I’ve been a fan of Nova for a few years, since Nova II. I’ve worn these for around three months. I’ve hiked around 400 miles in this pair of 4s so far so I wanted to share my experience. I was worried there would be big changes with the pretty dramatic change is appearance, but find them to be similar to past models. I’m hard on shoes. I live near a mountain. I hike 25 to 30 miles most weeks. 1-2 hours with before work daily, more on weekend days. A little more or less depending on work. I hike pretty rough, steep, rocky trails, averaging 15-30% grade. I rarely hike well maintained trails shown on normal maps; I enjoy the solitude of tough trails. I don’t flat out run, but I am pretty fast while descending and my ascent speed is decent for the steepness of the trails (20-25 min mile on the way up, 10-15 on the way down). My daily average altitude gain this year is over 1,500ft. I like the fit, which feels exactly like the 4-5 pair of past Nova models. I wear a 10.5 “wide,” I’m 5’10.5” tall and 180lb. Midfoot isn’t over-wide like some other Merrells. “Toe box” needs wide width, any more narrow and I would/could not wear them. I can wear medium width in a few competitive shoes, so these aren’t super wide. If you’re wearing wide shoes due to being overweight, you might want to try in a store first. The grip is as good as the past models’ “vibram” soles. Very good when wet and extraordinary when dry. As good as any I’ve ever owned. These have more cushion in the forefoot than most hiking shoes but they don’t take away too much ground feel. They help you cover long miles without fatigue. Again, very similar to past Nova models. Recent Novas had issues with some of the Vibram soles coming unglued after a couple hundred miles. I see no sign of this problem with this pair. Durability has improved. Novas have always had good venting. I like well-vented shoes. When they’re wet they dry super fast and when it’s hot my feet feel cooler. These are some of the best-vented and fastest drying shoes I’ve ever owned. These are the best-vented Novas yet. After 400ish miles, the tread has about 1/4 remaining. They are still grippy. There are some tattered areas around the top and a couple small holes torn in the upper, but nothing which affects the structure or performance. The foam under the tread is missing a few small chunks but is staying intact. The cushioning is still pretty soft. I expect I’ll wear them another 150 or so miles (for a total of around 500-600 miles). If you are looking for medium cushion, good venting, fast drying, light trail shoes you’ll really enjoy them. They don’t protect your feet or last as long as Merrell Moab’s, but they’re lighter and cooler and softer and stay dry better. If you hike a lot and haven’t tried trail runners as opposed to “hiking shoes,” I highly recommend them, your feet will be thrilled. Merrell, if you could improve something, make the toe box a little wider. It would improve comfort and stability.
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