really well. and the 29mm of cushioning gives a great ride. Shannon: I loved the soft, flexible and forgiving feel of the EGO Max foam utilized in this shoe. Usually, you don’t get a super-cush ride that simultaneously moves with the foot. Think Hoka here: you get a ton of cushioning material, but flexible it is not. Which is fine, that’s not the name of the game with Hoka. With the Timp, you get what I felt to be a delightfully cushioned ride, but yet the shoe really bends and flexes with the foot, making it great for very irregular terrain. Shannon is a Colorado native currently residing in Northern California. NorCal is nice, but Colorado has her heart. Having run competitively for around 20 years, she was a 7x All American at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, was a 2x member of the U.S. Mountain Running Team, 2x winner of the Mt. Washington Road Race, and was 3rd at the 2014 World Mountain Running Long Distance Championship. Her favorite shoes currently include the Hoka Torrent, Saucony Kinvara, and Brooks Launch, and her favorite runs include anything that goes uphill.

The Bad

This is actually a nice surprise given that the lugs of the Timp 4 aren't the deepest. We measured them at 2.9 mm, while the average is 3.5 mm. The Altra Timp 4 may be in Altra's standard fit, but when compared to other running shoes, it's still exceptionally roomy.