In the summer of 2024, John from Running Free obtained a pair of the La Sportiva Prodigios for me in exchange for some thoughts on the shoe. I mostly loved them, and raced a few 50ks in them. That fall I heard about the impending release of the Prodigio Pros. I marked my calendar, kept an eye on early reviews, and bought a pair for myself in the spring.
What. A. Shoe.
I’ve been running trails for over five years, and in that time I’ve tried a number of shoes I’ve really enjoyed for both rugged and more buffed out terrain. I think the Prodigio Pro takes the cake as the single best trail shoe I’ve ever owned. They’ve got a great fit and a very secure lockdown, along with a little sock-bootie element that helps keep debris away from your feet.
The Prod Pros come in with a 6mm drop (34mm in the heel; 28mm in the forefoot), and boast a supportive but not too squishy foam. This combo is great. It gives your feet some decent protection from whatever terrain you’re throwing at them but it also allows for some solid groundfeel. I know a lot of runners prefer that ultra-soft feeling, especially over longer distances, but I like knowing where my feet are and what I’m stepping on. The tongue features this stuffed, ridged element that is supposed to protect the top of the foot from laces biting down. At first I found that this feature made the shoe uncomfortable for the top of my foot, but I realized that a) I didn’t need to do my usual heel-lock lacing pattern with these shoes and that b) once I’d removed the heel lock loop, the tongue sat perfectly on top of my foot.
I did all my spring/summer trail runs in the Pros, including a 12h timed event in Dundas, ON. So when it came time to pick my shoes for my A-race of the year, the Javelina Jundred 100k, the choice was obvious: another pair of the Prodigio Pros. (I should note that my first pair are still in use. I’ve put over 600km on them, so they’re still going strong for training miles, and the tread looks great, even with the road mileage I often have to do to get to the trails. I just wanted a fresher pair for race day.)
These shoes were a great choice for Javelina. Yes, by the end of a 100k race your feet are going to be a little mangled no matter what, but I found that I wasn’t longing to change my shoes at any point during the race. The sock-like upper did a solid job keeping sand and rocks out of my shoes, and they breathed nicely.
Overall I have no complaints with the Prodigio Pro. I will continue to wear them in the months to come. If you’re eyeing a long, technical, or dusty trail ultra in the coming months, you can count on these shoes.
