After five 14er’s and close to 150 miles, I feel confident in saying that the Salomon Sense Ultra is by far the best trail shoe I have ever worn. The Sense Ultra will be on my feet as I take on my third Leadville 100 come August 18, 2018. 

Their Premium Wet Traction Contagrip worked amazingly well getting across the streams and wet rocks that lead up through tree line, and the approach to the summit of Mount Missouri across its boulder and scree fields, too.

The Endofit, internal fit sleeve coupled with Salomon’s Quicklace system kept my foot snug and secure for over 20 miles up and down Mt. Massive and Elbert.  The built in Stash feature in the tongue allows you to tuck away your laces so you don’t have to worry about fussing with your shoes mid run as you’re bombing down from 14,000’.  

Pros:

The Sense Ultra has an amazingly durable outsole built for tackling any and all surfaces you might encounter in the high county.  The Quicklace system was a huge plus for me as I typically have to stop and retie my shoes multiple times during long runs and races.

Cons:

With a hefty price tag of $180, I’ve always opted for more affordable options, but you definitely get what you pay for. I’ve been know to rip lugs off shoes right out of the box to 14,000’ but the Salomon Sense Ultra has been taking to the limits, and for the most part, is still intact as they were the day I took them out of the box. The only bummer yet slightly expected in the mountains is that I’ve already got two small holes on the top of the toe box.  

Where:

150 mountain miles to the summits of Mt Massive, Mt Elbet x’s 2, Mt Sherman and Mt Missouri. 

Based in Leadville, Colorado, Richard Airey is an Ultra Marathoner, owner of BlackSheep Endurance Coaching and a Strength & Conditioning Coach.  Rich has two under 25 hour finishes at the Leadville 100, 7th in 2014, 14th in 2017 and is currently preparing for number three.  Born in New Jersey, Rich has spent most of his adult life traveling around the country seeking out the best coaches to hone his craft in order to optimize his athletes performance.  Rich is a certified V.O2 coach, CrossFit Level 1, CrossFit Weightlifting, USA Weightlifting Level 1. He has coached multiple high school All-Americans, NCAA & Olympic Trials qualifiers and 100 mile finishers around the country.