Best For

Best for… the LONG RUN! What a shoe for pushing through that 2-hour barrier. The Saucony Triumph 20 has the bounce and the midsole resiliency to go the distance. Read on for the other run types you will accomplish in your weekly training plan, thanks to the ride and energy return of the Saucony Triumph 20. 

Upper

The Saucony Triumph 20 upper opts for the basic material option, engineered mesh. The toebox is not overly breathable, which is nice for the cooler temperatures of fall and winter. The upper is certainly approaching the plush level status in the heel counter and collar, but not at the same level as lets say the ASICS Gel Cumulus line. The lockdown was spot on thanks to the thickness of the tongue working with the gilly system on the eyelet chain. In addition, Saucony placed a semi-gusset for the tongue’s connection to the inner wall of the shoe, nailed it! To top it all off on the upper construction, Saucony has the pull tab on the heel ready for those who would like a little help pulling their running shoes on or off. When the greatest complaint of a running shoe is the length of the shoe laces, you know the shoe is leveling up to the competition in this 20th iteration. Shall we continue to the midsole DGR…. yes we shall! 

Midsole

 The PWRRUN+ midsole foam LOST 5% of its weight from the 19th iteration, and gained 5% in responsiveness. Not to mention, the drop increased to 10mm from heel to toe, which felt great on a 20-mile long run at 7:15/mile. The silver bullet for the Saucony Triumph 20 has to be the resiliency of the midsole, while remaining bouncy under step. Shall we do a battle? I would take the Triumph 20 midsole bounce over the Novablast 3 midsole bounce, there, I said it. The thumb test is simply superb, tossing my thumb back at me, and the durometer is soft! The shore C durometer is coming in with 33 laterally and 29 medially, I was shocked by those numbers, especially considering the lack of creasing through that midsole. Bottom line, I would buy this shoe again in a heart beat at $160, mostly because of the ride under step for runs going past the 2-hour mark.

Outsole

Closing out this Saucony Triumph 20 review is an outsole set to shine on the long run, for the many miles and kilometers that you will take it around the world. Blown rubber is coming in hot to protect this shoe and your legs, with 1.5 mm to be exact. Thankfully Saucony did not plaster the entire outsole with blown rubber, but rather places it in strategically chosen spots. And yes, they managed to squeeze in a small decoupled groove under the heel, which increases the bounce and energy return under step. 

Would I Buy This Shoe Again?

8.3 Final SCORE! Yes, yes I would buy this shoe again. I cannot wait to see the other DGR runner’s photos stream in from around the world. I’m going with 500+ miles on the durability prediction, thanks in part to the new formula in the midsole combined with the blown rubber on the outsole.

The question comes up all the time, what shoe would you choose for a long run? If you’re okay to stay away from the CFP movement in running shoes, then the Saucony Triupmph 20 takes the cake for my long run shoe of the year in 2022. Yes, I would buy this shoe again for many long runs in 2023 and beyond. 

Global Runing Shoe Experience

Ken’s Saucony Triumph 20 road running shoe photos at 500 miles, Ken is 6’4” and 200 lbs: