Gear we couldn't finish testing
Some gear never makes it through review. The shoe isn't wide enough, the singlet isn't big enough, or something just isn't working and we don't want to continue testing. We aren't going to give a full review to something we can't fully test, but it's still worth sharing what we tried, what went wrong, and the sizes or other details.
Everything on this page was bought or sent, and arrived. This won't include things that we didn't bother ordering because the size chart was clear. That also means a lot of stuff doesn't even make this list, because there's plenty of running gear out there that doesn't even work on paper for bigger or non-stereotypically shaped runners. If it isn't here, that means we haven't tried it — not that it works.
- norda 001AToo narrowShoesTried 9.5Tried on
These were just on the edge for me width-wise. My foot was pushing right up against the edges, so over long trail runs or hikes my feet would likely swell past comfortable. Even so, I was surprised by how spacious both the forefoot and midfoot were width-wise for a standard width shoe. If you have a borderline wide foot, I would encourage you to give them a try.
- Topo Athletic Ultraventure 4Too narrowShoesTried 9.5 WideTried on
While Topo is known for foot shaped, wide shoes, I often find this is a forefoot feature, not a midfoot feature. That was the case for me on the Ultraventure 4 — my midfoot was spilling over the edge of the midsole, which spells discomfort for me, so I didn't even give them a chance on the run. Note that not all Topo shoes have this problem for me, but it was the case here.
