A new trade show has emerged in the outdoor space. Switchback made its big debut in Nashville this week after being pulled out of The Running Event for its first standalone event.

Brands and retailers converged on the Gaylord Opryland Convention Center in Nashville for the three-day show. Hiking and trail running silhouettes commanded a sizable amount of real estate, with new offerings presented by Merrell, The North Face, Asics, Arc’teryx and more.

Below, you’ll find 18 of the top shoes unveiled at Switchback. Each of the shoes will release in spring 2026 unless otherwise noted.

Following the success of its Altamesa running line, The North Face is relaunching the Fastpack in low- and mid-top form to bridge the line between hiking boots and sneakers. A new formulation of Dream super-critical foam comes in more dense and durable to stand up to greater mileage, and a small rocker helps encourage the transition from heel to toe.

The North Face Verto A5

A true and premium approach shoe, the Verto A5 boasts a custom Vibram outsole with directional Microgrip teeth and will be available with both ripstop and suede uppers. Ken Taylor, senior director of Outdoor for The North Face, said the brand took an “Italian” approach to the shoe’s design after its athletes had requested an approach shoe that could handle bouldering.

Rossignol Vercos

The French ski boot specialist just expanded into trail running in spring 2025, and it will continue to do so with the Vercos everyday runner. Featuring three layers of insoles including a removable one for tailored fits, the Vercos packs four additional components beneath, with a durable high-rebound foam, tuning fork made of a glass polyester fabric, anti-torsion bar and Duragrip outsole.

Birkenstock Boston Crosstown

This fall, the Boston will join the Arizona and Milano in the Crosstown lineup with an oiled leather upper and a dual-layered polyurethane sole that’s more flexible and provides greater grip and abrasion-resistence.

Teva Aventrail R2T

Teva has reentered trail-running with the Aventrail line, which now offers both sandals and an out-and-out shoe. The Aventrail R2T, short for “Road to Trail,” will come in as the most versatile in the lineup with a lighter weight and smaller lugs encouraging multi-use. Lee Cox, vice president and general manager of Teva and Ahnu, said Teva has taken learnings from Deckers sister brand Hoka in its cushioning.

asics Trabuco 14

Road informs trail, as Asics’ FF Blast Max cushioning makes its debut in the latter category on the Trabuco 14. The energetic foam is made with 20-percent bio-based material and is reinforced for trail with a Rockplate. A new last is also used for the Trabuco Max 5 and Fuji Lite 6 opens up the toe box for a roomier fit, and the Trabuco 14 will be available with an without Gore-Tex.

Oofos Plus Line

Oofos’ product line of recovery shoes is more static than iterative, but an upgrade is coming to the OOahh, OOriginal and OOclog. More Oofoam is applied underfoot, allowing the shoes to be worn longer, and newly raised rim cradles the wearer in the footbed. Updated aesthetics are intended for greater lifestyle appeal, and each premium model will come in $10 higher than their respective inline iteration in March 2026.

Alta Experience Wild 3

Much like Asics, Altra will bolster one of its flagship trail runners with tech from the road. Ego P35 foam brings its lighter and more responsive properties with a 4mm drop for those who aren’t quite ready for the 0mm drop Altra is known for.

Vibram FiveFingers SpidrWalk

Articulated toes can now go into and out of water with the SpidrWalk, which pairs a quick-dry upper with a new sole carrying ventilation holes and a multi-directional tread in a package with greater flexibility.

Arc’Teryx Sylan 2

The Sylan was one of Arc’teryx’s first models after taking it shoe designs in-house, and the second iteration of the trail runner will get much quicker with the addition of a carbon-infused plate and supercritical foam. The rocker shape has tuned down to ensure stability with the new tech, and the upper is updated with more breathable mesh and the gusset now extends all the way down the toe.

merrell Agility Peak 6

The aggressive ethos of Merrell’s Agility Peak series will be bolstered in July by a new outsole configuration independently tested by Heelux to find 20 percent better traction than the Agility Peak 5. A reduction in size for the rock plate helps drop the weight, and a dual-layer closed-cell mesh upper was also found by Heelux to be 50 percent more durable.

Merrell Relay Tour Mary Jane, Moab Speed 2 Mary Jane and SpeedArc Mary Jane

No one will accuse Merrell of ignoring the Mary Jane trend. Three different models are getting the Mary Jane revamp, with the classics represented in the Relay Tour and the more contemporary coming from the Moab Speed 2 and even more recent SpeedArc.