Akasha II

Do you enjoy adventuring in the mountains, scrambling ridgelines, and running trails? If so, we may have a shoe to fit your exact needs!

Howdy, my name is Matt Randall—a local Wasatch adventurer who is neither a runner nor a climber but a good mix of both. I am primarily a ski mountaineer, but in the warmer months, I'm inspired to spend long days in the mountains, with some easy-to-moderate technical terrain involved. Think of things like the Cottonwood Traverse, Grand Teton, and Cirque of the Towers traverse; those are all the things that "get me going" when there's no snow to slide on.

This past year, I abandoned my La Sportiva Bushido IIs and original Jackals for the Akasha IIs and have not looked back. Whether it's keeping my feet comfortable or boosting confidence during scrambling, they have delivered. And I'd be lying if I said they weren't damn sexy too. Great work, La Sportiva!

General Assessment

The Akasha II is an excellent shoe for scrambling and mountain running. They have enough cushion for long days and the traction needed to get up techy terrain confidently. The shoe is higher volume and has a larder toebox that will accommodate feet that the Bushido II cannot, but the sexy design will make you forget you have ogre feet in the first place (Bearers of ogre feet rejoice; the Bushido III has a wide version!). The Akasha II is your shoe if you value efficiency while remaining comfortable in mountainous terrain.

Pros:

Wide Toe Box: When I was putting miles in the Bushidos and Jackals, the Bushidos consistently caused numbness in my toes by cutting off circulation. It's not the worst thing, but it could be unpleasant on longer runs. The Jackal's toe box was more generous, and my toes didn't go numb, so I'd say the Akasha and Jackal were similar. The spacious toe box kept me in the Jackals for a couple of years, but I eventually switched to the Akasha IIs because of the next "pro" on the list.

Outsole Durability: The Akasha II's outsole is one piece of rubber, which minimizes the points of failure where a "flapper" can develop and the never-ending process of your shoe falling apart begins. This contrasts with the Jackals, which have multiple separate rubber pieces on the outsole. Looking at the Jackal outsole in the picture above, you can see the areas where the outsole is prone to separating from the foam and creating a "flapper." We have circled the typical problem areas.

Cushion: When we head into the mountains for a run,... okay, power hike… we'll be putting in lots of miles, so ample cushion is essential. While most of my experience is mainly within the La Sportiva lineup, these have the most cushion compared with the Bushido and Jackal. Still, it's not that "squishy" cushion that doesn't perform well on uneven and broken terrain. They seem to have enough squish for longer days out but are firm enough that I'm not bothered when I step off trail and onto sharp edges or points of rock.

Traction: Fore / Aft: The lugs on the base are a generous 4.5mm; however, these still grip well in the fore/aft direction. It's crucial since most of our movement in the mountains is in that fore/aft direction. I've confidently climbed up steep rock slabs (Olympus West slabs) and done all sorts of scrambling in the Wasatch and beyond. The lug's directionality on the heel is turned 180° for better grip on descents. They do quite well in this application, especially if the rock is a little gritty, like granite (Think walking down from a climb in LCC).

Looks Hot!: Anyone who says "looks don't matter" is only partially lying. If you're setting FKTs like Jack Kuenzle or busy winning 100-mile races like Courtney Dauwalter, go ahead and ski in your underwear or run in your basketball shorts! However, for most of us mere mortals, part of us is likely out exercising to look good to some extent, so let your shoes help! La Sportiva's black and yellow colorways continue to steal glances and remain sexy, but other options are available if looking your best doesn't appeal to you.

Cons:

Outsole / Lug Durability: With the stated 4.5mm lugs, these are some pretty knobby shoes. Similar to how there is a cost/benefit of big knobby tires on your car, the same goes for running shoes. The big knobs/lugs give you additional traction, but they can wear down rather quickly when used in specific terrains or, gasp, on the road. I wouldn't recommend these shoes for road running miles; they aren't the tool, and the lugs would wear too quickly.

The lugs won't last forever. A trade-off exists between high-performance traction and durability; unfortunately, you can't have both. The Akasha II is built for the mountains, so if that's where you spend most of your time, they are a good bet. A pair of trail/mountain and road shoes would be optimal, but that's a slippery slope. One day, you'll wake up with ten pairs of running shoes and forget how you got there! (SkyRun disagrees, no you won't:)

Lateral Traction:

Lateral traction is the side-to-side motion driven by the foot. I will preface by saying I don't think there is a running shoe out there that performs exceptionally in this manner. Why? Your trail runner's midsoles are generally softer and have a higher stack, which creates "squishy" distance between your foot and the ground, making it harder to maintain ankle positions. This, and how much the foot compresses inside the shoe, can feel like your foot is shifting out of place, which isn't confidence-inspiring.

Sure, you can tie your shoes extra tight to reduce slippage inside the shoe and get a shoe with stiffer cushioning (like the Akasha I!!), but a running shoe will still increase the leverage on your ankle joint and feel "squishy." Climbing shoes have no cushion for this reason; it's just your foot against rubber, which makes for a more direct translation of forces with minimal leverage on your ankle joint. Cushion vs. lateral stability/traction is another common trade-off for all running shoes. You can have excellent force translation and leverage or cushion for running; you can't have both, but it's getting closer every season.

Approach shoes try to weave between these two worlds. A shoe like La Sportiva's approach TX-2 was about as close as you could get to having it all. Still, shoes like Salomon's S/Lab Alpinway or Salewa's Wildfire NXT (Top Secret), which are stiffer up front and have more cushioning in the rear, are blurring lines further and redefining what having it all means.

If you're mostly putting in miles in the mountains and doing some scrambles from time to time that aren't too committing, the Akasha II will perform exceptionally. If you're going out for dedicated scrambles with shorter approaches, a shoe like the TX-2 may be better, but when long days out are needed, the cushioning, grip, and comfort of the Akasha II can't be beaten.