Wilson Trance All Court Men's Shoe Review

diredesire

Moderator
Hey all, I was able to finally get my thoughts down "on paper" about these shoes that I playtested, and I thought I'd post my results on TW, let me know what you think!

Wilson Trance All Court Men’s Shoes Wh/Navy
http://www.tennis-warehouse.com/descpageMSWILSON-WTACMWN.html

Comfort: 8/10. These shoes had virtually NO break in time. Very comfortable right out of the box. I found the flex points of the shoes to be right where they should be. There was more cushioning/padding in the front half of the shoe than I am accustomed to. My shoe of choice is the Nike Breathe Free IIs, which, relatively speaking are a pretty “thin” shoe, with lots of mesh. The padding is OK, but the Trance’s are in a bit of a different ball game. Plenty of room in the toe box and in the heel, which will be nice for those with bigger feet, but mine are pretty narrow with high arches, so this fit was a little bit “weird” for me, and gave me a little discomfort after prolonged use. (I suspect this is due to my high arches, and not so much the shoe), the design is pretty robust. One complaint I did have about this shoe was that the cushioning did leave my feet a little “stuck,” in terms of heat. After a few hours on the court, my feet were begging for a little air. However, no complaints from an overall user-friendly standpoint here!

Stability: 8.5-9/10 Surprisingly stable shoe, these reminded me of something between an Adidas barricade 2 and a barricade 4. The barricades have the “claw” design, which (once laced up properly) sort-of pull your feet into the shoe. The Wilson Trances are similar in this respect, once laced up tight, they latch on to your feet. Moving from side to side was interesting for me, the Trances are a little more “clunky” compared to my usual Breathe Free IIs, but most every shoe is. The stability aspect was very impressive, though, I had no ankle rolling issues, and quick starts and stops felt very solid. The ankle support is actually a little bit more than I expected from what I believe to be a “low cut” shoe. There is definite support right around the bottom of my ankle, although it never feels like there is material in the way of my movement. I have to give the Trance pretty high marks in this aspect.

Arch support: 6.5/10 For me, I have very high arches, and the arch support was slightly lacking/weird. I feel that the arch in these shoes is shifted slightly forward than other shoes. I believe this might also be a sizing issue, as Nikes tend to run small, so the size I figured was about right for me might have been half a size too big. I feel the arches are also a little flat, but most shoes feel like that to me. I have to say that for an average user these shoes are probably about average in terms of arch support. This does improve slightly, however, once the shoes are laced up nice and tight.

Foot support: 7/10 Overall, the support was pretty solid all around, but there was a lot of room in the toe box and heel area for my narrow/high arched feet. I feel that this amount of padding and support would be perfect for the average foot, but I found myself sliding around a little bit inside the shoe. This isn’t to say that the stability was bad, the shoe itself was very, very stable. However, the room in the shoe for me was in all the wrong places. This is an exaggerated evaluation, though. I only noticed it when stopping and going very rapidly.

Overall sole durability: 8.5/10 Pretty impressive. I have used these shoes on and off for a few weeks now, and I don’t see very much wear and tear at all! I typically wear the inner front edge of the toes first, but I have to say that the tread has held up quite nicely. I would say that these are just about on par with other ‘durability guarantee’ shoes. The huge tread did appear (aesthetically) to me as rather odd, but after you get used to the look of the shoe, it does grow on you.

Toe Durability: 9.5/10 I’m not a huge toe dragger, so toe durability is not a major concern for me. However, I have to say that the toe region of these shoes looks pretty darn beefy. There is a (seemingly) thick rubber toe “cap” with some pretty serious coverage around the toe region. For toe draggers, this might be right up your alley.

Traction: 9/10 I’m a pretty quick guy, and I rely on my speed around the court. Quick stops and starts are definitely a big part of my game. The large tread pattern made me feel like I wasn’t making as solid a stop as usual, but I really did feel the “stick” of these shoes on the court. I found the Barricade IVs to be my “gold standard” as far as traction goes, and these do an admirable job in comparison.

Weight: 9/10 Judging by the looks of the shoe (and others agreed upon seeing them), these shoes look pretty heavy. There is some serious rubber on the sole and the toe region, and the side supports look to be made of a pretty sturdy material. However, I was surprised to find that these shoes felt very light on my feet! My Breathe Free IIs feel very similar in weight to these shoes, but upon checking, I found that they were actually heavier! I’m still pretty confused as to why this is, because the Wilson Trance’s feel better cushioned (overall) than the BFIIs, and the sole looks to be pretty seriously constructed. Definitely a winner in this category!

Overall: 8/10
For me, these shoes seemed to have a ton of potential, but just didn’t meet all my criteria. This isn’t to say the shoe is a bad choice, it is a serious contender for those who are budget minded ($80 isn’t a bad deal on a shoe, not to mention it’s got a 6 month warranty!) For the “average-footed” person, I think the Wilson Trance is a pretty solid choice. The Aesthetics are (in my humble opinion) simple, yet attractive (they definitely take a different direction than the Adidas/Nike offerings, which is a good thing, in this case). The weight is nice, and the cushioning per weight is excellent. The toe box is roomy (too roomy for me), and the heel region has some space to play around in. The one major issue I had with this shoe is that it was a little hot after a few hours of play.
 

drakulie

Talk Tennis Guru
Nice review, diredesire.

We are pretty much in agreement on all aspects of the shoe. I'm still wearing mine and loving them. Actually played in them in a tourney this weekend. They performed very well.
 

bertrevert

Legend
Lighter than the Breathes is a good result for the Wilsons, the construction looks so much sturdier and they have obviously achieved reductions inside the shoe - yet without losing durability - full marks.

I like the Wilson aesthetics - plain but serviceable and to me they look like a tennis shoe should, they wear their construction on the outside rather than shouting their brand or logo.

But having said all that, and while being a long-term (sometimes dissatisfied) Wilson wearer, I'm thinking of giving the Vapor 4s a try simply because they are on TW sale at the same price point. Might be my only chance to give those Nike low-riders a whirl...

However the Wilson Trance have got to be their best effort in a very long while it seems. As a rough guide Wilson do tend to be for the wider foot... roughly speaking.
 

Babb

Professional
DD, I understand what you mean about the arch being shifted forward a little. My initial impression was that the shoe's natural flex point was too far forward, but maybe it's the arches. Otherwise, it's a great shoe. I'll be sticking with them for a while :D

bertrevert, I think the Vapor IVs are in a completely different category from the Trances. As in, the no-durability-whatsoever category ;) .
 

bertrevert

Legend
^^ Yeah agreed, so no cushioning + no durability equals an expensive experiment. Yeah the Trances are more atttractive in ALL departments to me but I'll never know about the Vapors if I don't give it a shot.

Heh heh that special catergory, the no-durability one, so you walk away with that special experience - the ripped-off one. ;)

I have good wheels and movement and I just want to try out the Vapors purely for mobility reasons.

The only thing I've suffered is freq rolled ankles,.

Going to give Vapors 4s a whirl and see, getting them from TW is whole lot cheaper than buying local (and going in on joint order saves postage).

Heh want to see what the hype is as well, but have never owned a pair of Nike anything in my lfe, just don't know why..
 

Babb

Professional
I got these shoes on March 14, and I'm starting to wear through part of the outsole between the bottom of the shoe and the toe guard area. I play tennis at least two hours every other day. Should I have expected more durability from these or is this about right?

Should I just go to Barricades (I really am afraid of that weight!)?
 

kevsaenz

Rookie
how do you submit the shoes when a hole wears out in the outsole? is there supposed to be a card that comes with the shoes like w/ adidas or do you just keep the receipt and send it in with the shoes when the shoes are worn out?
 

TonyB

Hall of Fame
Since when is 2 weeks considered "super old?"

Seems like a legit question to me. My answer would be that you should probably check where you purchased them to see what their policy is. They may refer you to the manufacturer, but they may not. They may just handle the return/replacement as a courtesy since they handle so much other merchandise for the various manufacturers.

I do like Wilson's shoes. But the cushioning does tend to go flat fairly quickly and they do manage to wear out after a decent amount of use. But I think they wear better than most other shoes out there anyway. I've had my current pair for over a year and they're still in good shape. I don't play every day, but at least 2-3 times per week.
 

kevsaenz

Rookie
way to revive a super old thread

i figured it was better to revive this thread than to make a new one for a simple question. and thanks tonyb, I checked with the place i bought them from and they said that you just return it to wilson w/ the original receipt when the shoes are worn out.
 
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