Running on Water: Hi-Tec Infinity HPi Trail Runner Review

When I got my pair of Infinity HPi Trail Runners from Hi-Tec I have to say I was a little skeptical. I had been a staunch fan of my Salomon Wings when I was running with them. Unfortunately in a bid to make the ultimate trail shoe they scrapped the Wings and made the CrossMax’s. Along with going downhill in the name department, the CrossMax’s went downhill in the feel department. I understand that everything about them made them a better shoe than the Wings but I just didn’t feel it. I use mine still but rarely for running. When I head out to run on the road or trail, I use my Infinity HPi’s.

Hi-Tec has an awesome new ad campaign out about the benefits of using the Infinity HPi’s. If you want to run on water, then you should wear these shoes. I know you can’t really do that but I was honestly blown away when I saw the video the first time.Want to learn how to walk on water with the Infinity HPI shoes?

This video shows you how.There are a couple other videos on the page with goodies about the shoes as well as a game that lets you run on water.

Ok, let’s stop trolling the internet for cool videos and get back to the point of this post, nice shoes.

The first thing I noticed about the Infinity’s was their weight. When they said you could walk on water, they weren’t kidding. They were lighter than my CrossMax’s by a bit and much more comfortable. They felt smooth. I didn’t mind how they looked either. Silver with a bit of bright green is the colour scheme on mine. Some of the trail runners these days look pretty hideous but I feel good in silver and green.

The big thing behind the new Infinity line is that have this Ion-Mask technology. Some of the shoes are actually waterproof because of it but the Infinity HPi’s are just hydrophobic. They are just mesh trail runners that have been treated with the ion-mask technology. Because of that they “hate water”, leaving you with dry shoes faster after you step in a huge puddle or come home from a wet run. Definitely a nice feature for staying more dry on the very wet trails around where I live. I’m going to have to keep them in good shape and give them the final test on a Gutbuster Half-Marathon next year that features a ginormous puddle a good 30 feet long. You could swim the damn thing.

So far my running on the Infinity’s have been half trail and half road. I thought they might be more geared to the trail crew after watching the videos but I love running in the road on them. I’ve been working on minimizing my heel strike when using them though so that might be why it feels so good.

The longest run I’ve done so far in them has been around 10k. I have yet to take them on a 20 or 30 km slog to really get to know them but they’ve been fantastic so far. No rubbing or hot spots whatsoever. My heels have been happy at the back and my toes will say the same thing at the front.

There is one thing that I do miss from the Salomon shoes. I got so used to the cable ties on the Salomon’s that it’s hard to go back to regular laces. Mine wore out on the first pair though, and that’s when you wish you just hard regular laces. The replacement cables are 5 times the price of regular laces and don’t fit the same way when you replace them. They’re nice, just don’t break them.

I’m no where near wearing the Infinity’s out yet so that’s this winter’s project. Run as much as possible and really see how much they can take. My next pair of trail runners will likely be a nice light pair of Infinity’s though. The only reason I wouldn’t get a pair is if they came out with some new ones that let you walk on air.