Gear Review: Norda 001
These are the best trail shoes I’ve ever run in, and I’m not going to buy another pair. Both of those are true, and the reason is a squeak.
I’ve had the Norda 001 for a year and a half and put about 100 miles on it, mostly mountain trails: tight singletrack three feet wide, roots everywhere, slick wet patches, five miles at a time. They’ve done my city running too. For almost all of that I’ve loved them. Here’s what makes them so good, the defect that keeps me from buying them again, and whether you should still get a pair.
Why Norda
I have unusually wide feet, and finding a trail shoe that actually fits them is the hard part. I was in Brooks before this. Two problems with those: I’d blow them out fast running on a mix of concrete and trail, and the lateral stability was poor. That last one matters more than it sounds. On trail I’m constantly shifting my weight and changing direction, cutting around roots, and a shoe with weak lateral stability leaves you feeling disconnected from the ground and a little unsure of your footing when you’re moving fast.
The Norda fixed both. The forefoot is actually wide, and the toe box lets my toes spread out instead of cramming them together. It holds my foot laterally so I stay connected to the trail, reactive to what’s under me, and safe when I’m skipping over roots and changing direction quickly. That’s exactly what I want out of a trail shoe, and it’s the hardest thing to find in one that’s also this light.
The Fit and the Ride
The foam is the other thing that sold me. It’s a great base, cushy enough for long miles, and after a year and a half it has stayed cushy. That’s not nothing, plenty of shoes pack out and go flat after a few hundred miles. These haven’t, and they carry my city running just as well as the trails.
The upper is bio-based Dyneema, and it gives you light water resistance. Norda is upfront that it’s water-resistant, not waterproof, because the Dyneema is woven and not sealed. In practice that’s exactly what I want. I can cross a shallow river or splash through a puddle without soaking my feet. I actually love a little splash in the mud, and knowing I won’t get too wet doing it makes me enjoy the run more, not less.
The tread is a Vibram Megagrip Litebase outsole with 5mm lugs, and it grips. Wet roots, loose dirt, the slick patches that usually make me tentative, it holds through all of it. The shoe is also genuinely light, about 268 grams, with a 5mm drop. Light, grippy, cushy, and wide is a hard combination to find in one shoe, and the Norda pulls it off.
How They’ve Held Up
Fantastic. After 100 miles across 18 months of trails and pavement, they’re basically brand new. The foam is still there, the outsole has barely worn, nothing is coming apart. Mine are the White Gum colorway, an off-white shoe, and even running them through mud regularly they’ve stayed clean and barely show dirt. That durability is Norda’s whole argument for the price, and on my pair it has held up completely.
For contrast, this is the exact thing my Brooks couldn’t do. I’d wear through a pair fast on mixed terrain. The Norda has taken far more abuse and looks like I bought it last month.
The Squeak
Here is the one thing that drives me up the wall.
One of my shoes squeaks when I run. Not a little chirp, it’s loud, and I can feel the sole shift a bit under my foot with each step, which is off-putting on its own. It only starts once the shoe heats up and gets a little sweaty, some interaction in the sole that catches air and squeaks it back out. And it only happens on one foot, which is what tells me it’s a manufacturing defect in that single shoe rather than something about the design.
I’ve tried everything. Different socks, different lacing, foot powder, a different insole. It always comes back. That was the unexpected part, because I fully expected one of those fixes to solve it.
It’s annoying enough that it’s changed how I use the shoe. I don’t run with other people in them, because the squeak is loud enough that they’d hear it the whole way, and I don’t want to be that guy. So a shoe I otherwise love has quietly become my solo-run shoe.
I reached out to Norda support to sort it out. They stopped responding, and I’ve been stuck with it. That’s the part that actually soured me, more than the squeak itself.
One more thing worth knowing if you’re shopping: when I went looking, this isn’t a known problem. I searched Reddit, iRunFar, Believe in the Run, Road Trail Run, YouTube, and a stack of owner reviews, and found essentially no one else reporting a squeak. One multi-tester review is even titled “Peace and Silence!” and praises how quiet the outsole is. So I’m confident my pair is a one-off bad unit, not something wrong with the 001 in general.
001 vs 001A
If you’re buying new today, you’re getting the 001A, the current version. Mine is the original 001. Here’s how they line up.
| Spec | Norda 001 (mine) | Norda 001A (current) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $285 | $295 |
| Weight (per shoe, men’s) | ~268g / 9.45oz | ~268g / 9.45oz |
| Stack height | 26mm heel / 21mm forefoot | 26mm heel / 21mm forefoot |
| Drop | 5mm | 5mm |
| Outsole | Vibram Megagrip Litebase, 5mm lugs | Same |
| Upper | Bio-based Dyneema (woven) | Same |
| Midsole | EVA-based | Arnitel TPEE (claimed +30% rebound, lighter) |
| Water resistance | Water-resistant, not waterproof | Same (separate G+ variant is waterproof) |
The big change is the midsole. The 001A swaps in an Arnitel TPEE foam that Norda says returns about 30% more energy and shaves a little weight. Everything I loved, the wide fit, the Dyneema upper, the Vibram outsole, the 5mm drop, carries straight over. So the review holds for the current shoe, you’re just getting a bouncier midsole than mine.
The Verdict
Rating: 5/5. Judged on how it fits, grips, cushions, and holds up, the Norda 001 is the best trail shoe I’ve owned, and I keep reaching for it even with the squeak, because everything else about it is that good. The shoe is a 5.
I’m still not buying another pair. My pair squeaks, Norda support went dark on me, and I can’t justify spending $285 hoping the next one comes out quiet. That’s a me-and-my-unit problem, not a knock on the shoe, but it’s real and it’s why these are my last Nordas.
What I loved:
- The best wide-foot fit I’ve found, with a toe box that lets my toes spread out.
- Strong lateral stability, so I stay connected to the trail and confident changing direction fast.
- Foam that’s stayed cushy for a year and a half across trail and city miles.
- Light water resistance that’s perfect for river crossings and mud without being a swampy waterproof boot.
- Vibram outsole that grips wet roots and loose dirt.
- Genuinely durable. 100 miles in and they look brand new.
The gripe:
- One shoe squeaks loudly once it warms up, I can feel the sole shift underfoot, nothing I tried fixed it, and support stopped responding. On my pair, it’s the one thing standing between a shoe I’d rebuy forever and one I won’t buy again.
Who Should Buy
Buy the Norda 001A if you have wide feet and burn through trail shoes. This is the fit and durability I’d been chasing for years, and nothing else I’ve tried holds a foot this well while staying this light. Just buy it from REI or another retailer with an easy return policy. The squeak I got is rare, but so is any manufacturing defect until it’s yours, and the return counter is your insurance. Run them warm and sweaty on a short loop early, and if one foot squeaks or the sidewall starts unglueing (another issue a few owners flag), send them back for a fresh pair.
Skip them if you have narrow feet, since owners with low-volume feet report poor lockdown, or if you want a shoe you can beat up out of the box. The 001 takes a long break-in, roughly 75 to 100 miles, before it fully comes into its own.
FAQ
Is the Norda 001 good for wide feet?
Yes, it's the best-fitting shoe I've found for wide feet. The forefoot is genuinely wide and the toe box lets your toes spread out instead of getting pinched, which is rare in a trail shoe this light. I came from Brooks and never want to go back. If your feet are narrow, though, other reviewers report poor lockdown, so this cuts both ways.
Is the Norda 001 waterproof?
No. Norda's own FAQ says the upper is water-resistant, not waterproof, because the bio-based Dyneema is woven and not sealed. In practice that's been perfect for me: I can splash through mud and cross shallow rivers without soaking my feet, but it's not a waterproof bootie and it's not trying to be. If you want fully waterproof, Norda sells a separate 001A G+ variant rated to 10,000mm.
How long do Norda 001 shoes last?
Mine are basically brand new after 100 miles and a year and a half of mountain trails plus city running. The foam has stayed cushy the whole time and the Vibram outsole shows almost no wear. Norda builds these to go 300+ miles, and the durability is the whole pitch behind the $285 price. The tradeoff other owners note is a long break-in, roughly 75 to 100 miles before the shoe fully softens up.
Why does my Norda 001 squeak?
One of mine squeaks loudly once it heats up and gets sweaty, and I can feel the sole shifting slightly underfoot when it does it. It only happens on one foot, which points to a manufacturing defect in that single shoe rather than a design flaw. I tried different socks, different lacing, foot powder, and a different insole, and it always comes back. When I searched forums and reviews I found essentially no one else reporting it, so if yours squeaks, treat it as a bad unit and return it.
Norda 001 vs 001A: what's the difference?
The 001 is the original. The 001A is the current version, $295 instead of $285, with a new Arnitel TPEE midsole that Norda claims adds about 30% more rebound and drops a little weight. The upper (bio-based Dyneema), the Vibram Megagrip Litebase outsole, the 5mm drop, and the wide fit carry over. If you're buying new today you'll get the 001A. My review is of the original 001, and the fit and grip I loved are the same.
Is the Norda 001 worth $285?
For wide-footed trail runners who blow through shoes, yes. It's a lot of money, but I've put 100 miles on mine over 18 months and they look and feel almost new, where my old Brooks would have been dead twice over by now. The fit, grip, and durability earn the price. Buy from a retailer with easy returns so you can send them back if you get a squeaky or unglued unit.