La Sportiva Crosslite vs. Fireblade vs. Wildcat

I was approached a few months ago by La Sportiva to test a few of the models of their trail/mountain running shoes line-up. I have to say I haven’t felt such an excitement about new shoes in a long time. La Sportiva is one of the best trail running footwear manufacturers on the market, and I was looking forward slipping on three of their most renowned models: the Wildcat, the Fireblade and the Crosslite. I’ve been using them for a few hundred miles now, and here’s what I can say about them (spoiler alert: it’s not going to be the last time there will be new La Sportiva shoes in my closet…)

The Wildcat GTX

La Sportiva Wildcat is an impressive trail running shoe. I’ve been a Salomon runner until now, but this is the shoe I’ve been lately wearing on the many technical rocky trails surrounding my place.

It may feel a bit clunky and definitely sturdier than the Fireblade or the Crosslite, but there’s a reason for that. The Wildcat is a supportive, moderately stiff shoe that will give you protection on any type of rough terrain you can think of. It performed amazingly well on  rocks, loose terrain, wet slippery surfaces, snow or even under moderately icy conditions. Climbs were solid and I never slipped-out on descents, even when gravel and cracks were involved. The grip is performed by the tough outsole with deep angled slugs that excel in uphill climbs as well as downhill switch-backs. One drawback on this pattern is that it doesn’t shed mud very well, and you will end up with some unexpected extra weight on muddy terrain.

The forefoot protection is also outstanding, having saved me a few bad toe injuries (which not even the Salomon XT-Wings were able to do). The stability is also another great feature providing the vital confidence needed to fast tackle uneven surfaces.  The mesh upper is heavy duty and holds up well and I still have to see any scratches on it after a few hundred miles in them.

I’ve been testing the GTX version and I’ve got to say that the shoes still breath pretty well, though haven’t used them in really hot conditions.  And the Gore-Tex membrane kept my feet completely dry on this past weekend’s mountain race, a 23K course with 15-20 inches of snow.

If your runs (or adventure races) tend to involve rocky terrain, this is simply one of the best shoes you can have. I’m already a Wildcat fan and this is the shoe I mostly use on my mountain training or racing courses. I’m sold.

The Fireblade

The La Sportiva Fireblade is a solid shoe. It must be if Karl Meltzer wore it for the full 2176 miles of the Appalachian Trail and said “I would never go back to another shoe.”  It is well constructed, and built to last for miles and miles. It is definitely the shoe I would take with me to run a 100 miler (from the three reviewed here).

The Fireblade is another great shoe traction-wise. It provides excellent gripping on most terrain without being as sturdy as the Wildcat. It is very flexible from the first use and I didn’t hesitate to log nearly 20 miles on my first run with it. And it didn’t disappoint, as I had zero issues on that long run. But it also has just the right stiffness to give you enough protection from roots and rocks, although I wouldn’t take them to the rocky trails where I use the Wildcat. You can definitively feel the rocks under your feet and might feel some soreness on the next run if you put many miles on rocky terrain. But on a single track dirt or fire road terrain (or even on roads), you will forget you’re wearing them even on your longest runs.

Another outstanding feature is its lightness. This, together with the thin but sufficient cushioning, makes it perfect (again) for long runs. Also note, as the other models reviewed here, that wide-footed runners might find it too narrow (but the toebox had more than enough room for me).

If you are an all terrain runner (except maybe strict mountain runners) and you log more miles than your GPS watch can record, go for the Fireblade.

The Crosslite
I was expecting just a pair of Wildcats from La Sportiva but they surprised me with the three pairs of shoes I’m reviewing today. Nice! The downside of this is that the size of the Crosslite was not my best fit. An 8.5+ turned to run too small for my feet size. Keep this in mind if you buy your shoes on-line.

As a result of this less than ideal fit, the first 45min run with these ended with a couple of big blisters on my heels. So I decided to give them out by wearing them on a daily basis when going for errands or other stuff in town. And that’s the way I learned these shoes are hot! They certainly stand out and attract attention, and  I’d even say its sleek looking fits into a certain “urban sport style”.  After a few weeks I was ready to wear them again without problems, although I won’t use them for runs longer than 15-20 miles, as I wouldn’t be able to keep blisters away for such “long” distances.

When I first put on the Crosslite a word came to my mind immediately:  lightweight . They are super light and feel like a glove on your feet. In my case, not too much room in the toe box, but that’s likely the size issue I noted before.  Once on the trail, they proved to have an exceptional traction, specially on muddy sections. The slugs on the dual-density rubber outsole act like spikes digging into the dirt and giving  a certain extra cushioning, while the spacing between them allow the shoe to shed mud extremely well. They are low to the ground which gives great trail feel (but not too much ankle support) and are definitely recommended for narrow or medium wide feet.

The special feature that stands out is the elastic lace guard, which keeps the debris from entering the shoe. Don’t ask me how to replace the laces though, as I can’t see how to access the lower loops. Laces seem to be durable, so I’ll just cross my fingers  I don’t ever need to replace them.

I would recommend the Crosslite for technical runners and would race in them when traction is key and on courses not longer than marathon distance.

	Crosslite	Fireblade	Wildcat GTX
Upper	Nylon AirMesh	Synthetic leather/nylon mesh/rubber	Nylon AirMesh
Lining	Nylon mesh (back half and tongue only)	Synthetic mesh (heel only)	Gore-Tex Extended Comfort Footwear
Midsole	Dual-density EVA	Triple-density EVA	EVA
Outsole	Rubber (FriXion AT V-Groove)	Rubber (FriXion AT Racing)	Rubber (FriXion X-Axis)
Shank	Molded Nylon	No	Molded Nylon
Arch Support	Neutral	High	Neutral
Lacing	Protected laces	Standard	Standard
Weight	12.35oz / 346g	12.82oz / 359g	13.69oz/ 388g
Waterproof	No	No	Yes
Prize	$89.95 $90.00 $89.95	$80.71 $74.95 $95.00(spring 2010 version)	$99.96

* Technical glossary

Many thanks to La Sportiva for providing the shoes for this review.