Mizuno Wave Ascend 6

The Ladies Mizuno Wave Ascend 6.


 Alan says that gear reviews from and about ladies gear for walking are few and far between, so he has twisted my arm to posting about my new walking shoes.

 My Inov-8 are almost done for and are now relegated to gardening duties. I had been looking at getting a new pair recently, probably the Roclite 315’s to replace my old 212’s. When i saw these Mizuno’s.
 Picking them up i was quite surprised how light they were and what a really good sole they have.
It was these 2 points that grabbed my attention.

 I had heard a little bit about Mizuno previously with  being involved with the fell running scene,  but i have never owned a pair previously and they wouldn’t have normally been first on my list to look at. Quite a lot of the fell runners i bump into wear them, so i knew that they were probably up to the job.


 On reading the labelling notes for these shoes, it persuaded me that they would be ideal for walking on loose, muddy, grassy slopes as they were designed for primarily running on such terrain.


  As is usual with outdoor gear there was lots of superlatives describing the design structure but for me the mid sole, the actual sole, the weight and the comfort provided was paramount. These ticked the box’s.

 I was impressed with the insole too. Having been used to the Inov-8 insole, which is quite basic, these have a much better padding layer and are very comfortable.
They shouldn’t hold any more water than the Inov-8’s due to the base being a moulded water resistant rubber material and should dry quickly.

The shoes weigh 265grams each, UK size 5.5,  so i am pleased with that because in comparison, the Inov-8’s i would have bought are slightly heavier.
 The tread depth is about 5mm and as i say, it is designed for Off Road use and as you can see in the above photo there is also a slight curve to the shape of the sole.


The fit is good and the foot stays in place with a good heel cup. There’s no riding up or forward/aft motion. The comfort is excellent. The midsole is quite firm but allows flexing and there is a good shock absorbing pad in the heel area.


The upper is AIRmesh and has 2 layers. The inner being a much finer mesh than the outer and allows good air cooling. There is no waterproof membrane.
I particularly like the tongue as it is sewn to the sides of the shoe for about 50% of the length from the toe upwards which should reduce stone and mud ingress.


Cost £70 but can be found on numerous sites cheaper than this.


 So far so good, onwards and upwards.