In my personal opinion, a good off-road shoe needs to be nice and flexible. The human foot has 33 moveable bones and was designed for running along the soft but uneven forest floor. Slap it in a rigid support and the foot is not given a chance to work its biomechanical magic. I'm not advocating bare-foot (though it is worth trying, even if only for a few minutes) as the soles of our feet are not tough enough, and many of the muscles have atrophied (wasted away) from so many years of being caged away. The Pearl Izumi Peak XC is by far my favourite shoe, though I am a fan of the Saloman XT Wings and also keen to try a pair of Vibram Five Fingers.
Coastal Challenge shoe choice is different again as you need a shoe that is going to give you a lot of grip but also withstand the pounding you take from the rocks. Last year I used a pair of Orizabas that I imported. If you can get hold of a pair, i'd love to know how you managed it. A tough rubber sole, with a slightly more rigid sole but enough flex, especially through the toe.
