Norda - 001

I don't mind their marketing. It's different than typical active wear marketing and I applaud trying to differentiate your brand by doing something different...

To each their own. I have bought Nordas both at full price and discounted... even at full price, with the mileage I get out of them they end up being cheaper on a $/km basis than all other trail shoes I've tried.

I am 6'3 200 lbs and have put over 1300km on technical trails, gravel, dirt, ankle deep mud, ice and snow on my first pair of Norda 001... and this was a "deffective" pair! 001s are now my goto shoes and I sprinkle a few runs in 002 too. The fit is particular so I strongly recommend trying them on before buying them. On a side note, I am curious to hear why you want to drop weight? In my opinion, trying to cut weight while training for more volume and longer races is a dangerous game and the risk of underfueling is greater than the potential benefits or losing a few pounds.

Switched to Norda 001 2 years ago and have never looked by... simply added a sprinkling of 002, but the 001 are what I wear 90% of the time when I'm out running on trails OR even on snowy streets during the winter.

Although the Salomon Sense Ride 4 has a special.place in my heart for being the shoe I used for my first 50k, the Norda 001 is by far my favorite shoe ever and the one I now go to 95% of the time...

The price of Nordas are negligible when you account for the durability. It’s easily 2x the amount of miles you can use them compared to other shoes and the grip is far superior in my opinion.

Norda 005's are door to trail, the available colourway is quite susceptible to dirt but they are great all around. I am partial to the Norda 001 in Vermillion but they can be a bit sticky and heavy on road. And if your casual wear is closer to neutral colours, then this won't do. Some adidas Terrex shoes can also serve here, depending on what colourway you like.

The G+ spiked version is a overkill for road running, unless it's a consistently thick ice road (unlikely, but Canada is huge so idk). The 001/001a would be better. I recommend looking at trail shoe options, even the "road-to-trail" options that are popping up.

My other two finalists were Norda 001 and Inov8 Trailtalon. I ordered all three shoes, and ran a few circles around my house. My initial favorite was the Topos. The Nordas I wasn't sold on the upper, and was nervous about the ankle rub reviews. The Trailtalons, to me, didn't feel like as wide of a toebox as advertised, and the outer sole felt very narrow. Then I had a professional gait analysis and I brought all three shoes for her to watch me run in. I put on the Topos first, she watched me run, and she said "that's the shoe for you - we don't even need to try the other two." I had a list of requirements, and studying up on about 17 brands and \~50 models of trail shoes, I couldn't find one pair that checked all my boxes. I filled four pages in my journal on my studies, and scrubbed [runrepeat.com](http://runrepeat.com) until I decided that what I wanted didn't exist. So I settled on giving up the rock plate. FWIW, I did also buy a pair of Topo Traverse - which adds a rock plate and has a lower stack than the MTN Racer - but I haven't ran in them yet. Plan to use them on a mountain hiking trip in a couple weeks. Also, Topo changed up the shape of the heel cup from the MTN Racer 3 to 4. I haven't tried the 4s yet, but with a new pair of 3s on the shelf, I'm good for the 2025 fall season.

I’ve got the 001 and like them. Followed their recommendation and went up a half size and they fit perfect for me. Comfortable, they’ve been durable so far but I don’t use them daily. I haven’t had any issues at the heel but I know that can bother some people with rubbing. They are warm so I probably won’t be wearing them much this summer. You can usually find sales if you shop around. Or sites that offer a percentage off.

Have you tried to trim the insole on the GS? I think you are able to do so. But I will say if the gs is too narrow for you the Norda 001 won’t give you anymore width. I have both and the speedlands are wider to me.

White Gum Norda 001 look and feel fantastic in a museum, restaurant, trail. They clean up very well with the Dyneema upper

White Gum Norda 001 look and feel fantastic in a museum, restaurant, trail. They clean up very well with the Dyneema upper

I was at the Renegade x Norda 005 release party last night in LA and I’m going for the demo run tomorrow. Tried them on in the store while talking with one of their team members from Montreal…they’re gorgeous in person and many (including the owner of Renegade) were talking about having them as daily wear. They’re raffling off the Norda bag for anyone who buys the shoes in the shop this weekend. Will be interesting to see how they feel on the Griffith Park 8 mile trail loop tomorrow…I’ll report back! Disclaimer: I’ve been wearing the 001s in white as my daily for 2 years and absolutely love them. I also have the 001s in gravel and don’t prefer them in technical terrain as the heel cup rides higher than most other shoes and I was getting contact against my ankle bone on steep descents…even with a heel lock lacing) I absolutely have gotten my moneys worth out of the 001s as my daily’s for two years…I wear them in the office, around town, and are my road shoes when I travel light and want to run while traveling. I’ve got a 100m and two 100ks left this year and currently am in Speedland’s for my big efforts in the mountains…would take a lot to pull me away from them as I’m a big fan of the BOA system coming over from the Altra Mont Blanc BOA a couple years ago. But to answer your question, it’s more than just the brand…though no carbon plate, they use the highest quality foam for 100% of the shoes where other brands have a mix of different types of foam (if I understand my research correctly)

Norda 001 in white gum….honestly, phenomenal all-around shoe. I live in Los Angeles and they have been my daily for 2 years. They transition seamlessly from morning run to morning coffee to sightseeing to an upscale lunch to the beach to mountains to hiking to running. I’ve worn them on dates with my wife, traveling to the Congo, traveling to Alaska, to visiting many national parks. And they clean up very well. Couldn’t recommend more highly.

I love traveling light and I’ve had a pair of white Norda 001s that I’ve traveled to Congo, Rome, Cabo San Lucas, Alaska, and a ton of beach cities in…they are my daily’s at work, clean up really well, and I’m wearing them right now at my son’s baseball practice. The sweet spot is you *like* wearing them and they perform at the level you need for a race. That is subjective to every one but when you can find it one that checks both boxes, you’ll realize it’s a great idea

Yeah, they claim 7.5oz/214g for a US M8.5 which is very good but not as impressive when you get to "real world" sizes. And then there's the outsole-sponsored athletes and professional reviewers claim the lug pattern and compound are great for dry stuff but not intended for wet or sloppy conditions. So this begs the question-why use a more expensive compound with LESS durability if there is no meaningful gain in traction/grip on all conditions? They could just use standard Megagrip Litebase with a better outsole design and cover more bases while potentially making the shoe more affordable. I use my 001RZs regularly and I think it's one of the best and most durable trainers on the market. But this 005 is already struggling to show any meaningful advantages compared to the latest crop of performance trail shoes (Prodigio Pro and Deviate Nitro Elite Trail). And things are going to get a lot more crowded in this sector when the Kjerag 2 comes along (which is even lighter and now equipped with a higher stack supercritical TPU midsole and should be at least as durable with a proven outsole). Not to mention all these shoes are 70-120$ cheaper than the 005.

I am wore an 11 in every set of Altras I had. I wesr a 12 in 002. Though, they are snug when they are new, after ~100k they break in quite well. I do not wesr the 001 or the 003, the upper design for those 2 models is the same, and it pulls on my achilles (and hypothetically, also fits slightly larger). I found Nordas recommendation to upsize 1 full size for the 002 to be perfect.

Norda 001/002 should be the only answer to this question. They are in a league of their own in every category!

Peba is radical but I find anything over 25mm of stack to be uncomfortable as the foams are too soft and for whatever reason it strains my arch on long runs. So I’ll train in a night stack shoe but then when I’m on my feet 3+ hours I’ll use a fairly minimal trail shoe. The merrell long sky 2 Matryx is amazing, minimal upper and great foam under foot.

Yea it’s weird, I wear barefoot shoes for work and I’m on my feet all day so I think my feet are just used to feeling a firmer floor. I love the norda 001 feel but it’s a touch too wide for my skinny feet to feel very secure.

Love the way the 001s feel but don’t work great for narrower/lower volume feet, lockdown is an issue. Went a 1/2 size up in the 001 and seems spot on. Tried my typical size in the 002 and it’s too small so I just ordered a 1/2 size up. Side wall stuff came unglued fairly quick, I used seam glue on them and it’s kinda holding up. Definitely go for a stitched one like mentioned before. heel cup has given friends issues with rubbing but not for me. After about 60-80 miles they feel like they soften up a bit. If you want a softer ride I can’t recommend the Nnormal Tomir 2.0 enough. 400+ miles and still doing great.