Inov-8 X-TALON 212, Men's Trail Running Shoes

Product Information

I have had several pairs of these shoes over the years and I'm never disappointed. These are great shoes. They can't be beaten for the reliability and I use them for off-road running. Inov-8’s naming convention tells you a great deal about their shoes. The name is always the type of outsole followed by the weight. In accordance, this shoe features an X-Talon outsole and weighs in at a slight 212 grams. For you Americans, that’s less than 7.5 ounces for a US men’s size 9.

I am training for my first Spartan race and I'm using these shoes. I love them. I think that putting an insert in these will help with longer wear and running. There is no heel counter. There is no plastic and the heel is fully collapsible. However, a foam material and a suede-like overlay does provide some decent structure to the heel. Delivery timescales are esimates in working days; Public Holidays, Saturday's and Sunday's are NOT classed as working days.

Where to Buy

As I say it might just be my foot shape. Having said that the stud seems to be wearing down and the shoes are becoming more comfortable. In this review, we’ll take a separate look at the X-Talon 212’s outsole, midsole, upper, and insole before wrapping up with a conclusion.

The light weight, aggressive outsole, and snug fit of this shoe make it well suited to short-distance cross country racing or in sloppy conditions and the uppers breathed well. I haven’t tried them in a water-crossing yet, so I don’t know how well they drain, but I think they’ll perform well there also. Alternatively, you can measure the length of your foot and add between 1 and 2cm to find the correct insole length. It is hard to be exact here, as sizing is so personal – but in hiking boots, running shoes or training shoes, we’d recommend having at least 1cm of extra space beyond the end of the longest toe to ensure comfort. Shoes UK Size The only fault with these (and it might just be down to my foot shape) is that because they are fairly minimal shoes without much cushioning and have very knobbly soles, they can become painful when running on harder ground. There's one stud on the sole in particular which I land on right in the centre on the ball of my foot behind my second toe, if the ground is hard then this really becomes uncomfortable after about 8k.

Outsole

The Inov-8 X-Talon 212 was originally intended as a cross country racing shoe with studs that were spaced out enough as to not clog with mud. It was flexible enough to mould to the ever changing shape of the ground you run on during a cross country run or race. The shoe was light, with a mesh upper that prevented water being absorbed, making you uncomfortable and weighing you down. The shoe had a fast and responsive feel and yet was shortly followed by the stripped down, even faster racing version–the X-Talon 190.

When I finally got to try them out, the X-Talons were a slightly better fit. Remembering my dads advice not to go for the ones with the coolest name, I finally bought the X-Talons. They were ridiculously light and felt great - from a functional perspective, there was also very little cushioning or material on them and as I do a lot of running through streams, rivers, big puddles and water in general, drainage was important for me. They fit like a glove, which made me wary. Shop for the X-Talon 200 if you have broader feet and/or have obstacle course and other challenges in mind. Besides the blister that I got on my toe at the 6 Mile mark for my first time, wearing these shoes are superb. They look great and they have amazing grip. I run on various terrains. Lightweight as well and I would definitely buy these again.Compared to other runners and trainers on the market these shoes cannot be beaten for their grip. Perfect for off-road. They fit perfectly and they look good. In December 2019 we launched the first-ever X-TALON shoes to include our revolutionary Graphene-Grip outsoles. You can find out all the details here. The X-TALON G 235 is joined by the X-TALON G 210 (V2 version now available) as the new Graphene-Grip products in the range. We have meticulously studied the foot and its function during the gait cycle and also the interaction between the foot and the terrain. We have used this knowledge to develop our fitting scale. For technical footwear a good fit is essential to enhance your performance. Think of inov-8 and more often than not you think of the X-TALON. Since its inception, this iconic off-road running shoe has become a global success story. Run on soft ground trails in the UK, the USA or anywhere else in the world and you will no doubt see the distinctive stud pattern of the X-TALON, left behind by the runner ahead of you. After buying our house near to Epping Forest and taking up trail running, I decided to invest in a new pair of trainers that would not only work for me as trail running and mud racing shoes, but also actually fit for once.