Click Here to view a wear report update after 400 miles of use!
My favorite hiking shoe of all time was the first version of the Salomon Crossmax. The shoe fit my feet perfectly, and aside from the subpar outsole, was everything I looked for in a lightweight hiking shoe. I put thousands of miles on a few pairs of the Crossmax during a three year period. In my search to find a replacement when Solomon churned out a terrible Crossmax 2, I tried the XA Pro 3D Ultra. From many blog posts and shoe reviews, it seemed that the 3D Ultra was as close as I was going to get in my search to replace the Crossmax. The overall feel of the shoe was somewhat similar, but it failed for me due to a few key reasons. First, the larger toe guard led to the toe box feeling too narrow and constricting. I’m not on the extreme with this like some, and think shoes like Altras are too sloppy and imprecise to hike in. Salomons are known for having a closer fit than many shoes, but I’ve always enjoyed the precision, these just felt like foot binding. If I went up a 1/2 size or full size the shoe felt sloppy in the heel and my feet would slip. This leads to point two. With the size required for my foot to feel comfortable, I’d have to draw the quicklace and sensifit as tight as it would go, causing the sensifit system to grind my arches raw. My third minor complaint was on the placement of the lace grommets. I don’t quite understand the logic behind placing the two anchor grommets on the same side of the shoe. With this configuration, and having to pull the laces tight to accommodate for the larger size, the fit never felt right for me. Sending those shoes back was one of the harder things I’ve had to do, as I knew I was venturing of into no mans land of shoe selection, leaving the comfort of the Crossmax far behind.
Support Trail to Peak by purchasing the Salomon XA Pro from Amazon at the links below:
Salomon Men’s XA Pro 3D
This year, Solomon came out with an update on their classic XA Pro 3D Ultra model. I was excited when I first saw the updates, because they included their new endofit technology. I have a pair of the Salomon Sense Mantras that I really love for trail running, and the endofit in those makes it feel like you’re wearing socks. After starting Tour du Mont Blanc in pair of Inov8s that failed miserably on my downhill walk to Les Chapieux, I picked up a pair of these new XA Pro 3Ds the following day in Courmayeur. I hadn’t planned on getting a pair, but in times of need, I stick to what feels best, and a brand that I’ve had history with. Another great piece of advice I’ve read is to stick with a brand that tests it’s products in a location similar to what you’ll be hiking in. Anyway, the addition of the endofit seemed to solve all of the gripes I had with the older version, and after a quick walk-a-round in the store, set out in a shiny new pair of blue, red, and yellow hikers.
Here is the breakdown review now that I’ve put a good 150 miles on these in a multitude of conditions.
Upper:
The majority of the upper on the XA Pro 3D remains unchanged from the 3D Ultra. This is not a lightweight shoe when compared to most trail runners, but compared to hiking shoes and boots, they’re pretty light. The structure is made up of well constructed overlays that Salomon calls SensiFit. I absolutely love this, as it allows me to dial in my ideal fit of a snug heel and midfoot, with a little wiggle room for the toes. The rest of the upper is made from a light breathable mesh. Having walked through days of mud and rain on Tour du Mont Blanc, I can tell you that these dry very quickly. The mesh has seemed a bit porous with the dusty trails here in the San Gabriels, but that’s the price you pay for breathability. The rubber toe cap is quite burly for a trail runner, but fits in quite nicely for a pair of lightweight hikers. The tongue is gusseted and does a good job of keeping out smaller pebbles that can find their way in to shoes. The greatest improvement on this new model is the endofit liner. The endofit is a thin neoprene liner that’s incorporated with the tongue. This means the shoe only has one contact point on your foot from your ankle to your toes, and does a great job at reducing potential friction points. I’ve always been a huge fan of the Salmon kevlar quicklace system, and with these shoes its no different. I wish they would ditch the same-side lace anchor attachment, but that’s just me being picky.
Midsole:
The midsole of the XA Pro 3D suits my preferences quite nicely. The heel drop is a little higher than I prefer, but the stability of the shoe more than makes up for it. Salomon employs the 3D chassis system on these, keeping the shoe torsionally rigid. This is something I pay no mind to when day hiking with only water and a light layer. With a heavier pack, rockier trails, and day after day of 20+ miles, I need a little more structure to keep my feet and legs from fatiguing too quickly. The XA Pro 3D does this perfectly without feeling to stiff or constricting, with dynamic support in the heel and arch areas. Those that like a cushier ride may find these a bit stiff, but I like the well balanced platform. The 3D Chassis provides ridged rock protection from the heel to the midfoot, and a dual density EVA provides the push through protection in the oval shape on the forefoot not covered by the 3D Chassis. I wish they used something a little more robust as I can feel the rocks after about 20 miles on the trail, but it’s hardly something to complain about.
Outsole: The newly designed outsole was clearly made for durability. I’ve put close to 150 miles on this pair and they show no sign of wear. This durability is great as most of my shoes blow out around 400 miles of wear, I’m thinking these should get closer to 600. The downside of the harder rubbers used for durability is that these shoes really lack for grip is certain conditions. I wore these for a hike up Half Dome, and really struggled for purchase on the granite section of the cables. It’s an easy sacrifice for me to make though, as most of my weekly hiking doesn’t require Stealth rubber.
In conclusion, this is another great shoe from Salomon. It’s a jack of all trades that doesn’t really specialize in anything, but can be used by just about anyone on any hike. As someone who has grown tired or lighter weight shoes blowing out and having outsoles disintegrate after 3 or 4 hikes, I’ll take a little bit of extra weight for the added durability. I listed three points above for reasons I didn’t like the previous version of this shoe. This new version did a great job of addressing points two and three by greatly improving the interior comfort and fit with the new endofit system. The toe box still feels a bit cramped due to the large toe guard, but this is mostly due to the toe box being low volume and not so much having a narrow last. I have yet to get a hotspot or blister, so that speaks volumes.
Support Trail to Peak by purchasing the Salomon XA Pro from Amazon at the links below:
Salomon Men’s XA Pro 3D