Brooks Cascadia 17 Review: A Trail Shoe for All
By David Salas
Brooks Cascadia 17Price: $139.95 at Running Warehouse
Weight: 11.3oz, 320g (men's size 9), 9.7oz, 275g (women's size 8)
Stack Height: 33mm heel/25mm forefoot
Drop: 8mm
Classification: Trail Running Shoe
RUNNING SHOE SUMMARY
The Brooks Cascadia 17 is a reliable trail shoe that will be able to tackle pretty much anything you throw at it. The shoe comes off very sturdy and reliable from a transition standpoint. The Cascadia shines best at easy paces and can be run for nearly any distance you want. There are a few things that are integrated into this shoe to help make this a pretty solid option for those who need a little extra stability on the trails.
SIMILAR SHOES: Hoka Stinson 7
PAST MODEL: Brooks Cascadia 16
FIT
The Brooks Cascadia 17 fits relatively true to size in my Men's 9.5. The length is a little on the long side but the dimensions throughout are pretty sound. The heel, midfoot, and forefoot all are normal width. The mesh upper material is decently comfortable and has a good amount of reinforcement throughout. There is not too much stretch to it and you feel pretty secure. The lacing system has a couple of pieces of material at the bottom and at the top of the tongue to help with getting a more secure lockdown. There is a padded heel counter with some additional reinforcement throughout the heel cup as well. The fit throughout is pretty generous with space without sacrificing lockdown too much. The tongue is padded and lets you tighten the laces without issue.
The big thing I noticed on the Cascadia was the heel collar has some flex to it. The material will scrunch up a tad upon loading and I would get small pebbles or wood chips in my shoe. I had a small amount of heel slippage due to the length but it was not problematic. The lockdown throughout is pretty good and should fit most usages. The only thing I would work on here is getting heel collar on the medial and lateral sides to not flex so much. Otherwise security was quite good and comfort was acceptable.
PERFORMANCE
The performance of the Cascadia 17 is interesting for me. I think on one hand its performance is really good, though not in the way most people would perceive performance. The shoe is heavy, a little blocky, and not all that responsive. With that said the transitions are quite smooth, predictable, and can take a beating. The shoe feels like a Saucony Ride type shoe for the trails. It is boring in the best way. The shoe has good traction underfoot and the lugs are wide enough to not hold on to mud or debris. The trail adapt system seems to help give a little bit more underfoot stability and rigidity to the platform. The ride experience is definitely on the firmer side with the Cascadia 17. With that said it feels structured and still provides enough cushioning for longer efforts.
The shoe is on the heavier side weighing north of 11 ounces, though the ride is smooth and stable throughout. The forefoot is moderately flexible/stiff. Statically it has some rigidity, but with load there is certainly some flexibility up front. The heel has a small and gradual heel bevel. This is consistent with the toe spring as well. This is not an overly rockered ride by any means. The transitions feel pretty natural throughout and let you use the shoe how you want to. I found that this is a pretty traditional trail shoe that has a pretty neutral geometry that work well for easy running, hiking, walking etc.
STABILITY
I always find trail shoes to be a little more stable inherently. They usually use firmer midsoles, full contact outsoles, and have more secure uppers. The Cascadia 17 checks all of those boxes. The Cascadia 17 is also using a plate system that they call Trail Adapt to also add some rigidity (with flexibility to it) throughout the platform. I would say this is noticeable, as the shoe does hold its structure well with rotatory torque running on uneven surfaces. The upper security is also good, though I do think the heel collar could be reworked to have less flex medially and laterally. Traction underfoot is good for a large variety of footing as well. The stability experience in the Cascadia is quite good with this year's offering.
Thoughts as a DPT: Versatility
By David Salas
With so many advances in running shoe technology designs like the Cascadia 17 are becoming less numerous. We are seeing many new generation foams, sharp rocker geometries, and many run specific adaptions in footwear. One of the things that has always brought appeal to shoes like the Brooks Cascadia series was that it was not overly aggressive in these designs and also worked well for standing, walking, hiking, and trail running.
Would I race in it? No I probably wouldn't, but I am happy that this type of shoe is still out here. Knowing how many people hike or walk bluff trails in my area, this is a solid option for those that have some stability needs and don't want anything overly aggressive in geometry.
RECOMMENDATIONS AND WHO THIS SHOE IS FOR
The Cascadia 17 is a trail running shoe for someone that likes the
traditional firm, though steady and structured ride of trail shoes. The
shoe does not have a crazy rocker to it and runs decently natural. The
shoe also is one of the more stable trail running shoe offerings this
year for anybody who has some stability concerns on the trails. The ride
is firm and on the heavier end, though structured enough for longer
efforts. This is your "screw the pace, let's just go on an adventure"
shoe.
The one big thing I kept noticing was that debris would slide into my shoe after a while through the heel collar. The shoe has a pretty thin heel collar along the medial and lateral aspect and this flexes when the shoe is loaded through the rearfoot. If they can clean up the lockdown there that would improve the experience of the shoe. The other thing that is noticeable, though less involved, is the length. It definitely runs a tad long and I had to lace the shoes a little tighter to prevent mild heel slippage.
GRADING
David
Fit: B (Heel collar has flex to it medially and laterally. The shoe also runs long enough to notice.)
Performance: A- (A very sturdy and reliable ride. Not rockered, relatively natural. Heel collar lets things in. Weight is still pretty heavy.)
Stability: A- (Good stability throughout. Trail Adapt plate works well, good traction, upper is reliable outside of the heel collar)
DPT/Footwear Science: A- (Simple materials integrated in a way that works well for the shoe experience. Just need to nail the heel.)
Personal: A- (Outside of the heel collar and length issue, this is one of my favorite easy day trail running shoes)
Overall: A-
SHOP | SUPPORT DORBrooks Cascadia 17Price: $139.95 at Running Warehouse
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FURTHER READING: MORE 2023 TRAIL SHOES
Brooks Catamount 2 - A redesign adds a SkyVault plate to the trail shoe
Brooks Divide 3 - A surprisingly solid trail runner at $100
Hoka Challenger ATR 7 [Stable Neutral] - This road-to-trail comes in at its lightest yet with a firmer rolling ride
Hoka Stinson 7 - A crossover max cushion shoe that is built for trails, but can do road as well
Hoka Tecton X 2 - Subtle changes keep this trail racer a fun and fast ride
Hoka Zinal 2 - Hoka's super light trail runner gets an update
La Sportiva Cyklon Cross GTX - Winter ready running in every way possible
New Balance Fresh Foam X More Trail v3 - A real balance of cushion and durability for the trails
Nike Ultrafly - Nike releases their ultramarathon shoe, powered by ZoomX
Salomon Glide Max TR - A new max cushion trail entry from trail specialists, Salomon
Salomon Glide Ride 2 - A solid moderately stacked trainer for the trails
Salomon Pulsar Trail Pro 2 - A fast, aggressive trail shoe that has one setback that holds the shoe back
Salomon Sense Ride 5 - A lower cushion, well-riding trail shoe that can do a bit of everything
Saucony Blaze TR - Surprisingly light trail running for $100
Sauocny Endorphin Rift - A flexible, light, PWRRUN PB-fueld trail runner
Saucony Peregrine 13 (and ST) - The lightest, yet also most cushioned model in the trail line
Saucony Xodus Ultra 2 [Stable Neutral]- A great trail runner becomes even better. Lighter, better fitting, and
Find all Shoe Reviews at Doctors of Running here.
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