40 Miles in the Norda 005

I've had this shoe for one week and put 40 miles in...these are my thoughts on this $325 shoe.

Light as a feather.

That was my first impression holding the Norda 005 when I got the call that it was ready in the store.

For months and months, this shoe has been hyped from reviewers, from Norda athletes like Jason Schlarb, Matt Seidel at JFK 50k, and been the talk around the trail world. On March 13th, it released to the world for $325.

If you’re not familiar with the Canadian trail brand, Norda, consider this your elevator pitch on the way up the mountain. Norda has crafted 4 different trail shoe offerings, all boasting insane durability, great accommodating fit, a breadth of unique colors, a durable midsole, and a high price tag. Norda has created a massive cult following, and I’m proud to say I’ve been a fan for a few years now.

After snagging my pair last week, I’ve logged just about 40 miles in the shoe in a variety of efforts. This is by no means a standard review, it’s more-so a checkin. My thoughts, feelings and informal journal of how this shoe has been for me the past week. I am just an average runner, not fast, no expertise, just a fan of going for long distances and talking about gear — so those are my credentials.

Let’s get into it!

Walking Around in the Shoe

Out of the box, I could instantly understand the months Norda spent marketing this shoe as the lightest trail shoe ever created. It truly is a featherweight — it’s insane. I love to press into the foam to get a sense of the density and compound that’s going to be under my foot for hours at a time. First press into the midsole, I got a familiar feeling (more on this in a bit).

I slipped my foot into the shoes, immediately noticing the accommodating fit. Now, this is nothing new to Norda. Norda’s have always leaned on the wider side which I am so thankful for. My foot falls between a standard and a wide, with a couple of rogue pinky toes that love a roomy toe box. I found the 005 to have a wider toe box than the 001 — slightly, finding a lot of fit similarities with the 002 width. However, in a pair of 002s I go full size up (from my usual 12 to a 13). In the 005, I went up a half size to 12.5 which was perfect.

With a wide fit, plenty of room in the midfoot and toe box, I gave a quick stroll through the shop. What felt light in my hands, felt even lighter on foot. Like I was walking around in socks. The foam was soft, but not sink into a cloud soft. Enough give, but plenty of stability. It felt awesome. The last thing I noticed and that worried me was the heel. In the 001s I have been plagued by cuts and blisters from the minimal heel padding. The 005 features a similar design, but it’s ultimately much softer. Only running in the shoe would be able to tell me how the heel would do.

My 40 Miles

Throughout the past week, across three runs, I’ve logged close to 40 miles in the Norda 005s. Here are my runs and what I experienced in the shoe on each cruise!

Run 1 — Short and Sweet Miles on a Flat Cruiser Trail | 6 Miles

First run! Noticeable softness in the foam as compared to the 001…like wayyyyyy softer. This foam is what I dreamed of paired with the fit of a Norda shoe that I didn’t quite get in the 001. No heel rubbing. No hotspots of any kind. Responsive feel, pretty standard pace for me around high 8s.

Run 2 — Moderate Trail Hills, Under 1000ft of Gain | 10 Miles

Wanted to add elevation into the mix. Some rolling hills that equated to close to 1000ft of gain over 10 miles. Included a mix of terrain: cruiser flat trail to uphill rolling muddy dirt trail to a rolling gravel hill section, transitioning to country asphalt roads, through neighborhoods with hills, and then a downhill section back to home. Noticed a tiny bit of rubbing in my right heel, loosened the shoe and the rubbing went away. Didn’t result in a blister at all. No other hotspots, feet felt awesome after the run — still fresh and lively.

Run 3 — Long Run Flat Cruiser Trail | 20 Miles

My latest run from this past Sunday. I’d had an easy run, a moderate hill climb, and now I just wanted a long day on the trail. Hardly any vert, about 500 ft total across 20 miles, but I wanted to see what the shoe would feel like through repetitive motion for hours and hours (about 3.5 to be exact).

The foam was built and made for long efforts, I noticed that deep into my run. Zero issues there. Fit wise, zero hotspots and no blisters…except for the right heel. Dangit! I even prepped some moleskin on the back of the heel and a thicker Satisfy merino sock. I believe the problem was that the moleskin fell down my heel once my feet started to sweat. If it would have stayed in place, like my left foot, I would have been fine. Yes, it’s annoying that I have to take a precaution for this heel rubbing to not happen, but I’ve also experienced this with others shoes like the HOKA Tecton x 3. I can understand that Norda was pursuing “the lightest trail shoe” made, but this shoe would be perfect with the heel padding of the 002. Oh well, can’t have a perfect thing I guess.

Overall, heel rubbing aside (and honestly it wasn’t bad — a very tiny blister that’s already healed up), the shoe was brilliant over 20 miles.

The Foam Feels…Familiar

I can’t take credit for the knowledge and comparison I’m about to put here…but I will say this…when I pressed into the foam, I experienced a familiar feeling. I thought to myself, I know this foam.

Later that day, I read the Believe in the Run review of the Norda 005 and I was hit with this nugget of gold:

“I’ll be real, the midsole feel is nearly identical to the Lightstrike Pro midsole in the Adidas Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra (minus the aggressive rocker). I kept coming back to this in my mind, and then I found out that both midsoles are made in the same factory, and– oh yeah– Lightstrike Pro is also a TPEE, so … you can probably connect the dots.”

Robbe | Believe in The Run - Norda 005 Review

And the dots connected for me. A few months back I snagged a pair of the Adidas Evo SL, which features a full slab of the brilliant Lightstrike Pro. Back to the shop, pressing my fingers into the foam, I recognized that Lightstrike Pro feeling. Made in the same factory, I’ve been basically treating this foam as Lightstrike Pro when I speak about it with friends. This is a very very good thing. It’s durable, it’s soft, it’s responsive. The Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra is a shoe that didn’t work for me because of the narrow midfoot, which was so disappointing because of how good the foam and rocker profile felt. Think of the Norda 005 as the Speed Ultra with less rocker and a more accommodating fit.

How it Compares with the 001 & 002

I created this graphical chart to hopefully help explain some of the differences I’ve noticed. This is my personal opinion only. For instance, many might see the 005 as a race day “super shoe,” but to me it’s the perfect everyday shoe that I would personally choose over the 001.

What I Would Use it For

100% I have no issues saying that I would use this shoe for everything. The Vibram outsole is solid, tried and true, and ready to tackle technical terrain. The grip is tacky and sticky and can hold its own. The foam is soft and responsive, ready for long hours on the trail.

Unlike some of the other carbon-plated trail shoe options out there, where I wouldn’t want to continually hammer down on a carbon plate everyday, the Norda 005 is a super shoe that can be used for daily miles. Some might disagree with me, and that’s ok. I personally love this shoe for everything, and so I continually grab it regardless of my type of run. Ticks all of the boxes for me!

Is It Worth $325?

Yes.

I’ve read the reddit threads, the comments, and so forth about many opinions about the steep pricing of Nordas. It’s a tired opinion in my perspective, and it just requires some simple math to understand why this shoe has a high price tag and why it’s ok that it does.

Durability and longevity.

You’re going to get more miles out of this shoe than it’s closest competitors. The same goes for all Norda shoes. I mean come on, Max Jolliffe has a pair of Norda 001s with over 1500 miles. Do the math on that! A standard pair of trail shoes should last you about 350-450 miles, give or take. Let’s say even 500 miles to play into this. A standard pair of trail running shoes will run you anywhere from $140-$160.

So, let’s take 500 miles at $140. To get 1500 miles, your total is going to be as follows:

Standard Trail Shoe: $420 (1500 miles/500 miles = 3 x $140)

Norda 001: $300 (1500 miles)

So by paying a higher price tag upfront, you have the potential to save $120 over time. Now, the jury is undecided when it comes to the durability and longevity of the 005. So, I can’t provide a mathematical comparison like I can with the 001 as that shoe has been out for years and has seen many many athletes hit 1000’s of miles in pairs.

What I can go by is the Norda way. The build quality, attention to details, and value of creating durable and long lasting trail products.

In the current trail world where super trail shoes are running you $220 (Agravic Speed Ultra) - $250 (Hoka Tecton x3 and many others), this shoe isn’t wildly more expensive than some of it’s closet competitors. Between fit, foam and function, I am understanding of the benefits I’ll reap by dishing out some more cash upfront for a longer lasting trail super shoe.

In my book…worth it!

Closing

This is all I got for now. Close to 40 miles in, I’m a big fan of this shoe. While it’s not perfect, it checks a lot of boxes for me.

With my 50k race approaching in less than 3 months now, the Norda 005 has hit the top of my list of contenders for race day shoe. I just have to figure out how to make the heel blister proof…

Thanks for checking out my experience with the brand new Norda 005 trail shoe! If you’ve tried it, have questions or thoughts, please drop comments and let’s chat!

Until next time,

Ryan from Into the Wild