Mountain shoes
Product 2018
Man
This brand new trail running shoe from Salomon, barely in the shop, is already a best seller. The pre-orders have been so many they have had to launch another production series. What’s the story morning glory!? Why the madness? Why the passion around the team and their brand ? What’s the story with S/Lab Ultra? We tried to understand the mania surrounding these shoes. Here are our first impressions.
First of all the this product’s filial is not Kilian Jornet but the other giant of trail running, François D’Haene, The genius for this S/Lab product comes from his GR20 record in Corsica. For two and a half years François and the designers at Salomon have been working on this new shoe that is different from the S/Lab Sense 6.
With the first strides in the Ultra you immediate feel the presence of the cushioning.
François D’Haene has been able to create a shoe that takes into account the degradation of an ultra-runner’s stride. What does that mean? After a certain amount of kilometers fatigue kicks in and reduces your stride and the foot strike becomes less aerial moving from forefoot strike to a heel strike. So, therefore heel cushioning becomes primordial. François, as well as being world ultra trail running champion, is also a physiotherapist. He knows what he is talking about, what the body solicits under long term effort. So he wanted to produce an answer to the progression of foot strikes during an ultra.
The cushioning is well dosed, just enough to relieve the joints on flat rolling terrain or technical downhill. Despite the filtration you don’t lose any energy, the shoe rebounds and is very stable laterally. At the forefoot, under the metatarsus, there is barely any cushioning. There is plenty of substance, you don’t feel stones underfoot, you can attack and run in complete serenity.
They have an 8mm drop; 26mm rear, 18mm front. The shoe feels a bit high but that’s fine. We also discovered a kind of “academic” side for long distance running. François wanted a shoe that aided running uphill with this drop, and you sure do notice it once in the action, it is definitely more comfortable than a mini drop.
We really liked the quality of the stride that this shoe gives you, it’s reassuring and you soon forget what’s on your feet. Cushioning and rebound, the two values that have been very intelligently combined.
When we opened the box we were taken aback by the 4 additions on the shoe that enable better division of the lacing pressure. These 4 straps remind us a little of New Balance’s old models. If aesthetically they aren’t that attractive on the Salomon, the foot envelopment is perfect. There are no pressure points and this system also adds a certain protection, especially near the front. The question is; could mud, sand, small stones get trapped between these straps and the shoes? At the back the answer is yes; small spaces are created during flexing, at the front no; the tension of the laces is such that the straps remain flat against the shoe.
The Salomon Quicklace® is ultra-powerful and fast. The laces ensure tight lacing right up to the front of the foot. The plastic buckle and extra lacing store neatly in the especially designed little pocket. A small loop on the top aids the operation and also helps putting the shoe on.
The stone guard is very well designed for several reasons : it doesn’t provoke inertia at the front of the shoe thanks to its lightness, and it has been integrated into the design of the Ultra, composed of bi-density material that respects the suppleness of the exterior of the shoe.
The sole has versatile lugs that don’t hold onto mud. We couldn’t test them on wet limestone or extra muddy terrain. In the uphill the grip is good and you don’t feel it on easy running terrain. The torsional rigidity is great and well dosed, you can stay serene crossing slopes where the combination of foothold and proprioception is respected.
Weighing in at 285g for size 42 is decent. You don’t have a feeling of heaviness.
We couldn’t help but have a feeling it has an old school look: the color graduation, an allure that we feel doesn’t reflect the quality of these ultra-running shoes.
A very well designed shoe, entirely turned towards performance for long distance running. A MUST for races. A product that logically wins our Test4outside FIRST Award. Just the price left: 180 euros, without doubt the price of excellence.
18 mm8 mm 
We used this equipment over a long period of time
These are our thoughts after intensive use:
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