La Sportiva - Prodigio
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Reddit Reviews:
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Based on 1 year's data from Jan 28, 2026 How it works
Liked most:
225
76
"super comfy (my knees ache so much less on descents with them) ... I can’t stress enough how much they’ve helped my bad left knee on descents."
"I ran the R2R2R in a pair of Racer 3's. Flawless. ... I ran the 100-mile Javelina Jundred in three different pairs (Pursuit 2, older Racer 3's, and a new pair of Racer 3's). Flawless."
"The most striking aspect of the shoe was how much it protected my legs. ... At no point throughout the run did I feel fatigued. ... This is EXACTLY what I was looking for."
15
6
"My second pair of them do last up to now for almost 2500km (1,550 miles)."
"everything on the PP is better: the upper, the midsole, the outsole, the responsiveness, the ride, agility, bounce, propulsion, stability, etc."
"they are very durable. ... I have also tried various Altra shoes before, which are maybe a fraction more comfortable, but they have gotten shredded to bits in terrain where the sportivas remain like new."
63
19
"The Trabuco 12 have been the best trail shoes I’ve ever owned. ... I’m 6”4 and charge hard over serious rocky terrain…and I feel completely safe in them."
"Certainly for taller/bigger person's (I am 1.87 and 80kg) this imo is a really great shoe for all terrain. ... I have been running mountains trails upto 60km in Scotland, Belgium, France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland ."
"It was a muddy shit show and the shoes were great."
33
10
"It was a muddy shit show and the shoes were great."
"People have been telling me they're not good for slippery terrain, but I've had a completely different experience. ... I've done last year's Wildstrubel in them and with 20cm snow melting it was muddy throughout the race, they kept me going. ... They were also stable in La Sportiva's back yard at Lavaredo."
"Have not had any issues with wet or technical terrain."
12
3
"I love my parkclaw 280 fit snug heel cup, great midfoot lockdown and spacious toe box."
"They had a good toe box and heal support ... First pair was fantastic, grip, fit, lacing."
"The newer ones, the Prodigio line, are definitely roomier than the older models. ... I would never have been able to be comfortable in LaSpo ten years ago, but now I have three pairs and I love them."
Disliked most:
9
6
"they are not great in muddy conditions, the sole gets logged easily and loses all traction"
"I found some muddy days in Switzerland in spring I was slipping a lot."
"the trailfly is more suited to soft ground only"
14
20
"which I couldn't buy because they were -too- tight for me over the arch. ... When I tried on the Kjerag 01 I had to size up a full size for them to fit at all, and even then it was slightly uncomfortable. ... Almost two thumbs width of spare length in the front is just not doable."
"the new Innov8 last shape I find really narrow in the mid and quite long in the toe so I sent them back."
"They all fit differently. ... It was infuriating. ... So, a warning to all: Try all models of a given brand, because you can't rely on equivalent fit."
1
4
"My regular prodigios have been wearing very quickly on the rocks in the Vegas desert. ... The outsole is smooth at the forefoot after 100 miles."
"The small amount of walking on pavement has done 10x’s more damage than any hike…. ... Mesh near my pinky toes is was going mainly, it’s torn and new holes show up over time. ... Plus the ball or base of my sole is almost completely gone now. ... So I’m not sure if they’re “worth the price” if you plan to wear them daily."
"the outsole wears out rather quickly if you plan on walking on pavement for a long time."
1
4
"the padding is at the top and does not protect my bump from irritation."
"The ankle collar is a bit stiff and hits my ankle bone on cambered roads"
"Did you have any issues with ankle bite on the prodigio? ... noticed it's a bit uncomfortable on technical terrain. ... seems like the ankle collar is a tad tall"
2
8
"Prodigio Pro is much higher stack and more unstable because of that"
"Prodigio Pro is much higher stack and more unstable because of that ... I think it is best used on runnable terrain."
"Not burly enough for tech terrain"
Admirable_Avocado_45 1.0They were much too narrow for my slightly larger than average width foot.
Just getting ready to ship mine back. My normal size is 13 w and ordered a 14 (47). My big toe hit the front and it felt narrow. Not sure I’ll try a 15 as I don’t know if that would solve the narrowness.
ajame5 1.0Reg prodigios and pros are the same size for me. If anything, there's more room in the Pros.
analjohnson69 1.0The ogs were soooo good and grippy and fast but the pros def for like 50 mile and up are sooo light fast and responsive… def the best released shoes for a few years imo
baloneysammich 1.0Bought a pair a month ago, my first La Sportivas. Tried them in the store and fell in love. Had them for 2 weeks and liked them so much I ran Chuckanut 50k in them after only a few short runs. It was a muddy shit show and the shoes were great. No idea how they perform in the desert, and no idea about longevity, but so far I love this shoe. I come from topos and altras, and usually have trouble with fit. Everyone says half size up, but I tried both and stayed true to size. YMMV.
Bella_Climbs 1.0I ran in the Pro's today, just an easy 5k to test them out and I did get the same size as my reg Prodigos annnnd I need to exchange them for half a size up. They seemed fine when I put them on but once I started running they def squeeze my toes in a bit too much and I felt sore on the base of my foot afterwards. That is just my personal experience, you may have a different experience due to foot shape, etc.
Damn. I wished these worked for me, I love the OG Prodigios and still run in them and love them. Tried these in multiple sizes and they made my feet ache like hell even just walking in them and I have never had that experience in any shoe before. So very strange, esp considering all of my climbing and trail running shoes have always been Sportiva and never had any issues like that!
candogirlscant 1.0I used the La Sportiva Prodigio when I had a carry-on only trip last summer. Worked in mud and didn't wear out too much on pavement either!
I did a techy 50k in Ontario in the La Sportiva Prodigio. Only downside is they’re not amaaaazingly secure on wet rock but they’re not bad
I've had the Jackal II, the Prodigio, and now the Prod Pros. Loved them all. Really excellent, rugged shoes with good hiking mileage left after they're done as runners.
Trying to remember and I don't think so no. I just found that while it was nice and nimble it wasn't quite enough cushion for efforts longer than about 50k
I’ve owned both the Prodigio and the prod pros! Prefer the pros for ultras but now that I’ve retired my regular prods from running, I love them as a hiking shoe
EndlessMike78 1.0La Sportiva Prodigio, I like the Pro, but REI sells them. so...
yes, REI sells them. They have a Pro(my preferred) and a max. I heard the max is good for hiking.
Escobarneon 1.0It‘s a different concept. Prodigious for La Sportiva a more runningshoe like „Jackal“. The prodigio pro is another Level in the Trailrunning industry regarding supershoes. For normal runners, the normal prodigio is a cool shoe you can go everywhere over every distance. The pro is more the Über-Shoe right now especially for alpine and rocky trails with long distance where other plated models have their issues regarding groundfeel. Pro Testers write: The prodigio pro is there where a Speedgoat 6 should be. If you‘re looking for a well priced shoe line Speedgoat - Brooks Cascadia?
For uphill: Scarpa Spin Race - superlight, fast, Vibram outsole. Verry direct and less toe protection for downhills or when you get a bit tired. Scott Supertrac RC 3 - for technical up and downs, mudd, wet blocks wet roots … slim, light and awesome grip and deep lugs. Top upper - a beast! For more runnable terrain i like the la sportiva prodigio. It‘s like a rockershaped running shoe with great cushion under heel and midfoot - great grip! Brooks catamount 3 - great fit and cool in uphill through their plate, fast, agile but I use them just when conditions are dry. Fast shoe.
evanforbass 1.0Colorado trail/mountain runner here. I would prioritize what you think would be most suitable for your running and backpacking adventures. The truth is most trail running outsoles will perform adequately on class 3 scrambling. Some outsoles are better than others (Vibram, VJ shoes, La Sportiva). I would avoid really max cushion shoes if you’re really worried about scrambling performance. If you like La Sportiva, def give their Prodigio a look, that’s more of their mountain running shoe some cushion for backpacking
Greedy-Pie4439 1.0For the pressure problem under the laces+padded tongue, you can cut the top of tongue to remove paddings. I had the same problem. You can have a look at here: [https://youtu.be/rmXp9c6EArE?t=928](https://youtu.be/rmXp9c6EArE?t=928) at 15:28. I removed both 4 columns and it's just perfect. I run 50K and 100K races and never had a problem with the shoe.
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