S-Lab Sense Ultra

I‘m unfortunately also very prone to ankle rolls. That’s we many shoes are out of question for me already when I do a slight roll test while standing in them. The NNormal shoes work fine for me except the Kjerag 2. I sent them back after standing in them. What works for me is: - Kjerag - Tomir 1 - Tomir 2 (best) - Tomir 2 NN (feels harder) - Cadí (my new favorite) I‘m personally very impressed by the durability. I had to retire most shoes at the 400km mark. With Salomon Sense Ultra, already the last 100k from 300k upwards were bad. On the Tomirs, I could do 1000k. However, the last 200k were merely fillers because I wanted to reach the 1000k mark. I‘ve never before ran in shoes >500km and I have >80 pairs of shoes tracked in my strava.

Yes, consistent sizing throughout the line. I‘d say durability as a whole. With Salomon (my other go to) I kill the outsole after 300k and also the midsole starts to give. The NNormals were consistent good in all respects. Even pairs used in races didn’t look terrible on the upper. Of course, after 700k it wasn’t a fresh shoe of course but still fully functional. With Salomon, the upper started to give too, especially with shoes I raced in (>100k trail ultras). My theory is that the salt from sweating during race efforts weakens the upper. Disclaimer: i got my Cadi only recently and only ran about 250k in them, so I can’t comment on the durability yet.

I used to run in salomons (s/lab sense & ultra 3s). I’ve since found Arcteryx Norvan SL to be a great replacement for the Sense, with the SL3 sharing obvious DNA with the sense 8. I was thinking a Norvan LD might be worth a look as an ultra 3 replacement, even though I’ve never tried them personally.

Salomon s lab ultra or recent equivalent are an excellent all round option. Rare on the shelves but you will find them online with some good prices periodically.

It’s different for everyone. I tend to have multiple pairs and I rotate. They also serve different purposes. Trail/threadmill/regular/race I tend to stick with the ones that work for me, and often buy 3 spare pairs when I stumble on a series I like. Often I also look at older models. If they were top 3 years ago, believe me, they are still good. Not worth the big price difference between models. I currently have the Mizuno Wave Inspire and Saucony Endorphin speed and Saucony Kinvara series for most normal trainings. Saucony Endurance pro and Mizuno Wave shadow for races. For trails depending on terrain Salomon Speedcross, Thundercross, XA Pro 3d (goretex) and S/lab ultra. Regular daily’s I loved the Wave Inspire series till v17. Then they changed and don’t like them anymore. Also looking for a good successor but most likely I’ll use the Kinvara’s more. Don’t follow trends and marketing. Test and feel. And really get more than one pair and rotate. It’s better for your feet too. And surfing for older models bargains can really pay off, certainly if you take the ugly colors no one buys 🥸

I mean, use the shoe you’re most comfortable in. Everyone has a different preference. Also, terrain can vary massively. So a trail marathon like Wales will be different to the Serpent Trail or Spine. But if I was you I’d experiment with some shoes with a bit more cushion, a bit wider in the toe box, and a slightly different lug pattern that can handle more varied terrain. I like the Hoka Mafate 5 or Speedgoat 7. La Sportiva Prodigio Pro is also great. If you want to stay in the Salomon camp try the S/Lab Genesis or Ultra Glide. Saucony Xodus Ultra is a good choice - far better than the Peregrine for this sort of distance.