The North Face Sawtooth Ridge
By Rhett Olson

While on a trip to Moab to watch a friend run a half marathon, I had life changing experience. The city oozed of sweat and adrenaline from the race. It frightened the side of me that said, "13 miles is a long way to run", and tempted the other that said, "I could do that." Temptation beat out the fright. The idea of running the race so enthralled me, that I promised myself I would be back to participate in my first long distance race.

I hit the pavement, put in the training miles and eventually kept my promise to participate in the race. After the excitement of finishing the race wore off, back at home I had a hard time continuing to run. I quickly tired of sucking the fumes of passing cars, and the incessant laps at the indoor track made me feel like a giant rat stuck on a wheel.

So, as many of you are now doing, I laced up my running shoes and took to the local mountain trails. It was pure running bliss. The air was clean and the terrain varied. My once monotonous routine became fun again.

Shoe manufacturers are keenly aware of this trend, and have begun producing shoes specifically for trail running. One approach is to take a typical running shoe, add a more aggressive tread, increase the ankle support and "PRESTO", you have a trail runner.

The North Face took a little different direction with the Sawtooth Ridge. The Sawtooth Ridge's overly snug fit, ostensibly for better performance, has led some to recommend going up a 1/2 size for a comfortable fit. I'd go one step (size?) further and suggest going up a full shoe size so you can wear a thicker sock.

Once I got a good fit, the shoe hugged my heel well and the bridge of my foot stayed comfortable under the padded tongue. The toe box seemed roomy and did an excellent job keeping my toes comfortable. I never had any problems with having my toes jamming the front of the shoe while running downhill. The initial fit put the Sawtooth Ridge high on my list of favorite trail running shoes.

After several miles on the trail I was still impressed with the shoes They were light as air (1 lb 10 o a pair) and offered loads of control. I especially noticed that it provided good traction while scrambling on rock. My feet always felt good after short runs. (three or four miles) However, after a 12 mile day hike on a well groomed trail with only water and a jacket on my back, I began having problems. Completing the hike, I noticed the balls of my feet ached. It took all the pain tolerance I could muster to get out of the car for something to eat on the way home. Was it a fluke, or had the shoes I had grown to love done me wrong?

Well, in the name of fairness, I continued wearing the shoes. And again, they were fine on small stuff but hurt my feet when I put any kind of mileage on them. The X-2™ midsole just didn't offer enough support for extended wear. Conversely, one of Gearreview.com's female testers wore the shoes every morning for her 2-mile walk. After months of use, she has never had any problems with them. If fact, she says they are her favorite pair of walking shoes.

I should also mention two of the three pairs of Sawtooth Ridge shoes tested by Gearreview.com, ended up with large holes on the rubber-like material covering the toe. The holes were caused by ripsin the material, not the seams. After comparing notes, we discovered the one common factor with the two damaged shoes was that they both got wet while in use. Therefore, I suggest avoid wearing the Sawtooth Ridge in wet conditions, or, if that's not possible, consider another shoe.

Summary: The Sawtooth Ridge is not bad for The North Face's initial entry into the trail running shoe world. They are very comfortable for short approaches and small runs. But, when it comes time to really put on the mileage, I would stick with your good ol' running shoe.

Price: $95.00

By Rhett Olson is a Contributing Editor for GearReview.com.

For more information, contact:
The North Face
2013 Farallon Dr.
San Leandro, CA 94577
(800)719-6678