The Altra Timp 4 is a zero-drop trail shoe designed to offer a comfortable, cushioned ride for a variety of sessions. The shoe sees an updated stack of Altra EGO MAX to offer even more cushioning than the previous version and a healthy layer of Maxtrac outsole rubber to provide a good level of grip and protection across a range of trail surfaces.
As well as the natural drop, the Timp 4 includes grooves in the midsole to provide better flexibility and Altra’s wide toebox to allow the toes to splay comfortably. The shoe also features drainage holes in the forefoot to remove excess water, gator connective elements, a slightly reinforced toe cap and a moderate level of cushioning in the tongue and around the ankle collar.
Tom has taken the shoe out on a first run to see if it’s worth looking at as your next trail cruiser.
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00:00 – Intro
00:18 – Stats
00:28 – Design
01:06 – How’s the Fit?
02:04 – The Run Test
08:12 – Should You Buy it
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Hey there Tommy from the Run testers With another first run review in this Video I'm going to be looking at the Ultra timp 4 Trail shoe let's take a Look The ultra Tim 4 costs 140 pounds or 160 Dollars weighs in at 300 grams or 10.6 Ounces for men in a size 8. the drop is Zero millimeters The ultra tip 4 is a zero drop Trail Shoe designed to offer a comfortable Cushioned ride for a variety of sessions The shoe sees an updated stack of ultra Ego Max to offer even more cushioning Than the previous version and a healthy Layer of Max track outsole rubber to Provide a good level of grip and Protection across a range of Trail Surfaces as well as the natural drop the Tin 4 includes grooves in the midsole to Provide a better level of flexibility And ultra's wide toe box to allow the Toes to spray comfortably the shoe also Features drainage holes in the forefoot To remove excess water Gator connected Elements a slightly reinforced toe cap And a moderate level of cushioning in The tongue and around the ankle collar Okay so the fit for me in the ultra Tim 4 this is an eight in the UK I'm an 18 In the UK I found it to be a very Comfortable shoe Ultra is well known for Having a roomier toe box definitely got Room in your toe box um but I didn't
Find it was too big for my uh the length Of my foot it felt very comfortable Um the upper is pretty comfortable I Would say that the mid section of the Shoe is a little bit more restrictive Than I would have expected from an Ultra Shoe um but it felt absolutely fine for Me I've got a fairly average sized Average width foot Um so I didn't have any issues with it At all but if you do have a wide foot You might want to take that into Consideration other than that I found it To be very comfortable there's plenty of Padding around the ankle collar and the Upper feels quite structured Um and comfortable to wear so I would Stick to my size in the ultra tip 4. So I have just been out to chamonix for The UTMB and I use that as an Opportunity to test out the ultra tip 4 While I was over there I actually I've Actually done three runs in this shoe so Far one of them was a fairly short 5K Run um which is mainly on road and Gravel uh the next one I did was a 10 Mile run which was a mixture of Road and Gravel and I recently since I've come Back I've done some running uh in the on Some trails around here and I did about 10K in the shoe and it's a good job that I did because I don't know a lot about Ultra shoes and the feel of them is not Really what I'm used to I've so far
Tested the outro 2. I didn't mind that Shoe but it wasn't really for me I'm not Really used to zero drop shoes Um and the outro 2 was a little bit firm For me Um for the sort of running that I like Um the reason that I picked up the temp 4 is that it's there's quite a lot more Cushioning in it it's got this ego Max Midsole questioning 29 millimeters drop Across the whole shoe and it's Definitely a lot softer than what I Experienced in the outro too so In Those Runs that I didn't know what I found is That the tip 4 is more my sort of shoe That midsole foam that that's in it is Definitely a lot softer Um and more suited to my style of Running what I felt on the road sections Is that it delivers pretty well it's Pretty versatile when you're running on Road and when you're running on Trails For me it's quite a comfortable shoe to Run it on the road but I did notice the Lack of drops something that I'm Definitely not used to when running on The road Um but it was comfortable and after Doing 10 miles in it it felt absolutely Fine Um but I would say that it's an Experience that I think you probably Have to get used to if you've never Tried zero drop shoes before
Um it takes a bit of time to get used to How they feel Um but the big stack of cushioning in The um tip 4 does make it easier to to Get used to that that zero drop when I Headed onto the hard gravel sections and Rocky sections of the trails that I was Doing it delivered very well it feels Like a very comfortable shoe to wear Um it's not necessarily the most Versatile shoe for me I definitely Wouldn't run very fast in this shoe that Might be partly to do to do with the Fact that I'm not that used to the the Zero drop shoe but also it does feel Like it's it's not the lightest shoe in The world it's not the heaviest shoe in The world it's fairly balanced but I Would say that it uh I couldn't feel Like I could really pick up the pace in It but it's very comfortable over my More comfortable pace which is around Five minutes to 5 minutes 20 kilometers Which is sort of my easy Pace or my long Run pace and it did very well at that The outsole on the shoe is quite minimal In comparison it's not very aggressive Um in comparison to some other trail Shoes especially around the forefoot um There's not there's not really any lugs Or aggressive lugs on the forefoot so I Think it's a shoe that's really not Designed for heavily technical terrain What I was running on was quite Gravelly
There were some rocky sections and I did Do some inclines and declines on it it Felt absolutely fine there was no rain There was no wet surfaces that I was Running on so I haven't been able to Test it on that sort of surface yet but On that dry terrain it was very good it I didn't feel like I had any issues at All with the grip felt very stable and Felt very secure on the ground Um and didn't have any issues at all the One thing I would say though is it Doesn't have a rock plate in it um and That midsole foam because it's quite a Bit softer um there were points where I Did hit a quite a big rock and I could Feel it under my feet not massively I Still felt like the shoe was protecting My foot Um but for the more technical terrain Where it can get quite Rocky pointy bits Of rock and things like that there's not A lot of protection in the midsole apart From the midsole foam itself I did find That the upper was very comfortable it Was very hot when I was out in chamonix Doing my run I didn't have any issues With breathability of this shoe I at all It felt absolutely fine the experience Of the ride in this shoe so I would say About it is that even though it's got a Lot of Cushing in it there is there is Obviously no drop in it but also that it Doesn't really there's not really any
Propulsion it's not really doing Anything that moves you forward so it's A very natural feeling shoe which if You're looking for an Ultra Shoe that's Probably what you're looking for so That's it that's a good thing the Combination of that with the Um toes plate in the forefoot does make It feel like you are running in a shoe That is really allowing you to run in The way that you want it doesn't feel Like it's doing anything to move your Foot forward it doesn't feel aggressive In any way Um so it it definitely feels like a shoe That if you want a natural feel Um uh but you don't want to go fully Barefo or anything like that it's a nice It's a nice balance of that and it Definitely feels like when you're Touching the ground you really have a Good feel of the ground it's nice when You're dipping around Um outcrops and things like that where You want to have a bit of control over The ground and you want to fear what's Happening other things I would say about It there it does have a protective layer On the forefoot of the shoe Um I didn't really get into any Situations where that was necessary I Didn't really need to use that it Doesn't feel particularly thick so I Doubt it would be massively protective
It'll probably help you a bit if you're Sort of running around areas where There's little bits of rock pointing out And things like that but it's not it's Not the most formidable toe protection That you're going to find on a trail Shoe has drainage holes in it I didn't Get to test those out it was completely Dry when I was out on the trail and the Other thing which is quite nice about Shoes is they've got this um velcro Section at the back and this loop at the Front of the lacing system and that's For attaching Gators Um definitely didn't use those over the Over the testing that I've done in them But it's there if you need it so overall Very comfortable enjoyable run not one That I'm particularly used to so Um it's a little bit of an alien feel to Me I'm not used to that natural feel I Normally used to wearing something with A bit of a drop that sort of Pops your Forward a bit or with a bit of a rocker Um but I did want to these shoes and the Cushioning was a massive factor in that So my early verdict on the ultra tip 4 Is that it's a shoe that I wouldn't Necessarily normally look at and Um I was very rarely that I've used zero Drop shoes apart from barefoot shoes or Minimal shoes and I really don't like Those they don't work well for me I like A lot of cushioning
Um so I've sort of avoided barefoot Shoes or zero drop shoes Um whereas the tin four because it has a Lot of cushioning it does sort of give You an access point if you want to have A more natural ride if you want that toe Splay which is a really nice feature it Feels really comfortable on your feet When you can actually move your toes Around and it's not something I Experience in a lot of shoes if you want That and you still want a ride that is Slightly similar to a more cushioned Shoe it's a nice option and definitely One that you should have a look at if You're really after that sort of natural Feel and but you don't want to hear the Whole hog and go Um for a minimal shoe I think it's good For that it's very it's comfortable I Had no issues at all 10 Mile running it Out of the box and it felt absolutely Fine so for me it's pretty successful First run in the shoe and I'm looking Forward to testing out and some Different conditions and now I'm back in The UK I'll take it out over the downs And see how it delivers on inevitably Wetter ground Um over over the various trails that are Out on the Downs Um but yeah pretty successful first run For me in the ultra tip 4. that's it From me on this first run review of the
Ultra tin 4. thanks a lot for watching Don't forget to like subscribe click That little bell and check that out for All the other videos we've got and don't Forget that if you get the caption below You can find a link to our podcast which Comes out at the end of each month Thanks a lot for watching catch you next Time Foreign
