Nov
9
Product Review – Yaktrax Pro Traction Cleats
bring up a product that I found immensely useful, with some limitations, last year. After struggling with footing on several of my runs early in the season, I followed the recommendation of Andy O’Brien on Dailymile and purchased a pair of Yaktrax Pro Traction Cleats
For those who may not be familiar with the product, they are designed to slip over the sole (and some of the upper) of your shoes and, through the uses of metal coils wound around a soft rubber frame, provide extra grip under many wintry conditions. They are light and, while you definitely know they are there, they generally don’t feel too intrusive. I would err on the side of going a little large on the sizing though, as they may have a tendency to pinch / compress your toes if they are undersized.
I have found these to be very effective at improving your footing when snow accumulations reach an inch (of wet snow) or more. Once you reach around three inches, the benefit is still there, though just lifting the foot sufficiently to clear the snow can be much of the challenge in running in such conditions. Thus I’d say the sweet spot of these products is in the range of 1-3 inches of wet snow. It is possible to run on dry roads if necessary, say if you are on a mix of plowed and unplowed streets, but you may find the coils have a tendency to wear and ultimately break without the cushioning of snow underneath. They are light enough though that, if necessary, you can take them off and easily carry them for the remainder of the run. Where I live, the main roads are often plowed and salted early in the day, so if I am going to spend much of my time on such roads, I go without the Yaktrax and just try to keep the running on the unplowed neighborhood streets to just the easy-paced warm-up and cool-down.
The Yaktrax don’t help much on pure ice, so you still need to be careful of such situations (I’ve learned the hard way to avoid cul-de-sacs or other sharp turns while doing winter speedwork). The little bit of additional weight and occasional annoyance when running on a clearer surface are more than offset by the better traction and confidence that it brings on snow-covered roads, so I recommend you invest in a pair if you are faced with having to run on snow this winter. My plan for this winter is to leave these on a pair of older (400 miles) Mizuno Wave Riders that will be left in the garage to put on for snowy mornings.
Does anyone have any other solutions they have found effective for coping with running in snow? I mean, besides the obvious solution of moving to warmer climes?
