The Trabuco Max 4 is a high stack trail shoe designed for comfort and protection on the trails. The chunky midsole is made from the brand’s FF Blast Eco foam to provide a balanced and cushioned ride, as well as minimise impact. It also includes an EVA sockliner for additional padding.
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00:00 – Intro
00:13 – Stats
00:29 – Design
00:57 – How’s the Fit?
02:14 – The Run Test
09:19- Early Verdict
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Hey Tom here from the run testers in This video we are going to doing our Full review of the Asex Traco Max 4 Let's take a look and see what we [Music] Thought the AS6 Tribuko Max 4 costs £160 Or $160 it weighs 311 g or 11 oz for men In a size 8 the drop is 5 mm and the Lugs are 4 mm [Music] The Traco Max 4 is a high stack trail Shoe designed for comfort and protection On the trails the chunky midsole is made From the brand's FF Blast Eco Foam to Provide a balanced and cushioned ride as Well as minimize impact it also includes An EVA sock liner for additional padding That foam is covered by a healthy layer Of AS6 grip outsole rubber featuring 4mm Lugs to ensure a high level of grip on Varied conditions while the upper is Made from an engineered jacketed mesh to Provide structure and breathability Fit then and in testing I ran in a UK And a half a US 9 and a half and overall I found the fit to be very good you've Got an accommodating toe box with good Clearance for both length and across the Top of the toes i had no issues getting The midfoot secured the big padded heel Collars held me well enough and offer Really nice plush comfort overall no Rubbing no worrying sort of achilles Problems overall I think this is got a
Signs of a shoe that has the fit that Should deliver good comfort for long Miles when you're cruising the trails i Would recommend going true to size so The fit for me in the Tribico Max 4 Really comfortable there's plenty of Space in the fore foot plenty of space Before my big toe uh it's a very um not A relaxed fit but it feels it doesn't Feel restrictive in any way uh I've got A fairly average width foot i'm a size Eight uh and I felt this was quite a Nice roomy shoe it felt like there's Lots of space wiggle room in the fore Foot which is what you want from a trail Shoe if you're doing longer distances in It um it was easy to get nice down lock Down fit in it um even from the first Run I had no issues at all the first run I did in this was a 30k i was a little Bit worried i'm always um scared of Doing a big long run with with a shoe as The first run but it was absolutely fine Felt very very comfortable i definitely Stayed to my size in the Traco Max 4 Okay so this is the sort of shoe that I Always tend to like for the trails um Big max stack trail shoes can be a Little bit funny uh because of the Trails you don't always want loads of Cushioning you you you want sometimes You want to feel a bit more of the Ground especially if you're doing more Technical stuff this is a trail shoe
That it's very much designed for those Sort of the easy comfortable runs um on Mixed terrain uh it's not the most Technical shoe out there um but it's not Really designed for that and it's also Designed for those longer sessions as Well especially if you're hitting um Harder surfaces harder compact surfaces Especially in the summer things like That you might be doing road to trail as Well so you wanted a bit more cushioning To just protect your feet from that Harder surface uh and it does all those Things really well it's uh I've tried a Few trail shoes recently and this is Definitely the one that uh is much I've Really enjoyed it for those sort of Longer sessions where I want something That delivers a similar feel to a Cushioned road shoe but I want some Trail benefits to it as well uh the Midsole is not the softest midsole in The world which is good you don't want a Really soft midsole in a trail shoe Because well depending on where you're Running if you're running on really hard Compact surfaces in like California or Something in the summer you you might Want something softer but over in the UK Mixed terrain this is a really good Midsole it's fairly uh it's it's it's It's slightly soft but um it it's it's By no means a soft midsole it's very Balanced um when you're out running on
The road surfaces it feels very Comfortable doesn't feel too doesn't Feel squishy at all on that um but when You get up onto things like the fields Um where it can be a bit softer what you Don't want is a really soft midsole on Soft surfaces cuz then you sort of lose All of your energy and it just gets hard To run in it you definitely wouldn't you Know be able to run really fast if You're doubling up on the softness of um Of your run uh this doesn't do that so Even on the fields on the softer fields On on the sort of um softer mud feels Absolutely fine it's a balanced midsole So you're not losing energy with it at All it hasn't got loads of energy return In it it's just very comfortable and you Get a lot of um cushioning from that so Um that the first run I did in it was a 30k on the downs since then I've Probably done another 30k in it uh which Have been shorter runs uh the 30k run Which was the major test for it was Really really good i I enjoyed um the Road sections on it felt very fine when I got onto the on the downs so the downs Is a bit of a mix of like rocky surfaces Fields uh gravel surfaces all those Sorts of things so it's a good mix of Mix mix of um terrains uh and on the way Back there's also like for forest path As well that are quite muddy this Actually got it quite dirty so I had to
Put it in the um in the wash um and it Felt really good on pretty much all of Those surfaces even on the more Technical bits it felt fine it feels Like you do have a lot of control over This shoe probably wouldn't use it if I Was racing because it's quite a bulky Shoe um and also doesn't feel very Nimble on the feet but for those sort of Easy uh easy comfortable runs absolutely Great uh and I had no issues on any of Those terrains um the only thing that I Would say that it's not great at and This is the same with all of these shoes Because none of them are particularly Well designed for really technical muddy Um muddy ground like cross country the Lugs aren't massive they're absolutely Fine for most terrains that I was Running on um but I did run through some Quite thick mud because I've been using This for a few weeks now and it was Really really wet muddy a couple of Weeks ago and it it's not great at Gripping wet mud but as you'd expect From a shoe like a shoe like this it's Fine on most surfaces but once you get To that really wet um slushy mud it it Doesn't these don't offer a great deal Of um grip in those surfaces but other Than that really solid testing with this Really like it it's my sort of trail Shoe i don't race trails that much i Have got a couple of trail races coming
Up um which I'm going to have to run Quite fast on but I don't normally as a Rule run trails that hard because I Don't want to get injured for when I'm Doing road races uh and also I tend to Try and enjoy trails a bit more so this Is this is what um I like about this Shoe it's it's a shoe very much made for Enjoyment it's comfortable um it's got a Nice wide base on it's got a good bit of Stability in it as well even though it's Quite quite big um cushion shoe really Nice protection under the feet if you're Hitting rocks and things like that just A really great shoe if you're going out For a long run if you're just going out To enjoy yourself um in the hills and Mountains uh it's a really good shoe for That because you'll get a lot of comfort And for many people like me I love Cushion shoes when it comes to road Shoes more V5 all those sorts of things This is the sort of the trail Counterpart but it it does it with trail Learning so it does it um it gives you a Nice bit of cushioning but it it makes It so that it works well on the trails As well you don't want a really soft Midsole in a shoe like this so yeah Really really enjoyed testing it it's Going to be one of my top shoes for Training nice comfortable easy long runs Over the next um few months so in Testing I've run around 20 mi in the
Trabuko Max 4 it's been a mix of terrain I did quite a good chunk of commuting on The road to get to the trails but mostly What I've done has been runnable buffed Out trails they're not too technical and Not too tricky i did one really steep Descent though on the Italian coast just On my holiday just gone i also found a Bit of mud and a bit of sloppiness in Richmond Park mainly what I've done has Also been in dry conditions so I haven't Had too much cause to test out the grip In wet and sloppy stuff i also didn't do Too much that was really highly Technical now from the getgo I found I Had to break in the big stack of foam Here initially they felt quite firm from The outset but they have softened up Nicely since and broken in well to offer A lot of cushion a lot of protection From the trails and the roads for a Bigger stack you still get some feedback A ride that's not totally devoid of Ground contact you get a bit of energy Coming back from the Flight Fam blast Plus midsole as well as a bit of bounce There's a decent amount of rockering That helps accentuate that helps make The transitions feel nice and smooth You've got a wide platform that keeps Everything nice and stable so you get Stability here I think with that big Stack of cushioning on the flip side This isn't the most precise shoe when
Things get more cluttered you need a bit More precision in the foot placement i Find that challenges the shoe a bit more Certainly on those steeper kind of Technical descent or the tricky step Descent I did in Italy it was a bit of a Struggle the more nimble shoes might Have coped like an Innovate Trail Fly For instance but on the wider runnable Stuff where you don't have to worry too Much about where you're putting your Feet these shoes run really well with Smooth and cushioned ride it's kind of On the heavier side and it feels a bit Firmer to me particularly in the heel so You actually get a softer mid to Forefoot a little bit more firmness when You're landing further back in the heel Or if you're rocking back on those heels And so when you land on the forefoot There's a softness but when you land Further back you're getting I think Because of that stiffness that firm is a Little bit more of a reliable kind of Foot placement if you're a bit further Back like a heel striker so it doesn't Make for the softest cushion heel Landings but overall comfort's been good They disappear nicely on the foot plenty Of room up front in the toe box the Uppers feel sort of nice and airy and Roomy everything feels well held and Secure and that gives it some kind of Long haul credentials i think in terms
Of sort of going into sort of over hours Or even into Ultra verdict then for easy cruising Miles on the trail I think the Jelra Buco Max 4 has a lot going for it offers Bucket loads of good comfort for mid to Long efforts on the easier off-road Terrain you will have to enjoy the Higher stack or a higher stack trail Shoe I think to get along with this and Personally I definitely think it's more Suited to stuff that's runnable and less Technical because of that overall bulk Of the shoe now it's kind of ideal I Think for amling a lot of the off-road I Encounter in the UK so I'm sort of often Running on groom trails or cross forest Floors wide rolling terrain basically Anything that's compact and generally Uncluttered this shoe will cope however I find it a bit chunky and a bit Disconnected for the more complicated Trails it wouldn't be a shoe that I Would reach for first for anything That's too technical or too tricky where I need to be a bit more nimble a bit More light on my feet and feel the Ground a bit more underneath but Certainly on the buffed out compacted Trails where you're not worried too much About precision and picking your way Through narrow sections I think this Offers a happy cushioned ride that Cushion also lends itself potentially to
Going longer and even into ultra Territory along with the kind of Plushness from the heel colors and the Padded tongues and everything that sort Of make it an easy happy kind of cruiser I also found it okay on those road Sections and it can certainly cope with Shorter stretches on the tarmac Durability looks good as well i tested This in tandem actually with the Joel Buco 13 and I think overall I prefer the 13 if you're with like me and you want Something that's lighter and more direct With a bit more ground feel something That's a bit more agile with an extra Snap to it then I think the 13 has a bit Of that that the Trio Go Max 4 lacks but If you want comfort without feeling too Much of the trail under foot this is a Competent off-roader i personally sort Of put it in the ball park with the Things like the North Face Effective Endurance 4 though I think I prefer that Shoe uh it's a bit more bulky and heavy Than things like the Speed Go 6 but I Would tend to use it for the same kinds Of runs overall I think it's durable It's dependable and it's probably among The better big stack trail shoes I've Tested but I would tend to lean towards Something that's a little bit more light And a bit more agile so my verdict on This shoe really solid i've really Enjoyed testing this shoe i love Big Max
Cushion shoes um and it's always risky When you do it on the trails with Because you don't want it too soft but This is great it's got good good balance Midsole even though it's really thick You get a lot of comfort a lot of Stability it's not really soft so you Don't lose that benefit from it it's got A pretty good outsole on it for most Surfaces apart from uh muddy surfaces All in all it's just a really really Good shoe and if you if you're the sort Of runner that likes a big max stack Shoe uh you might be doing a lot of road To trail and you want comfort as well as Being able to handle a bit of the trails As well this is a great shoe for it and I've had no issues at all in any of the Runs that I've done in it it's alo got a Very comfortable upper feels very secure Uh and there's loads of padding on it as Well so it's all about comfort this shoe Um and just has a nice comfortable ride That just makes going out on the trails Uh as enjoyable as possible so yeah big Fan of this shoe uh definitely um put it Down to my favorite trail shoes I've Tested for the last uh few months that's It from us on this review of the Duko Max 4 thanks a lot for watching don't Forget to like subscribe click that Little bell and if you're going to catch Below you find to our podcast which Comes out a couple of times each month
Thanks a lot for watching catch you next Time [Music]
