[LindsayTroy]

I’m hoping to get some ideas from people on here on their favorite shoes for ridge running.

I use Hoka speedgoats for most of my trail running but I’m getting more into ridge running which involves more scrambling and the speedgoats don’t exactly excel at this. At the same time, I’m hoping to do longer distances and run when terrain permits, so I’m looking for something that isn’t an approach shoe.

I’ve been recommended the LaSpo bushidos but the reason I started running in the speedgoats is because I got 2 stress reactions from running in bushidos.

Any recommendations?

Topic

[Dada]

Dada on July 12, 2021 at 2:25 pm #55672

Hi Lindsay,

I think, you can give the Salomon XA ALPINE PRO a try. It’s comparable to the Bushido.

Cheers
Dada

[kurej.tomas]

kurej.tomas on July 13, 2021 at 4:15 am #55688

If it’s wet and snowy than Salomon S/LAB XA ALPINE 2
For summer and dry ridge/mountain running/scrambling Salomon XA ALPINE PRO

[LindsayTroy]

LindsayTroy on July 13, 2021 at 8:17 am #55695

Did Sololmon discontinue those? Or is this another weird COVID supply chain thing. It doesnt seem like you can purchase them.

[nullkru]

nullkru on July 14, 2021 at 2:52 am #55720

maybe have a look at the la sportiva cyklon, or karacal…

[Mariner_9]

Mariner_9 on July 14, 2021 at 6:55 am #55724

I have a pair of Sportiva Akasha which I sometimes use for routes with scrambling. They perform surprisingly well. Not sure how the fit compares to the Bushido.

[Aaron]

Aaron on July 14, 2021 at 8:43 am #55727

Similar to kurej.tomas:
-I have S/LAB XA ALPINE 2 for earlier season snowy use, I use these sparingly as they are expensive (found a pair 50% off), and I prefer mesh shoes with running gaitors unless really snowy.
-I too tried to find the Salomon XA ALPINE PRO but seem to be discontinued or perpetually out of stock.
-for drier use I ended up with arc’teryx norvan vt 2 which seem very similar in niche to the Salomon XA ALPINE PRO
-I also have a pair of la sportiva TX4 for nastier scree and more pure scrambling trips, but I’m really curious to try on a pair of the la sportiva TX guide for these burlier routes.
-My first more technical shoes were Bushidos which I liked but the multi-part sole seemed lower durability, I now prefer shoes with simple smooth treads and single part materials.

[kurej.tomas]

kurej.tomas on July 14, 2021 at 10:05 am #55728

LINDSAYTROY: I bought those Salomon in my local sport shop (living in Central Europe).
One of my friends is lasportiva fan (narrow feet) and he prefers Lasportiva Mutant if there’s more running, it has still very sticky rubber for scrambling (more sticky than Bushido), and Lasportiva TX Guide for harder scrambling and less running.

You could also look at the neu running approach shoes from Scarpa – Rapid. They look not very different from Salomon alpine pro. They are quite neu, so no personal experience.

[mylon.ollila]

mylon.ollila on July 15, 2021 at 3:27 pm #55759

I like the Salomon sense pro 4 or s/lab sense series for scrambling on gnarlier terrain on Vancouver’s North Shore. Super sticky rubber, sensitive, very good on technical terrain. Plus, if they’re good enough for Kilian they’re good enough for me.

[LindsayTroy]

LindsayTroy on July 15, 2021 at 4:05 pm #55760

Thanks all! These are helpful! I have TX3 and TX2s for more proper approaches/climbing but they start to make my feet hurt after 5-6 miles. I’ll have try to get my hands on some of these to see how they fit!

[riley weaver]

riley weaver on July 16, 2021 at 9:55 pm #55798

I’ve been really into the Sportiva Mutants, Tecnica Magma and Arc Norvan VT II for these style runs! The Mutants run the best, but scramble quite well, especially when the rubber has broken in and the lugs wear down a bit. The Magma’s are a good all arounder, and are surely the burliest, offering the most protection, and they scrmable quite well, too. The Norvan’s also run well, and I find they climb exceptionally. The lug pattern is such that you get maximum contact and thus friction, and they do very well climbing 4th and low 5th!

[Danny]

Danny on July 17, 2021 at 3:15 pm #55808

Im also trying to find amore comfortable shoe for the longer distances and elevation gain. Anybody have experience with the On Cloudultra shoe?

[LindsayTroy]

LindsayTroy on July 17, 2021 at 6:43 pm #55814

Danny- I have a pair, they’re really narrow and I don’t love them, little rocks always get stuck in the treads, other than that I don’t really know how to describe what I don’t love about them. I a ride or die for Hoka Speedgoats if you don’t have scrambling to do.

[turfbasket]

turfbasket on July 23, 2021 at 12:40 am #55922

Hi Lindsay.
I am a big fan of the VJ Maxx.They have excellent grip, comfortable cushioning and a fantastic kevlar upper for durability and protection. I have narrow feet which these accommodate but they have a wider toe box which gives a bit more room at the front if needed.
They are meduim weight(uk 8 250g.

In my opinion they are great for skyrunning 30k-50k.

[AshRick]

AshRick on July 26, 2021 at 11:25 am #55975

I used LaSportiva Mutants for a while. But the sole is a little soft — rocks starting hurting my feet after a few hours.

Recently got the Karacal. Wow. Lovely shoe — cushioned but with great rock protection. Nice roomy toe box. Superb grip.

I’ll be wearing those on the segment of Leadville over Hope Pass and back. Rocky on the back side.

[Dan]

Dan on August 1, 2021 at 12:14 pm #56104

I really like the Dynafit Alpine Pros: the combination of tread pattern and sticky rubber works really well on rock, and I’ve had good luck with them on alpine terrain. The only thing I would change is to put a more aggressive tread in the heel for braking on snow/loose terrain, but they work as well as any other shoes I’ve tried in that regard. On technical trails I find the traction encourages me to run up on top of the trail (i.e. up on roots and rocks) more than my other shoes, which I think reduces the risk of catching an ankle (as well as just feeling a lot more fun).

Unfortunately they seem to have discontinued these shoes, and the new Alpine (non-Pro) are not the same. I like them enough I tracked down the last two pairs I could find online and had them shipped from Germany to Canada!