New Balance MT110 Review

Upper: Awesome new laser cut material that wraps around the foot rather well, definitely more snug (less lateral movement) than the MT101. Inside lining is super comfortable so you can wear these with or without socks. The laser cut outer also lends itself well to cleaning, coming up looking rather ‘new’ each time. The heel counter is slightly more substantial than the ‘rubberised’ one of the 101 but felt really good around the achilles with no rubbing issues. The Last is the same as the MT10 Minimus so plenty of room in the toe box even in the D fitting but there is also the option of a wider 2E fit. Toe bumper or wrap around provides minimal protection but is adequate. The tongue is similar to the Minimus MT10, very thin and light but lacks a gusset which would be welcome after I collected quite a few stones and sand on my test runs.

Outer: Big improvement on the MT101 with bigger stickier lugs. The rubber used seems softer and therefore grippier. I have run on most terrain types and have had no issues with grip. The ‘Rockstop” plate in the forefoot is again adequate at providing relief from most stone bruising but again you won’t smash down a rocky trail in these ‘barefoot’ shoes like you will with more substantial protection. There is a 4mm drop too.

Midsole: This is where the shoe let me down. After only 38kms in them at Quarry Rd I was rather surprised to find the midsole had collapsed quite markedly and the lugs on the soft EVA of mid portion of the outer (part of the midsole wrap) were pulverised after only one run! I have added some photos for comparison (new v old)


Trail Test: I am a big fan of the Minimus last and as soon as I put these shoes on they felt good.
I wanted to really test them out on most trail types so ran on everything from hard packed firetrails to rooty wet and muddy singletrack. As mentioned before there is definitely an improvement in the way your foot sits in these and less lateral movement when running cambers or changing direction quickly. Grip is great with the super sticky rubber but less so on muddy trails. The guys at New Balance checked out the wear pattern on Krupicka’s shoes whilst developing these and as such have beefed up the lateral portion of the forefoot so there is a tendency to roll in as a result of this ‘slant’ from lateral to medial sides. I noticed this only on road and less so on trails where is was not an issue. I’m guessing Tony runs more on the lateral part of his forefoot than most of us do. The ride is nice, you feel fast running in these shoes, with a nice toe off feeling when attacking a hill. The heel on the outer is quite narrow but I had no issue with potential ankle roll/stability with the shoes providing plenty of terrain feedback.

Conclusion: I wanted to use these shoes as a 6FT racing shoe but have decided against. I was expecting a slightly more substantial shoe to be honest and will likely only use these as a shorter trail racing/training shoe. The fact that the midsole broke down so quickly was a big disappointment and I will likely only get 400-500kms or so out of these. At $80 a pair that is still probably ok for some.
An improvement over the MT101 but falls just short of expectations for me. I am looking forward to the MT1010 which will be released in June.


Post 38kms


Post 38km v New



Post 100kms