Lite Train: Performance

At just 540g per pair, the Lite Train lives up to its name, but it’s a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, the shoes fit like a glove with the seamless upper and padded tongue wrapping gently round your foot. On top of that, the lack of underfoot stiffening giving intimate ground feel that makes it feel precise and nimble, a sort of Lionel Messi trail experience if you like.

On the other hand, the flexible, thinly cushioned sole unit and lack of a stiffened forefoot plate mean you feel every little rock underfoot. It’s oddly invigorating at first, a bit like being tickled gently, but it gets tiring on longer outings and is downright painful if you accidentally jam your instep into a sharp rock while descending fast.

It’s a shoe that asks, are you feeling lucky, punk? Or maybe how confident are you in your foot placements? If you are, the Michelin sole pays you back in spades with confident all-round grip on firm to medium surfaces in particular.

Hiking is less demanding of it, but we still found it a little tiring on longer outings particularly if you’re carrying a loaded pack. Oddly, where it excelled, was as a lightweight evening shoe for camping and hut excursions when the comfort and flexibility give it an endearing slipper-like allure.

Verdict

Light, grippy and precise with just enough heel cushioning, the Lite Train’s, erm, achilles forefoot is the relative lack of underfoot protection against rockier terrain. That means it’s something of an acquired taste, great if you like your shoes minimal and are neat and precise with your foot placements, less attractive if you make the occasional mistake or find yourself, say, barreling down over jagged Lakeland scree.

Finally, as a bonus, it makes a damn good, lightweight, evening shoe for strolling around the campsite or wondering over a few fields to the pub.

More Information

See www.salewa.co.uk/en/lite-train-men.html