Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail Review: A Wildcat Worth Meeting

Introduction to the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail

TAYLOR: No matter where you were in the room, it’d be staring. All the time. No matter if it was a quick visit on the weekends or a long holiday stay. It was always the same.

My grandparents’ house had a somewhat conflicting aura. It was a tug-of-war between a Kohl’s showroom and a Cabela’s, where beautiful pastels mixed with the trophies of long hours in the woods. I would literally eat Easter dinner off of a bright blue Fiesta Ware plate while locking eyes with one of Grandpa Greg’s mounts.

The one who commanded the house was a sizable cougar mounted high on the wall. Even though I’m an animal lover, I loved going along with my grandpa when he set out to claim a new trophy (even though I froze my toes off dang near every time). You know, I did it for the quality bonding time, plus I was outdoors in the calm and quiet that spoke to me at a young age.

The cougar, puma, and mountain lion were hunted far before I was born, but I loved hearing the stories of the long days of tracking the animals from both him and my uncle Mike. As a kid, I envisioned this wild cat pouncing from rock to tree with ease as the dogs and humans fought for every step just to maintain a scent line. Rather than being a member of the hunting party, I wanted to be that cat!

Now, as an adult, I still want that sensation- quick, decisive, powerful through the woods. Maybe it’s a coincidence, or maybe it’s fate, but Puma may just have the tool to help me do just that.

REESE: Let me start by saying that my grandparents didn’t have a cougar in their living room, which is one point for Taylor but minus three points for me. Instead, I want as little contact with a cougar as possible, especially as it pertains to trail running. There is not a single cell in my body that wants to stare into the eyes of a large cat while I’m in the middle of nowhere in the mountains. That being said, I do watch all the videos of people encountering mountain lions on trails. Which might be part of my problem. It’s a nice feedback loop of anxiety. The biggest danger to me is me. C’est la vie, back to shoes.

I’ve never run in Puma shoes before, and I didn’t realize they were venturing into the trail running world. When Taylor and I met up to film our first impressions video for this shoe, I told him my Puma footwear knowledge stopped at its golf shoes (ugly) and one of their athletes, Viktor Hovland, who seems as strange as I am, and I like that. Still, though, golf is a little stiff. Anyway, my lack of knowledge about Puma trainers set this review up as a blank slate. I had no idea what I was in for. Also, for this review, keep in mind that I wear thin inserts for arch support. I believe where Taylor and I diverge in thoughts is primarily due to that.

What we like about the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail

TAYLOR: So, if I were to live my childhood fantasy, what would be the characteristics needed to feel like a wild cat pouncing through the woods? Confidence, agility, and efficiency come to mind, and I just so happen to get many of those same feelings from the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail.

I gained most of my confidence from a surprisingly impressive fit. The overall shape of the shoe is closest to something like the Hoka Speedgoat 6 or Nike Terra Kiger 9. It’s more of a torpedo-shaped, slimmer, and longer construction. The shaping and technically engineered UltraWeave upper gave a light but secure lockdown throughout the foot, especially in key places like the heel and midfoot, while a semi-gusseted tongue, stout heel construction, and PWRTape overlays made sure of that.

The forefoot had a touch more wiggle room — it wasn’t roomy to me, but it wasn’t narrow either (I have an average to moderately wide forefoot). Appropriately, “fitted” is a good descriptor for it. The forefoot reminded me of many other race day options out there, like the Brooks Catamount 3, Nike Ultrafly, and Adidas Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra. If I were to go for a run between four to six hours, my traditional size would be perfect. If I’m going beyond that, though, I would strongly consider going up half a size.

Puma’s Deviate Nitro Elite Trail also has a dynamic vamp that allows the forefoot to maintain a bit more splay, similar to the Hoka Tecton X 3. There wasn’t a huge amount of stretch like the Tecton X 3, but there was enough flex at the toe-off (as opposed to constricting). The UltraWeave upper was very tenacious, too, so that splay could only go so far.

Durability and breathability are a new age standard for race day materials, and the UltraWeave upper checks both of those boxes as the material is very much in the league of Matryx fabric found on the Hoka Tecton X 3, Arc’teryx Sylan Pro, Merrell Long Sky 2 Matryx, and Salomon Genesis.

The “torpedo” shape always has the potential to be unstable, especially with a stack of 36 mm in the heel and 30 in the forefoot, yet the combination of NitroFoam Elite, a moderately broad footprint throughout, and a PWRPlate created a surprisingly stable ride for this particular package. When all was said and done, I’d describe the ride as impressively neutral.

My feelings about the ride were far from neutral, though. The Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail had a frickin’ spectacular sensation underfoot that’s not typical of trail runners. There are really only a couple of shoes that had a similarly comfortable soft cushioning with substantial energy return — the Saucony Endorphin Edge and the Hoka Tecton X 3 — but both had their own struggles because of it.

Now, back to the Big Cat. The specifically designed PWRPlate offers both the stability and propulsive energy needed to put my best foot forward on smooth to moderately technical trails. This combo and the slightly tamer forefoot (compared to the road Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 3) allowed for more versatility than expected. Don’t get me wrong, this shoe didn’t love to dance among the rocks, but the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail wasn’t too resistant to some speedy, fairly technical sections. If I could continue my stride in a mostly forward motion, this shoe rocked.

Also, the ridge of extra foam around the heel provided a little more stability and cushion for downhill segments and open trails. Again, this aspect only added to the Deviate Nitro Elite Trail’s prowess.

Lastly, PumaGrip ATR did what PumaGrip does. The rubber itself was very tacky, and the 3 mm lugs do spell out the purpose of this shoe: light trail. The outsole employs a unique lug design that works well for the crossover between dry trail and pavement.

REESE: Ok, Puma, I see you. And I mean that in the “impressed by a Puma” way, not the “this could be my last moment” way.

The standout feature of this shoe — hands down — has to be the NitroFoam Elite. It’s noticeably plush, but thanks to the wider platform, your foot stays stable. Each step felt like a little hug, followed by a smooth, responsive push-off. The full-length carbon plate, aka PWRPlate (a name I cannot endorse), probably contributed to that nice rebound. But unlike other shoes, I didn’t feel the plate as much — maybe this is the carbon plate for people who don’t love carbon plates.

Then there’s the UltraWeave upper, which my brain refuses to call anything but UltraWeviate because, come on, Puma—you’re already making up words with missing vowels. Commit to the bit. It’s such a light upper that I could feel the wind blowing through it, which is maybe not so great in the winter, but terrific in the hot, hot heat. The PWRTape (see?) around the midfoot helps to keep the foot secure in an otherwise very roomy shoe. I believe that my arch support insert helped a bit with the secure feeling I had, even on technical trails. The shoe is fairly wide, and while it is easy to cinch down, I liked the added support I had.

Lastly, Puma’s tech sheet has the lifespan of this shoe at 500 miles, which seems insane to me. With The North Face’s Vectiv Sky, I can get a solid 250 miles, but they’re absolutely cooked by the time I get there. That shoe costs about $200, just $30 less than the Puma, but allegedly lasts half as long. Now, I haven’t run 500 miles in mine yet, but I can say that after logging a hefty chunk of miles on them, the NitroFoam Elite is in terrific shape. I don’t see a lot of degradation. However, I’m much more curious to see how the 3 mm lugs look after that distance. I do believe this shoe can last significantly longer than most of the shoes in my lineup based on how little wear and tear I can see on it.

What we don’t like about the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail

TAYLOR: As much as I was surprised by and enjoyed this shoe, there were some small annoyances in pretty much every category, too. Here they are from most intrusive to least.

First, the ankle collar — this one was rough for me. The anterior side bit my ankle while the posterior side rubbed my Achilles, yet I firmly believe that Puma approached this heel construction right. It needed to be structured to support the rest of the shoe’s performance, but that resulted in a belligerent collar. I simply couldn’t finish a run without at least a little bit of friction on both sides of my ankles, so grab your Body Glide for this one. Oh, and I had some irritation at the front of my foot, too, thanks to the internal supports rubbing against my pinky toes. Thankfully, this settled after a few runs at least.

I also had an issue or two with the ride, including the fact that the forefoot felt slappy on flat bits of trail — something I haven’t experienced in a long time. Fear not, as this was only mild and slightly annoying rather than performance-inhibiting.

Directly under the heel, I could feel the firm full-length PWRPlate when I was putting a lot of pressure on the backside (i.e., downhills), so strong heel-strikers, beware. At any rate, it was firm and mildly irritating after longer runs. I wish that the overall shape of the plate was either more spoonlike to alleviate the heel pressure or that more support was given under the arch.

Lastly, a three-millimeter lug is a bold move for a trail shoe. Even if PumaGrip ATR is a spectacular rubber compound for the trails, the leg depth and shape weren’t all that satisfactory. There was very little digging power, which limits this shoe to certain conditions and terrain. Even on dry, dusty foothills trails, I wasn’t all that satisfied with the overall grip, especially at a faster clip.

REESE: There is a lot to like about this shoe, and I have only a few gripes with it. First up, the lugs. The lugs are 3 mm at most, but Puma tapers the lugs, so while the thickest part is 3mm high, a good portion of the lug is far less than that. Because of this, I had some issues finding purchase on steep uphills.

Also, the sizing might need a little fine-tuning. I typically wear a US W7.5, and while that’s what I was sent — and I had no trouble running in it — it felt a bit too roomy for my everyday runs. I can see the extra space being a plus during a 100-mile race when your feet inevitably swell, but for me, the shape of the toe box left a lot of that room feeling empty. While my toes had plenty of space on flat terrain, I noticed my feet getting crammed toward the front on descents.

Final thoughts on the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail

TAYLOR: In a somewhat surprising display, Puma has pulled together a very proficient trail racer. I use “surprising” in the sense that we just hadn’t seen what they’re capable of on the trail yet. Then, bam, they smacked us with the Puma Deviate Elite Nitro Trail.

I love that even though specs may show that this shoe is similar in design philosophy to the Asics Metafuji Trail, the Deviate Nitro Elite Trail is actually a much more trail-ready super shoe. In terms of energy return, efficiency, and fit, I think it matches, maybe even surpasses, shoes like the Nike Ultrafly.

Overall, it’s a very well-built package that will please many, whether you’re the roadie who wants a familiar race-day feel on the trails or the seasoned ultra runner who wants a fast and fun option for the easy-to-moderate terrain applications. The Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail is an exciting new addition to the trail running landscape, no doubt.

REESE: I’m impressed with Puma’s first big (cat) leap into the trail arena. With the bandwagon so full, it takes a lot to earn your place. And while this shoe wasn’t exactly perfect, I do believe it is going to be a terrific race day shoe as is and be the first of a super stellar line up. I love the lightness, the stability, and the roadie vibes of this shoe. If Puma can get this shoe on a top finisher at Javelina 100k or 100-miler, Western States, or a similarly hot and not insanely technical major trail race, that might be just what this brand needs to roar… into the mainstream.

You can pick up the Puma Deviate Nitro Elite Trail for $230 from Running Warehouse (featuring free shipping and 90-day returns) by using the buttons below.