Which inov8?

after slipping all over the purbecks at the weekend and my trailrocs (which are normally ok in mud) not being man enough to grip on the extra slippy mud we seem to have there, i thought i might see about treating myself to a pair more suited to a mudfest. (birthday coming up! ) 
However, I am aware that they may need to suit rock and loose paths too. I also like a low drop shoe. ( i prefer inov8's for the fit)
At the moment I am torn between Roclite 243/285, X-talon 190, Bare Grip, and Mudclaw.
I think Mudclaw and BareGrip (both given great reviews in trail running mag) would be fantastic in the mud but not so good if encountering rock. On the other hand the Roclite look to be good all rounders, but less grippy in the mud than the others. The x-talon look to be somewhere in the middle but billed as an 'elite' shoe (which i am definately not!)
Does anyone have any recommendations for any of these shoes? and what the grip is like? thanks

(I asked about the Baregrips before but ended up getting the Trailrocs which have been fine on pretty much most trails up till now!)

The X-Talon 190 is an awesome shoe and would be my choice out of the ones you have listed. I have run a reasonable number of miles in the ones you mention except the mudclaw.

Thanks WiB, it was the one i was leaning towards (having looked at the inov8 website a million times!), but i wasnt sure what made it an 'elite' shoe! possibly the weight?

No problem. I have no idea what the difference between an elite shoe and a shoe is either!

Mudclaws are fab and you need have no worries if you encounter any rock - they will cope just as well (if not better) than the others you have mentioned. They are my favoured wet weather training and fell shoe. 

Roclites are not that great in the mud and on steep stuff but grip is OK otherwise. I use the 295s for training on trails - generally dry stuff and hard pack.

X-talons are good too but I tend to use these for drier, short fell races and XC/trail races. I have the 212 which has slightly more cushioning (2 arrow) though still not a lot.

Pete, thanks for the input.
a friend of mine on the same outing had the roclites and coped better than my trailrocs so I am suprised that you consider them not good in the mud, however its good to have another opinion! Nice also to hear that the mudclaws are better on rock than i expected given the info on the invo8 technology page about hard surfaces.

I am attempting one day of the Jurassic Coast Challange (yes i know, only one day, what a wimp!) at the end of march and know from experience that the terrain is a mixture of very slippy mud, grass, chalk paths, steep hills, rock, sandy paths and also some tarmac as we go through swanage seafront! Trying to find one shoe fits all!

Hmm, Looks like a death match between X-talon and Mudclaws then

OK, thanks!
Yes i know, big decision

I have Roclite 295 and my wife has the 268s. Mud is not a massive problem here but slippy rocks and tree roots are. For that they get my vote. I got mine after almost ending up in a river when I went flying on a slippy rock. I only stayed dry by managing to grab the bottom of the bridge railing mid fall

Thanks for the input HRHB

The Rocklite 315's are a good all round off road shoe and last a long time. I use Mudrock 290's for when it gets a bit muddy; both great shoes. 

Hi Sideburn, I have the Trailroc 245 already which I find to be a good all round off road shoe, and usually copes with most things including mud, however it seems that the purbeck mud is extremely slippery, must be to do with the soil make up (either chalk or ball clay i think) and so i just fell over about a dozen times in a 2 mile stretch! Ouch, just a few bruises

seems like another vote for the Mudclaws then

Hey Max's Mum (all!) I love my Rocklites 268's and they have saved my butt so many times now!  I find for me they are the right balance of comfort fit and grip for the terrain I have been training in!  I am also training for the JCC so plan to use them there!  I have mainly been training over muddy hills, woods and farm fields, the odd rocky section  - nothing coastal so not sure on what they will be like the race but hoping they will perform.  I know that the mudclaws are much better for grip - but for me, they felt too hard underfoot??  I don't know if it helps but toe2toe socks and sealskins seem to work for me (though my husband hates the sealskins).  Happy training!!  

Hi AussieCate, just realised we have been on all the same threads recently!
I am only doing day three though so hats off to you for doing all three days!
I dont mind hard under foot, as I run in barefoot shoes normally, my worry is whether the mudclaws will cope on hard surfaces as there are some small rocky sections and also we will be going along swanage sea front so its tarmac!
Seems there are mixed opinions, but its good to read them
The coastal paths are very mixed, and especially on days 2 and 3 are very steep
(see below! - hope the weather is like this in March!)

 I won some sealskins socks in a competition but they make my feet too sweaty so i dont like using them!

Sports Pursuit website have a sale on selected INOV8  shoes at the moment

http://www.sportpursuit.com/join/grantyoung_1b8a4f

nice prices, shame they only seem to have road shoes. . . .

Worth keeping an eye out, have managed to pick up some baselayer gear for very good prices.

Grant Young wrote (see)

Sports Pursuit website have a sale on selected INOV8  shoes at the moment

http://www.sportpursuit.com/join/grantyoung_1b8a4f

Grant, I think you forgot to mention the ulterior motive for pasting this link!

i.e. you get £5 if it results in an order.

Max's Mum wrote (see)

I dont mind hard under foot, as I run in barefoot shoes normally, my worry is whether the mudclaws will cope on hard surfaces as there are some small rocky sections and also we will be going along swanage sea front so its tarmac!

Hi MM,

Mudclaws are fine on hard surfaces and I'm sure you would be fine if you are used to bare foot shoes.

Because the studs are quite large and they are the softer compound rubber, they deform on impact with hard surfaces and so have a cushioning effect. The last race I did was a 10 mile trail run which was about 10% tarmac, 30% mixed trail and 60% mud and they were perfect for that.

I would not use them regularly for long distances on hard surfaces though as the rubber will wear down quickly.