Montrail Masochist and Rockridge – Trail Running Shoe Review
By David Hanenburg on 07 May 2010 at 3:26 pm | Tagged as: product reviews
With over 50+ miles on my Montrail Masochist and Montrail Rockridge, I thought I would provide a share and compare between the two trail shoes.
Instead of talking about the various product buzz words that may not mean a whole heck of lot, I am going to try and provide some useful insight from my personal in-the-dirt observations and experiences.
Glamour Shots
Here are the uncomfortable glamour poses. Trail shoes were never meant to look this clean.
(Masochist (left), Rockridge (right))
Enough of the glamour, the rest of the photos will be from my personal shoes that will include their preferred look – a bit of dust and dirt. This is not your shiny road shoe!
Specs of Interest
Masochist
- Weight – 11.2 oz (size 9)
- Ride height – 20 mm heel / 10 mm forefoot
- Protection – Full length Trail Shield
- Pronation control – minimum support shoe
Rockridge
- Weight – 11.6 oz (size 9)
- Ride height – 21 mm heel / 11 mm forefoot
- Protection – Forefoot-only Trail Shield
- Pronation control – moderate neutral shoe
You will notice the Masochist is slightly lighter and closer to the ground. The Ride height difference between the heel and forefoot is the same for both shoes at 10 mm.
The Masochist has the full length Trail Shield but also less cushioning as compared to the Rockridge.
Fit
My experience with both shoes sized at 11.5. I would consider my foot shape average…not overly wide or narrow.
(My feet from a distance – don’t want to scare people.)
Masochist
I would consider the Mosochist to have a glove-like fit. There is very little extra wiggle room. The toe-box is also fairly compact.
The orange webbing used to support the lacing can really customize the overall fit. It took me a few adjustments down the trail to set the proper snugness for my foot.
To me, the Masochist has a performance feel.
Rockridge
The Rockridge has a more traditional shoe fit. The shoe feels more spacious and definitely has more wiggle room in the toe-box.
To me, this shoe has a blended performance/comfort feel.
Outsole – Tread
The most noteworthy observation here is the Masochist has some recessed channels that may pack more gunk if conditions are wet and you are dancing through sticky clay soil. The clay will still stick to the Rockridge (my experience) but there will be less gunkification.
(Masochist (left) Rockridge (right))
The Ride
Last week I hit the trail and ran a few miles in the Masochist immediately followed by some with the Rockridge. Here are my biggest observations.
- I could feel more of the terrain variation (rocks, dips, etc) in the Masochist.
- I noticed the slightly increased sole height in the Rockridge after the transition from the Masochist. This actually surprised me a bit.
- The Rockridge had a more cushy ride. It seemed to mute the terrain variations more than the Masochist.
Summary
Shoes preferences are almost as individual as 100 mile nutrition, so what works for one person may not work for another. But if you are looking for a quality, moderately light trail running shoe, both of these Montrail trail shoes are worth considering. I have honestly enjoyed both shoes and could wear either shoe depending on the day.
Running Warehouse offers both the Montrail Masochist and Rockridge for both men and women.
- Mens: Masochist (Gray/Orange and Wham), Rockridge (Red, Gray)
- Womens: Masochist (Grill), Rockridge (Bramble)
- To receive a nice Endurance Buzz visitor discount at checkout, simply click Running Warehouse and Submit the Endurance Buzz discount code. Then you will see the Endurance Buzz discount inside your shopping cart.
In the end, you still have to do the work. So get out and run! 
For those that have worn either shoe, what are your thoughts?
Be active – Feel the buzz!
David – EnduranceBuzz.com
(Glamor photos – Courtesy of Running Warehouse.)
[This article contains affiliate links that help support Endurance Buzz.]
About the author
David Hanenburg is the passionate dirt-lovin' creator of Endurance Buzz and has been playing in the endurance sports world since 2000 after knockin' the dust off of his Trek 950 hardtail thanks to a friend asking to go ride some local dirt. In 2007 he ran his first ultra on the trails and fell in love with the sport and its people. For more information on David's endurance sports journey, check out the About page.
Thanks for an awesome review!
Johan – You’re welcome! Happy Running!
I just ran the Bandera 100k in the Rockridge and loved ‘em. I even saw one other runner in these as well.
Your review helped me make a decision on which to run in so, thanks!
Hi
I just bought the Rockridge and I found they have quite a tight fit. I am quite new to trail running and thus fear I may have bought a too small shoe?
What are you looking at when fitting the shoe and how much clearance is ideal around the heal? One friend told me you should be able to at least fit a forefinger into the shoe?
Your inputs will be welcome.
Regards
Hey Justin, Everyone has different opinions on shoe fit but I like to have a thumb width of space from you toes to the front of the shoe.
Most (not all) runners go up a half to a full size from their traditional casual wear shoe size.
If the shoe feel tight when you first put it on, it is only going to get tighter if/when your feet begin to swell (which is common especially for longer distances).
If you intuition says it feels uncomfortably tight, it is likely too small a shoe.
Hope this helps.
How do you clean after a muddy race
Hey Jill – I would likely use bucket of water or a hose outside and rub off the dirt with my hands and the water. If the tread is packed with clay, before getting the shoes wet, use a screw driver to clean out the tread. This has worked well for me.
After cleaning, take the insoles out and let the shoes air dry. I may put them under a ceiling fan to help with a bit more air flow. That’s about it.
Great review! I really appreciate all the real-world comparison you have done with this and the Inov-8 reviews. I am currently running in the Mountain Masochists, love them, one of the few shoes with enough toebox width for me. I have taken the insole out of mine, which increases the volume to a more acceptable level for me. I think these are a very versatile shoe, with a minimal feel, yet not too stripped down so as to cause problems for longer runs with lots of vertical! I like the support feature, but not sure I actually need it. Currently thinking about picking up some Inov-8s (Roclite 295, Roclite 315, Flyroc 310…???) to get a little closer to the ground (and perhaps more volume without having to take the insole out?). Your reviews have been very helpful!
Hey David – Great to hear from you and thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts on the MM. Nice tip (remove insole) to create more forefoot room.
If you end up picking up a pair of INOV-8s, I would love to hear your thoughts on them.
Thanks for the kind words on the reviews!
Happy Running!
Great review David. Are they true to size?
Hey KDM,
I don’t believe the Rockridge exists any longer but for the Masochist, if I would buy a pair today, I would purchase a size 12. 12 is my standard running shoe size today so I would say it would be consistent with my other recent shoes purchases.
Hope this helps.
Happy Running!