Much like the Mount to Coast T1, I was very excited for the H1 when I saw it at The Running Event last year.  The H1 is a hybrid road to trail shoe designed for all terrain running.  Well I have been testing these for a couple of months now in a variety of scenarios, from road, trail, hiking, and long days on my feet.  So sit tight and let's see what the Mount to Coast H1 is all about.

STATS

Like always, let's start with the stats of the H1’s.  First off the H1 is a hybrid road-to-trail running shoe, and it has a bit of flexibility and twist in the platform. 

For the stack height, the rear of my mens shoe is 35mm, and the front is 29mm, giving us a 6mm drop.  Which is right between the T1 at 4mm drop, and the P1 at 8mm drop.  That makes total sense since this is a hybrid road to trail shoe.  

As for the weight, my men's size 11 weighed in at 9.2 ounces or 261 grams.  Surprisingly that is actually lighter weight than both the R1 and the T1.  

For sizing my mens 11 fit just as it did in the R1 and T1, so your normal size should be good to go. 

UPPER

The H1 features a dual-zone upper, with the top portion being a jacquard material for adaptive fit and comfort, while the lower part it is crafted with exceptional durability from high-performance woven fabric and reinforced with Kevlar aramid fibers that are five times stronger than steel.  Aramid is a high-strength fiber known for its exceptional strength-to-weight ratio and resistance to heat and impact. The T1 has the same Aramid materials, which are often used in ballistic protection, So needless to say, this upper should be incredibly durable! 

Well lets see how breathable the dual zone upper of the H1 is, so let's take a look at the tissue test.  First with the hair dryer on low, the tissue didn’t really move very much.  Even with the hair dryer on high, the tissue still didn’t come up a lot or very quickly.  To be honest I was expecting this result, as I found the T1 with the aramid fibers to not be very breathable either.  On the trails, my feet never overheated, but I didn’t really feel much airflow either.  

Next of course is the water drainage test, so I completely submerged my feet for a good 20-30 seconds in a creek. When I walked out of the creek I could see some water coming out, but just like the MTC T1’s, you can see the water sloshing around inside the tightly woven aramid fiber upper.  All the water did not want to drain.  After this I had to run about a mile still, and the entire time I could hear squish squish squish.  If you listen closely you can hear it here:  WATER VIDEO.  So unfortunately in my opinion, these do not drain well at all.  Now here in Colorado that's not much of an issue, as I had to go out of my way to get in this creek.  If I lived back in TN where I used to train, these would not be my first choice as there were just so many creeks to cross.  

The toe box of the H1 is pretty accommodating, and feels just a bit more roomy than on the T1.  I never experienced any hot spots or rubbing on my toes or forefoot.  Along the front of the toe box there is a pretty good sized overlay, and there is also a small toe bumper at the front.  With this large of an overlay, it makes sense the water drainage wouldn’t be so great. 

Moving up to the midfoot, again it felt pretty accommodating for my average to slightly narrow width foot.  I didn’t have any discomfort or hot spots in the medial arch.  

I think part of that roomy feel of the H1 is due to the TunedFit dual lacing system. It's pretty much the same lacing system we saw on the road P1 shoe, with the quick lace system at the bottom to cinch down the forefoot, and a standard lacing system over the midfoot.  This allows for great adjustability and comfort over the foot.  So even if your feet swell a bit during an ultra, you can quickly adjust to get a great fit.  The only thing I would like to see differently, is I wish the H1 had the same clip for the excess quick lace that the P1 has. Now we just have to tuck the excess under the laces.  

The tongue of the H1 feels to be about the same as on the P1, which is great, cause I didn’t really care much for the tongue of the T1.  The H1’s tongue is comfortable, protective, and semi gusseted on both sides so it won't be moving around on you.   

Moving to the rear of the H1, it is nicely padded and very comfortable. It's not excessive, but provides a great level of comfort and lockdown for your heel.  I didn't have any achilles issues either, or experience any heel slippage.  Really it feels very similar in feel to the P1.  Lastly, there is a little piece to attach a gaiter too if you wish.  

Overall, the upper of the H1 is comfortable, should be very durable, and really feels very similar to the upper of the P1, I just wish the water drainage was better.  

MIDSOLE

The midsole of the H1 is made of Mount to Coast’s CircleCELL, which is the first high performance midsole material to be made of 100% renewable feedstock, including recycled organic waste. Up to 20 pounds (9 kilograms) of organic waste and residual biomass is converted into a pair of midsoles. Through their state-of-the-art supercritical foaming, CircleCELL offers PEBA-level energy return with almost double PEBA's running lifespan.  So this is not the same as the LightCELL midsole we find in the T1 or the P1.  

The CircleCELL midsole in the H1 feels amazing!  I think this is Mount to Coast’s best midsole yet!  It feels very cushioned, yet not squishy.  Responsive and bouncy, yet not unstable on the trail.  I even directed a running event where I was on my feet for 9 hours in the H1’s, and my feet felt great all day long!  

When running on the road the midsole feels cushioned and decently responsive, but when the pavement turns to trails, the midsole also feels responsive but more importantly pretty stable too!  I’ve tested these going up the Manitou Incline and coming back down Barr Trail, which can be pretty technical in places, and the H1’s felt great!  I’ve also used this going up and down a 20-30% grade trail, and the rockered geometry of the H1 felt great going uphill.  Coming down that cushion was nice too! 

However, I will say that coming down the 20-30% grades I did have to stop and tighten the shoes a bit as my foot was sliding forward into the front of the shoe.  Also, I did notice a hot spot on the ball of my foot when I was coming down those steep grades.  

Mount to Coast shoes are made for the long haul, for ultra marathons, and I feel like finally we have a midsole that I would actually want to use in a 100 mile race.  To me, the H1’s CircleCELL is much better than the T1’s LightCELL.  The T1 had a very soft forefoot, which personally I feel I would not like in a 100 mile race.  I don’t have those same concerns about the H1.  

OUTSOLE

The outsole of the Mount to Coast H1 is VersaGrip, which is MTC’s proprietary outsole technology engineered to deliver exceptional traction, grip, and durability across all terrains.  The lugs are only 2mm in depth, so very minimal, but about what you would expect on a road to trail shoe.  Also a neat design element to the outsole is half of the outsole has topographical contour lines, while the other half is smooth, which is fitting since this is a road to trail shoe.  

The compound itself is decent, but not near as grippy as the Vibram outsole on the T1.  There were times when I would be running and jumping from rock to rock and I could feel the outsole sliding a bit.  They definitely were not as confidence inspiring as say the T1’s.  

I also noticed that the 2mm lugs were fine on flattish or slight inclines when on the trail, but on that 20-30% grade incline my feet were sliding a bit.  The lugs just didn’t have enough depth to really bite the ground.  Granted the H1’s are meant for more gentle trails than what I tested them on, but I wanted to see how they did on some rugged trails.  

With that said, when running on paved surfaces those minimal 2mm lugs were very comfortable!  I found the same to be true when on my feet for 9 hours in these.  I don’t think I could say that about a shoe with 5mm lugs.  

Overall, the outsole of the H1 is great for what the shoe is intended for.  

PRICE

Well the Mount to Coast H1’s will retail for $160 USD’s, and are available for preorder today.  That is the same price as the R1’s, and $20 bucks cheaper than the T1’s.  I feel that is a pretty decent price for what you get with the H1’s.  

BOTTOM LINE

Well the bottom line of the Mount to Coast H1’s is they are fantastic hybrid road-to-trail shoes!  If you are someone that may have a stretch of 1-3 miles of road before you get to a gentle trail, then these would be perfect for you!  If you are someone that is looking for a do it all rugged trail shoe, then you may want to look more at the T1.  Overall though, for $160 you are going to get a shoe that delivers great durability, quality, and comfort.  Now what I would love to see from Mount to Coast is a trail shoe with the upper and midsole of the H1, and the outsole of the T1.  Put those two things together Mount to Coast, and I think you could have a contender for trail shoe of the year.  

Well be sure to let me know if you are excited for the H1 like I am, and if you can’t wait to get a pair!  Maybe you’ve been wearing them for a bit, then let us all know what you think.  Again if you want to purchase a pair, please consider using  my affiliate link

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