I wanted to design some kind of test that would demonstrate how the shoe feels. How does it flex? How stiff is it? Of course this is something that we could all have very differing opinions over, so a simple test was needed that would enable a comparison between shoes. I will say now that this is most certainly not a totally serious test, but it may well give you an idea if you want to know how a shoe compares to one you already own. A little bit of fun and possibly a little use before you make that purchase.

The Test

It's simple. I take my digital bathroom scales, and I stand a shoe (brand new) on it's heel. I then push down on the toe till it has flexed around 90 degrees (as shown in the pictures). I then note the weight that is recorded and take a photo of the flexed shoe from the side to demonstrate the flex i.e. how the sole flexes. From the toe or further back. The shoes weight is subtracted from the weight to give a final score.

All results will be colated here firstly in a table for easy comparison, then below individually with the picture of each shoe going through the test.

If you would like to see your companies shoes go through the flex-test, please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Thanks to Martin at the Aviemore branch of Ellis Brigham for helping out with some of these.

EBSquareSmall

 Brand  Model Flex-Test  Rating
 La Sportiva  Mutant  10.2
 La Sportiva  Helios  3.0
 La Sportiva  Helios SR  3.0
 La Sportiva  Anakonda  3.4
 La Sportiva  Bushido  6.0
 Scott  Kinabalu Supertrac  6.7
 Scott  Trail Rocket 2.0  4.9
 inov8  Race Ultra 270  4.9
 inov8  Race Ultra 290  6.6
 inov8  Roclite 282 GTX  5.0
 inov8  Roclite 295  3.8
 inov8  Terraclaw 220  3.7
 inov8  Terraclaw 250  6.8
 inov8  Mudclaw 265 (Precision fit)  5.2
 inov8  Mudclaw 300 (Precision fit)  5.1
 inov8  Talon 212 (Precision fit)  2.7
 inov8  Talon 212 (Std fit)  5.0
 inov8  Talon 190  2.4
 inov8  Roclite 286 GTX (boot)  1.3
 The North Face  Ultra Endurance  3.6
 Hoka  Speedgoat  10.5

 

La Sportiva - Mutant

Flex-Rating - 10.2

P1030795 

La Sportiva - Helios

Flex-Rating - 3.0

Review

P1030401

 La Sportiva Helios SR

Flex-Rating - 3.0

Review

P1030400

La Sportiva Anakonda

Flex-Rating - 3.4

Review

P1030430

La Sportiva Bushido

Flex-Rating - 6.0

P1030866

Scott Kinabalu Supertrac

Flex-Rating - 6.7

Review

P1030398

Scott Trail Rocket 2.0

Flex-Rating - 4.9

P1030399

inov8 Race Ultra 270

Flex-Rating - 4.9

RaceUltra270

inov8 Race Ultra 290

Flex-Rating - 6.6

RaceUltra290
 

inov8 Roclite 282 GTX

Flex-Rating - 5.0

Roclite282GTX

inov8 Roclite 295

Flex-Rating - 3.8

Roclite295

inov8 Terraclaw 220

Flex-Rating - 3.7

Terraclaw220

inov8 Terraclaw 250

Flex-Rating - 6.8

Terraclaw250

inov8 Mudclaw 265 Precision fit

Flex-Rating - 5.2

Mudclaw265Flexed

inov8 Mudclaw 300 Precision Fit

Flex-Rating - 5.1

Mudclaw300Flexed

inov8 Talon 212 Standard Fit

Flex-Rating - 5.0

Talon212StdFlexed

inov8 Talon 212 Precision Fit

Flex-Rating - 2.7

Talon212Flexed

inov8 Talon 190

Flex-Rating - 2.4

Talon190Flexed

inov8 Roclite 286 GTX (boot)

Flex-Rating - 1.3

Roclite286GTXFlexed

Hoka Speedgoat

Flex-Rating - 10.5

HokaSpeedgoatFlexed

The North Face Ultra Endurance

Flex-Rating - 3.6

NorthFaceUltraEnduranceFlexed