By Brian Metzler

Trying to develop a highly effective trail running shoe is a difficult task (and maybe impossible, given the wide and ever-changing range of trail surfaces out there), but Norda has come pretty darn close with the model it just dropped. The new Norda 005 was conceived with equal measures of innovation and performance, and, by utilizing materials that no shoe brand has ever used before, it has come up with a smooth-riding, do-everything super shoe for a wide range of trail surfaces.

What is Norda and where did it come from? Norda is a small and relatively new Canadian company founded in Montreal by Nick Martire and his wife, Willa, who set out to develop better trail running shoes than what they had found at running stores. When they launched their first shoe in 2021, the Norda 001 was the first to use bio-based Dyneema, a very strong and lightweight material made from waste from the timber and wood pulp industries. They used that material to make a lightweight, breathable, and very durable upper with sustainability in mind. 

Now they’ve taken two more big leaps forward with the 005 by using the first-of-its-kind Arnitel TPEE supercritical midsole material and becoming the first brand to incorporate Vibram’s new Megagrip Elite sticky rubber outsole compound. I’ve logged more than 75 miles in this shoe since early February, and I’d not only say that the Norda 005 is a contender for the best trail shoe of the year, but it already ranks among the best trail running shoes I’ve ever worn. (And just to be clear, I’ve run in several hundred different pairs of trail running shoes since 1999.)

What’s New: This is an entirely new shoe made with top-tier materials and some novel design constructs. Most notable among the materials are the ultralight, open mesh bio-based Dyneema upper, the hyper-responsive and shock-absorbing Arnitel TPEE midsole foam, and the Vibram Megagrip Elite outsole with 4mm directional outsole lugs. Each of those materials is a game-changer on its own, but putting all three in one shoe is a moonshot when it comes to innovation and performance.

Fit/Feel/Ride: The Norda 005 fits true to size with plenty of wiggle-room in the toe box and a medium-volume interior. I have narrow feet and had to make sure it was snugly laced up to run on technical terrain, but the shoe’s fit-lock system – which includes a perforated micro-suede gusseted tongue that molds to the foot for comfort and heat management, along with a heel collar designed with pods for increased foot lockdown and debris prevention – provided an ideal interface to keep my feet secure inside the shoes and helped avoid the dreaded “toe bang” problem when hitting rocks straight-on. The interior feels comfortable and secure with a good amount of softness under foot, but the above-average fit and feel are secondary to the plush (and competent) ride this shoe serves up on all types of trail surfaces.

The soft and resilient Arnitel TPEE midsole foam makes every stride in the 005 an absolute pleasure. Not only is it extremely shock-absorbing on impact with the ground, but it’s also very accommodating as your foot rolls through the gait cycle and then impressively energetic as you lift off and begin a new stride. It’s not bouncy like some super shoes made for the roads, but instead it’s smooth, it’s stable, and sprightly. And the subtle security of the new Vibram sticky rubber outsole is the glue that ties it all together.

Why It’s Great: The Norda 005 is great because it does almost everything exceptionally well on a wide variety of terrain surfaces. What does that mean? It means that I’d grade an A or A- for all of the things that matter most for a trail shoe – cushion, comfort, traction, propulsion, and protection – on both smooth dirt routes and rocky trails, as well as just about everything in between. If you’ve been trail running for a while or even if you’re just starting out, you know that wearing a shoe that can conquer every type of terrain with ease is very rare. It’s light and agile enough to run fast in short races, and it serves up great long-haul comfort for multi-hour adventure runs and ultra-distance races. Plus, it’s designed to put your feet a little lower to the ground than many contemporary max-cushioned shoes, so the proprioceptive feel for the trail surface is really good. That gave me confidence and control to run wild on technical surfaces.

Specs

Weight: 6.2 oz. (women’s size 8), 7.9 oz. (men’s size 9)

Heel-Toe Offset: 7mm; 28.5mm (heel), 21.5mm (forefoot)

Why You’ll Love It: The Arnitel midsole’s combination of softness, responsiveness, and stability is the best I’ve ever experienced in a trail running shoe. The foam has shown an 80% energy return rate in a laboratory setting, but it doesn’t wash out or bottom out on the trails like some Peba-based foams do in some trail running super shoes. The 005 puts a spring in your step, but not one that is bouncy and unmanageable on trails scattered with rocks and pebbles. Before I ran in it, I figured I might feel pointy rocks poking through the bottom of the midsole, but I found in my wear-testing that the outsole and midsole did a great job at keeping rocks and roots at bay.  

Pro: The Vibram Megagrip Elite outsole rubber is said to be 15% tackier than standard Megagrip outsoles and is also considerably lighter. The 4mm lugs on the 005 are sleek enough to feel good on smooth terrain, but stout enough to really grip on jagged, angular rocks, boulders, roots, and wooden stair steps. Several Norda athletes, including Jason Schlarb, began wear-testing the new rubber compound last spring on a different prototype and reported that it was as adhesive as a rock climbing rubber and it gave them great confidence while running aggressively on technical terrain. I found it to be reliably sticky on the rocky terrain where I really needed it to be, but not a burden on the mellower surfaces where I didn’t.

Con: This is one of those shoes where it’s hard to find negative points to highlight. I think it could use a tad more heel support in the upper and I’d prefer deeper lugs for running on wet, muddy trails, but other than that it’s a well-rounded shoe. A lot of runners will think the $325 price tag is pretty outlandish – and I don’t disagree! – but compared to other innovative, high-tech trail shoes (namely anything made by Speedland or the forthcoming Nike Ultrafly 2) the Norda 005 definitely seems like it’s worthy of the lofty investment.