For the last four months I have been running in a pair of Salomon XT Wings. To be honest with you I have had them for five months but it took me a month to pluck the courage up to wear them! Firstly because they are bright red (also available in black for the more discerning customer), secondly I was afraid of looking like the guy with “all the gear and no idea” and thirdly these things are built for speed and I needed an extra month to get some in my legs!

The Salomon XT Wings certainly have curb appeal and if left by the door you can almost feel them beckoning you like a dog to be taken for a run. The bright red colour, gusseted tongue and asymmetrical Quicklace System make them instantly recognizable as a Salomon shoe.

Out of the box the feel is great; its snug and the Quicklace system allows for accurate tension. A clever little design feature is that under the top of the tongue there is a small flap which you can tuck the end of the lace loop so that there is no flapping.

On Road Performance

On the road the XT Wings perform well for an off road shoe - if that makes sense. They are light weight, have a degree of pronation control and an Agile Chassis Skeleton that ensures smooth heel-to-toe transition.  Initially I found the cushioning to be a little rigid however after a couple of runs I found the EVA midsole to soften up and provide greater spring.

Off Road Performance

Off road the XT Wings make a perfect Spring & Summer trail shoe. Salomon’s versatile, Running Contragrip sole tames hard packed trails and provides grip when cornering. The Agile Chassis also reduced side-to-side movement of the foot allowing for quick changes of direction in moments of desperation! One other noticeable factor was the shoes ability to maintain your forward momentum even when you were running on uneven surfaces.

Personally I would like to see how the XT Wings fair during the Winter months. However from the soakings received at the recent Urbanathlon I can say that the drainage is excellent and they remained breathable.  However, I’m still yet to be convinced by the Contragrip performance on heavy wet trails.  
 Versatile, stylish and comfortable

If you were to write down a list of requirement from a trail shoe then the XT Wings would tick most of the boxes. Great support, light weight, grippy, bold styling, cushioned and breathable. They are quite expensive; Ransacker price of £72.00 but they are versatile and could be worn as walking shoes or leisure shoes, so value for money is not an issue. Personally I have yet to find a fault with the XT Wings but with the Winter Months (roll on HellRunner Up North) around the corner I’ am going to reserve my final judgment and give them a provisional 9/10.

Tags: fell running shoes, salomon running shoes, salomon xt wings, trail running shoes, xt wings