The Vasque Ultra SST, or “ShapeShifter Technology,” hit the market this month, and I got my hands on a pre-release review pair to test on the trails around Denver. Long story short, they sketched me out and also ring in at a hefty $170, a high price to pay for trail shoes.
Super-cush trail shoes are all the rage this year, with models from several top manufacturers coming to market this spring. The opposite of the barefoot shoe movement of a few years ago, the high stack height of the new designs use materials that keep weight reasonable even with massive soles.
While I’ve run hundreds of trail miles over the last two years and events such as the TransRockies Run, UROC 100k and Jupiter Peak Steeplechase, this was my first experience running on a super-thick soled shoe, so my opinion should be seen through the lens of someone used to a more minimal sole.
Putting the SST through its paces on easy, buffed-out mountain bike trails, I was pleased during climbs but not at all happy on descents or flat terrain.
The shoe does a great job of conforming to the contours of the trail and buffering the foot from impact, but it does so at the price of proprioception and stability.
When purposely stepping on large, pointy rocks, I barely felt them through the thick soles. But with so much material underfoot (and a sloppy fit even on my wide feet) my steps were far from sure.
The shoes left me unimpressed on fast downhills. Even with a high-tech upper that seemed a good fit, I felt significant slop in the forefoot and had to fight to keep my ankles from rolling and stay on course.
In my first 5-mile test run, I rolled my ankles twice, once on each foot, during downhill sections, and while neither instance resulted in injury, both were way too close to sprained ankles for comfort.
