The Salomon Thundercross GTX trail shoe has a robust feel but a low weight. The upper is largely encased in a protective rand for excellent abrasion resistance leaving just the upper toe and forefoot area and the full height gusset behind the laces as plain fabric to allow the GORE-TEX waterproof lining to shift some of the moisture out from your foot and sock.
The padded tongue also sits between the GORE-TEX and your foot so only panel over your forefoot is reliably transporting moisture from inside. This is fine when the only moisture inside the shoe is from your own sweat, but if you submerge your foot on the trail, they are slow to dry out. The fit is excellent, with an overall close feel, supportive and secure heel cup and a toe box that allows me to wiggle my toes but without much room to spread them out.
Peter Macfalane’s verdict
The sole also has a notable even curve from front to back. These elements combine to give the Thundercross an excellent nimble feel for walking and running.- Very Nimble Feel
- General Grip
- Lacing System
- poor grip on hard, wet surfaces
| Quick specs | |
|---|---|
| Price: £160 Weight: 630g Materials & features: stack height: 31mm, ContaGrip outsole, synthetic upper: mesh panels with plastic overlay, GORE-TEX® waterproof membrane, Quicklace/Sensifit lacing Heel-to-toe drop: 4mm Lug depth: 5mm Sizes: UK 6.5 to 13.5 Women version: Yes URL: www.salomon.com |
The Quicklace lacing system is excellent, a single lace with an adjuster that takes a simple pull to tighten the shoe in and then the adjuster and loose lace slip into a pocket on the top of the tongue. The lace is very thin but in decades of using this system I’ve never broken one. The lace is attached to the Sensifit system which are plastic side panels incorporating the lace loops.
This means when tightening the lace you are pulling in the sides of the shoe in, not just straining when the lace hook is. It makes for a very secure fit. The outsole is grippy across most terrain and conditions when walking and running and I only found problems with it on wet and hard surfaces. The sole is thickly padded and has a little flex until the forefoot where it bends nicely when you put your weight on it.
The sole also has a notable even curve from front to back. These elements combine to give the Salomon Thundercross GTX an excellent nimble feel for walking and running.
The midsole while thick isn’t as soft as others in the review but I found no discomfort when swapping back to the Salomon Thundercross GTX and I think their harder feel was very suited to rougher rocky ground making them an excellent hillwalking shoe, although it is a little pricey.
Reviewed and tested by Peter MacFarlane
Peter is long time user of trail running shoes in the outdoors for activities ranging from long distance paths to walking the Munros. He has also been a sporadic trail runner over the years and used these test models to retune his running feet around his local trails in the Kilpatrick Hills.
Peter has a narrow heel and wide forefoot and the weights are taken from his own digital scales.
