NNormal

Right now I am an ‘advocate’ for and receive running shoes from NNormal, the brain-child of Kilian Jornet. Their shoes are very durable. I’ll get into details below, but a thru-hiking friend wore one pair of the Tomir 2 for the entire Arizona Trail. That’s 800 miles in one pair of shoes. Literally unheard of durability. It’s pretty cool to see a company working on making durability a priority, rather than creating more shoes. More durable shoes means less end up in the landfill! Something every single consumer goods company should be doing.

Kjerag 01

The Kjerag is the flagship shoe for Nnormal. The first shoe they put out. It’s incredible lightweight and durable. It’s great for dry trails and rock scrambling. The short lugs make them not so great on soft ground, like tundra or mud. I’ve slipped many a time down steep slopes, but the Kjerag Brut might solve this which I’ll mention below. The shoe feels very nimble. I have pretty delicate feet so I can’t wear these for super long runs or hikes, my Grandma feet need a little more support, but folks LOVE this shoe especially for shorter distance races (thinking 50k or less).

Tomir 02

This is the new version of the first Tomir with more cushion and more stability. I have found these are not so great off-trail and on steep downhills, my foot moves around a bit too much in them to be comfortable, but other folks love them. I’d recommend these to people doing long on-trail thru-hikes or 100mile races. These are the shoe that my friend wore on the AZT and loved them!

Kboix 1

I don’t believe in the one-quiver running shoe, but this could be it. One outsole and three different insoles depending on what training you’re doing that day. 3 shoes in 1?! I think it’s an incredibly innovative design. The shoe, for me, has the out of the box comfort of an Altra which I love. It’s quite roomy and I have yet to test it on dry, summer ground and steep, technical terrain. But if you want versatility, this is your shoe!

Tomir Boot

I love this shoe! There’s a waterproof and a non-waterproof one. I’ve only tried the waterproof and it’s awesome for snowy runs or long hikes. I’m about to test it out on a backpacking trip in the Grand Canyon so I’ll report back. I’ve never really worn a mid-top shoe but the added security really makes my foot feel secure in it, much more than the low-rise version. And the waterproof-ing keeps your feet clean in desert sand which is definitely a new thing for me, hahaha. I’ve also put crampons on these and they seem to do quite well.

Kjerag Brut

The new kids on the block! The Brut looks awesome and basically resolves the terrain issues of the original Kjerag with much deeper lugs. Really excited to try these.

Sizing: I go with my standard shoe size. The same size I wear in Altra and Hoka. At first I tried smaller sizes but realized my standard shoe size in all the models is what fits the bill, or the foot. They all have a slightly different feel which to me is appropriate to what they’re used for. My only complaint is that I wish the Tomir 2 felt more secure but maybe someday that will be changed! Remember, EVERYONE’S FEET ARE DIFFERENT and they’re different at different points in your life. Right now I am trying to manage arthritis in my forefoot and wear drastically different shoes depending on the day and how I’m feeling! Tinker with your body and with your shoes. We’re all works in progress.