Buy it if the sled and the wall balls are where your race falls apart, and you can accept a slow, flat ride on the runs. Anyone whose eight kilometres decide the day should look at a hybrid trainer instead.
Tested over 140 km of hybrid training and three Hyrox races, in Open and Doubles, on carpet-over-concrete rather than gym turf.
On the sled
This is the reason the Metcon still sells to hybrid racers. The heel is wide, the outsole barely compresses under load, and the whole shoe stays flat when you drive into a 150 kg push. On carpet-over-concrete, which is what Australian halls give you, it grips without needing the toes to claw.
On the runs
Honest about the trade: eight kilometres in a 402 g shoe with a firm forefoot is work. Around the 5 km mark the lack of return starts to show in the calves, and the last two runs cost you more than they would in a trainer. If your splits are already your weakness, this shoe will widen the gap.
Wall balls and lunges
Stable in the squat, and the shoe holds a strong midfoot position for the whole hundred reps. The sandbag lunge is where the stiff forefoot fights back slightly on the step-through, but a wider lace pattern through the last two eyelets fixes most of it.
Fit and durability
True to size, narrow through the midfoot, with a heel that locks well on most feet. After 140 km and three races the upper shows scuffing at the sled-push toe drag but no structural wear, and the outsole pattern is still readable.
- Weight, US M10
- 402 g
- Heel–toe drop
- 6 mm
- Distance tested
- 140 km
- AU retail
- $200
Weighed on our own scale, single shoe. Price checked 6 September 2026.
Who should skip it
If your eight kilometres are what decide your race, the weight is not worth the grip. Look at a hybrid trainer and accept a more careful sled instead — the compare table has the alternatives side by side.
Works for
- Best sled platform in the field
- Holds shape under Pro loads
- Stable for the full hundred wall balls
- Upper survives toe drag
Works against
- Heavy over eight kilometres
- Little return on the last two runs
- Narrow through the midfoot
- Stiff on the lunge step-through