Conquering Terrain with Precision: Unveiling the Topo MT-5 Trail Shoe

Trail shoes are now so popular that off-name brands (I dare you to type “trail shoes” into Amazon), and brands that have never dared to make a running shoe fit to get dirty, are popping up everywhere. Major name brands have managed to get their shoes onto the feet of everyday people, who love the rugged looks and meaty treads and are all too happy to sport shoes that will never see dirt.

This is ultimately good for the sake of getting more people into the sport. However, there are still a few brands out there who are not as well known that make top quality options. One such brand is Topo Athletic. With their lower than most stack heights, and wider-than-most toe boxes, they aren’t always talked about. Topo is not a tip-of-the-tongue name, and when I mention them to non-runners I am always met with “who”?

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I first started wearing Topo when they introduced the Split Toe (ST), which separated the big toe from the others, and required special socks that only Topo made. Over the years I have worn both road and trail shoes from them and always appreciated their fit. One such model is the MT (mountain trail), which has typically been a decent trail shoe, with modest lugs, a low stack, and a light weight.

The deets on the MT-5

Their latest iteration is the MT-5, which is a bit of a shift for Topo in so much as it is now being touted as an entry-level trail runner. Topo claims it is designed for easy to medium terrain, and is perfect as a trail to road and back shoe. And while their drop grew from 3mm to 5mm (from the MT-4), Topo redesigned their foam (now called Zipfoam), lightened things up (9.3 ounces as tested with a men’s size 10), added more stack to increase foam, and maintained their Vibram XS Trek Evo outsole.

Part of the struggle of many hybrid shoes is the weight and the heavy lugs when running on road to get to the trail. This is where the MT-5 is designed to shine. However, this is also where some hybrids get in trouble, as the treads are less effective on more technical terrain. And this is why we test!

Fit, Form & Function

Out of the box, the MT-5 is a great looking shoe. I love the blue/red colorway, which is sharp. It is indeed lightweight and feels more like a road shoe than a trail runner. The treads/lugs are not heavy, but they are spaced well for drainage and are definitely far greater than your typical road shoe. The lacing is solid, with 2 upper holes for locking in the heel. The heel cup is genuinely one of the most comfortable I’ve worn. The tongue is padded in all the right spots. And the toe box is roomy like we’ve come to expect from Topo.

I chose to size up by a half for this pair, based on availability. Normally I would say no as I detest a sloppy shoe, but Topo suggests that the MT-5 fits a little on the small side, so away we go. I will say that for me, staying true to size will likely work for the vast majority of runners, but in this case the half size was not a bad thing.

Run 1 – Sloppy Conditions

My first run tested the sizing, for sure. I logged about 12 miles with over 2K of elevation gain, all in an effort to test cornering, climbing, descending, traction, trail use, road use, comfort, and overall performance. Here are some takeaways from that first run:

The half size jump was on my mind from the moment I hit the road, but the 2 miles from door to trail provided little opportunity to suggest an issue. The ride on pavement was sweet, even if it was the first 2 miles this pair had ever seen. The lightweight MT-5 handles like a slightly beefy road trainer and is ideal for those moments where there’s a bit of dirt or gravel on your road run.

The switch to trail was a different story, as tread was needed for the leafy and slimy conditions I encountered. The MT-5 did OK, but this quickly became the glaring deficiency. As I worked uphill and then down, the extra half size was never really a problem, and the comfort was great, but getting traction in muddy trails was a no-go.

Run 2 – Sloppy and Rocky

My next run covered just under 8 miles with 1.5K of gain, and all on trail. Conditions were nearly identical with lots of leafy and muddy surfaces, but this time there was also more rocky and rooted spots. Again, the slimy stuff is tough and I get that, but the MT-5 struggled to grip the climbs and descents, which force you to shorten your stride for the sake of stability. The handling of rocks and roots are good, which is redeeming to be sure, but the hope is to get some drier conditions soon for more runs.

Run 3 – Better Conditions

I managed to get out for a run on Christmas day while the weather was good. The conditions were much better and the trails were in decent shape. Even with some trails still being covered with leaves, the majority of this run was on dry trails and a little road. With another 10.5 miles and nearly 1.7K of gain, this was the best run to date in the MT-5s.

Part of me thinks they needed a chance to shine, but I also have high expectations for trail shoes to be able to handle the PNW rains, and not just the dry, perfect conditions of summer. Still, the performance came through on this day and the MT-5s were as advertised, which is to say they were solid on road and trail.

Running on Technical Terrain

After the first few runs of moderate trails with mostly flowy single track, I wanted to expose the MT-5s to some heavier rocks and more technical terrain. I did a short 6 mile run with 2 major climbs on technical fire lane/heavy rock roads, totaling 1.85K of gain. On this day, the MT-5s did better than I expected.

Given the advertisement that these are more entry level trail shoes, I expected the larger rocks to be problematic for the Zipfoam outsole, with my feet bearing much of the brunt and pain. Instead, they climbed well and descended ever better. This is where I love the toe box of the Topo shoes.

Your toes do not take the abuse of other shoes which force your toes into a wedge. Instead, the impact is shared across your entire foot, which allows the runner to focus on landing and takeoff, without fear of a jarring experience.

Wrap up Running

I managed one shorter run in prep for this review, of just over 4 miles and 700 feet. It was a wet one with freshly rained on trails, leaves everywhere, muddy bowls and corners, a little climbing and descending, and even some FS road action.

With 40 miles and 8K of gain piled onto this pair of MT-5s, the initial concerns of slippage and loss of traction become lessened by the overall performance of this shoe.

Final Thoughts

Topo continues to produce a solid product. The MT-5 is another example of that, with all the features you want and need in a trusty trail shoe. It’s worth noting that you will experience the same slippage I did, when running on wet leaves and on muddy trails, as the tread is not as heavy as other options on the market.

It’s also important to note that I run A LOT of trails. I have high expectations for my footwear, but acknowledge that not everyone puts in the sheer amount of vert and miles that I do.

While it’s true that the MT-5 is a great entry-level trail shoe, I would argue that it is also a solid trainer for even the most seasoned pro. An additional test would be to determine how well these do at the 50K or 50M distances, and perhaps an update is in order. For now, I am definitely impressed.

My advice is simple; if you’re looking for a solid pair of road to trail shoes, go buy the Topo MT-5.