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Adidas Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra 2 review: bouncy and fast, if the trail stays friendly (or you're an elite)
Stacked Lightstrike Pro, Energy Rods, and Continental grip make a genuinely bouncy long-trail racer. The narrow last keeps it from being a stable one.
The Agravic family now has three distinct personalities, and this is the maximalist one.
The Speed Ultra 2 is the stacked, Energy Rod ultra racer of the lineup: 43mm (yes, you read that correctly) of dual-layer Lightstrike Pro, an aggressive rocker, and Continental rubber, built for going fast for a long time on runnable trail.
Think of it as the Adios Pro idea taken to the dirt.
It sits above the Agravic Speed 2, my #1 skyrunning pick, and beside the Agravic SL, the well-rounded daily trail shoe of the family. My Agravic 4 review is coming soon, for anyone wondering...
Adidas Terrex Agravic Speed 2 Review: A True Technical Racer
The lightest Agravic yet pairs a lively dual-layer Lightstrike (standard and Pro) ride with serious Continental grip. It’s brilliant, if you’re the right runner for it.
Alastair Dixon
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I have been testing the Adidas Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra 2 along rolling singletrack, fireroad, and longer fast efforts, and the engine is genuinely special. But they do have some flaws, and the fit is the big one. Here's my full review.
If you purchase gear through links in this article, I may earn a small affiliate commission. For my training tools, exclusive content, newsletter, and more perks become a member, (it's free!). -Alastair ✌🏼
Key specifications
- Price: $225 at adidas.com
- Weight: 9.7 oz (275 g) in my tested men's US 9
- Drop: 8mm | Stack height: 43mm heel / 35mm forefoot (the aggressive rocker means it can measure and feel flatter than that if you land well behind the heel bevel)
- Upper: Lightweight mono-mesh with TPU overlays, a slingshot-style heel hold, a slightly high collar, and a short traditional tongue
- Midsole: Dual-layer Lightstrike Pro and Lightstrike with Energy Rods (flexible rods, not a rigid carbon plate) and an aggressive rocker
- Outsole: Continental rubber with mixed 3-4mm lugs; no rock plate, so protection comes from foam height
- Extra attributes: A race fit that narrows under the heel and midfoot; regular width only; molded sockliner
Sizing and fit
They run true to size in my US 9, with a race-snug fit throughout, and definitely not a wide fit.
I like the fit up front; the forefoot is usable and the mono-mesh feels great, but the internal volume/last is the limitation.
It's narrow through the heel and midfoot, the collars sits a little high (adidas raised it deliberately for this version, and you notice it), and the heel lock is only average.
The frustrating part is that the obvious fix doesn't work very well; the tongue is too short to run a decent heel-lock lacing method comfortably. That's a design miss rather than a lacing-skill problem, and it matters for what comes later in this review.
Performance review
This is a shoe with a split personality, and both halves deserve their say.
Cushioned and bouncy when the trail rolls
On the terrain I feel it was built for, the Speed Ultra 2 is a joy.
The dual-layer Lightstrike Pro (softened for this second version) with Energy Rods and that tall, aggressively rockered stack produces a cushioned, bouncy ride that keeps giving deep into long efforts.
On rolling singletrack, fireroads, gravel, and compact ultra courses, it bounces you forward in a way very few trail shoes can.
It has some of the Adios Pro 4 energy about it, and that ride is why it costs $225, and also why it exists alongside the Speed 2 rather than replacing it.
Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 4 review: light, fast, and built to reward good running
Light, propulsive, and more refined in all the right ways, the Adios Pro 4 is built for runners chasing serious road-race speed, without sacrificing stability.
Alastair Dixon
Fast and snappy on climbs
Going uphill, this shoe comes alive.
The rocker, the rods, and a reasonable 9.7 oz weight combine into a fast, snappy climbing feel that wants to be run, not hiked.
That's worth underlining; it rewards momentum.
Runnable grades at effort are its happy place, while hiking sections and heavy heel loading are exactly where the narrow rear end starts to bite.
Not very stable on uneven ground
Here's the honest limitation, and it's structural.
A 43mm stack, no rock plate, Energy Rods that add rebound, a narrow midfoot and heel footprint, and a fit that hugs hard at the midfoot and heel; put those together and you get a shoe that feels twitchy when the ground gets lumpy.
On off-camber, rooty, or broken terrain, the Continental can still be gripping while the chassis above it wobbles.
The average heel lock makes it harder to fight, and because the tongue isn't long enough to take a racer's loop, you can't cinch your way out of it.
That is why the inherent instability is hard to mitigate on the Speed Ultra 2.
I said it in my Speed 2 review and I'll repeat it here; the Speed 2, with its slightly wider midfoot, is a more trustworthy Terrex on genuinely technical ground if you stay off your heels, and the Agravic SL performs even better, especially over longer distances; if comfort and stability are more of a priority for you.
And if technical security is what you want most, the Salomon S/Lab Genesis 2 remains my benchmark, while the Hoka Tecton X 4 is the trail supershoe that stays composed across far more terrain.
Salomon S/Lab Genesis 2 review: my technical trail favorite, refined
Same precise, low-stack control that carried me through Speedgoat by UTMB, now with more pop, better stability, and improved durability.
Alastair Dixon
Continental grip you can trust, to a point
The Continental outsole is a known quantity in my reviews, and it delivers again; dry hardpack, rock, gravel, and moderate wet are all handled confidently, with the mixed 3-4mm lugs cut deeper for this version.
The limit is the same one I gave the Speed 2; deep mud and anything demanding a 5-6mm lug is outside this shoe's brief.
Grip is rarely the problem here; the platform above it is.
A race-day upper built for heat
The thin mono-mesh is excellent in the heat, with great breathability that makes this a legitimately good hot-weather race option, and it carries the same feel as the Speed 2's upper, just stacked on a much taller midsole.
It's a race-day upper through and through, and the long-term durability of a mesh this thin is the open question, I'll keep watching as my miles build.
My verdict
I like the Agravic Speed Ultra 2; I really do.
It's airy, snappy on climbs, and cushioned-bouncy on rolling trail and long efforts, and at 9.7 oz in my US 9 it still feels like a race shoe rather than a tank.
The honest limitation is the questionable stability and fit. It's narrow under the heel and midfoot, has a collar that sits a little high, a heel lock that's only okay, and a tongue too short to fix using a racer's loop.
That combination produces inherent instability on certain uneven ground, and no amount of Continental rubber changes it.
If your race is flow and fireroad, this is a serious $225 tool for mid and forefoot strikers who want Lightstrike Pro bounce for hours. If your trails get highly technical, the Speed 2 or the Agravic SL is the smarter Terrex for you.
Who should skip it: anyone needing a controllable ride on technical trails, heel strikers, wide midfoot or heel shapes, beginners, and deep-mud races.
If you love this foam but need a planted shoe, that's the Agravic SL; if you want a wider, more heel-striker-friendly ultra racer, my On Cloudultra Pro vs Cloudultra 3 comparison covers a strong alternative.
And for how it slots into the full race-day field, see my best trail racing shoes roundup.
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Alastair Dixon
For my complete rankings across every trail running shoe category, see my guide to the best running shoes right now.
If you haven't already, signup for my free newsletter, and subscribe to my YouTube Channel for all the latest running shoe reviews. 👉🏼 And for an inside look at what comes into my studio with unboxings, lace up reels, behind the scenes, and short form reviews, follow me on Instagram, and TikTok. -Alastair
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