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#THEBESTGRIPONTHEPLANET
Durable and breathable sandwich mesh material reinforced with strong kevlar fibers.
Famous VJ grip with 100% Butyl rubber featuring wide flat 4mm grips for a smooth ride on all surfaces
Rubber caps and overlays protect your feet from the hostile environment
Aggressive lugs and 100% Butyl rubber for exceptional grip on all terrain.
Upper is a super tough custom kevlar and polyester weave which provides extraordinary protection and durability. Fitlock and Strategic overlays secure your feet to the shoe for stability
Cushioning units in the front and heel, full length rock plate, and torsion bars all work together for the best protection and stability
Superb for Obstacle Course Racing, SwimRun, Sky Running and VK's. Grip, feel, and durability for all weather events
Made from breathable sandwich mesh reinforced with strong kevlar fibers provide protection, durability and stability.
Our most aggressive, deep lugs give you the best grip in the worst conditions. Lower profile midsole for exceptional terrain feel.
Women's shown here, Men's available on product page
The uppers have a water repellant membrane to protect your feet even in the harshest weather.
Custom rubber compound designed for the cold. Aggressive lugs for gip. Twenty (20) carbon-carbide star shaped studs. All combine for maximum grip on all surfaces.
You get what you pay for, grip on icy surfaces with the comfort and durability you get with their other shoes. I have used them all winter and have had no issues navigating icy, winding, sloped trails. I wear a 12 with the Maxx which fits me perfectly, the Xeros in 12 is a little snug around toes especially with warmer socks so I would recommend going half a size up!
Since I was not planning on going to the gym for the winter due to COVID, I began to search for a winter trail running shoe and came across VJ's XERO 5 shoe for my winter running in New Hampshire. I emailed Matt w/ my pre-purchase questions about sizing as I use the Speedcross 5 shoes (I wear 9 size) during the OCR racing season. Matt was great in getting back to me and answering my questions.
So, went ahead and purchased the XERO 5 shoes in a size 9 in January, and they fit perfectly, even with replacing the original inserts w/ a high arch insert.
I wanted to give my review after several runs which I have done upwards of 30miles so far in all sorts of winter trail running conditions.
These shoes are incredible for winter trail running!!! I have taken them out on frozen dirt w/ some patches of snow to running in a snow storm, to running in several inches of soft fluffy snow to the hard, packed down snow/ice trails with some sections being all ice.
These shoes grip extremely well. These shoes really shine when you hit the long ice patches and you are able to keep traction, thanks to the metal studs.
These shoes allow me to get out in pretty much any kind of winter trail with amazing grip.
Now that we are heading into March, we still have snow on the ground, but I know muddy conditions will be coming and I'll be bringing the XERO 5s out then too!
If you plan on running the winter trails to get yourself ready for the summer season, get these shoes! I am very thankful not to be running on a treadmill and instead, out on the trails w/ these shoes!
For starters, these are incredibly comfortable. The lower profile makes them feel like they are part of my feet. But the best part? The grip is INSANE. I live in central New York and am able to hit snowy trails with such ease. Even the crunchy, icy patches are no match for these. They make me wish the trails were snowy all year.
I ran an extremely muddy Spartan course, and the iRocks were phenomenal. The grip was reliable, the lugs helped propel me through the bogs and they helped me onto the podium.
While I love the VJ XTRM, I didn’t love that after about 10km, pounding the ground started to pound back just enough to nag my feet, so I tried the MAXx hoping for a comfier ride on my longer runs and it delivered! The only negative point is that my one shoe came with a broken lace, but that’s hardly an impossible fix or downfall of the shoe itself.
I've owned 3 pairs of the VJ Sport IRocks and love them. These shoes have the added traction of carbide spikes for any icy conditions. They also fit me better. If I could get the fit of the Xero 5 with the sole of the IRocks I would buy them in a hearbeat for my non-icy running...
Ran my fastest 5k and placed 16th overall and 4th in age group! Shoes felt amazing!
I have wide but short foot feet and wear a solid 8 1/2 in almost every shoe. 8 1/2 made my heel slip even with heel lock lacing, so exchanging for a smaller size- hopefully it does the trick!
got my shoes super quick and the Xero 5 were amazing. They tend to last a really long time and they have great grip. If you live somewhere cold and icy, these shoes allow you to run all year long.
I put the "best grip on the planet" statement to the test. Ran on snowy, slick road today and had no problems. Never felt I was going to fall once.
The winter conditions in my area are very inconsistent, usually in a cycle of 'no snow', then 'several inches of snow', then 'melting/freezing' and back to nothing at all. I have run in these shoes twice already. The fit is good. Depending on the make/model of the running shoe I am either 8.5 or 9. I went with 8.5. Out in the world, my footing feels secure and confident on loose snow, packed snow, and 'white ice' (very packed snow+ice). When transitioning to hard packed limestone trail the grip is still good. Obviously on a paved surface, there is a lot of click-clack from the spikes, but it doesn't feel slippery. So far, I am very happy with these and they are fulfilling the purpose I intended for them.
It finally snowed in the VA area. I get to try my shoes after I bought them a while ago. (months) I ran with them in the trails as advertised they in fact help you grip icy and sloshy conditions on the trail. The people I ran passed were amaze how I ran normally without being careful all of them were wearing mid-shoes and too heavy. I ran smoothly without any issues. It's an amazing pair of shoes that I only bring out in snowy/sleet/ice conditions.
These shoes are light and quick yet have lots of amazing metal studs which stay sharp and grip on ice really well. If you live in a region that has lots of ice, but want to run all winter long... these are a must-have
OCR / Endurance Athlete
Simply the Best!
This is my all-time favorite shoe. I've used this shoe to win Trail Running races, Spartan races and set FKTs. It's grip, lightweight and groundfeel is unmatched.
The fit is "performance", meaning when you are shredding a technical downhill, your foot won't move around at all. If you like a bit bigger toe box, either size up, or look at the MAXx.
I've run in every brand of shoe and this one out performs them in nearly every scenario.
OCR Athlete
EVERYONE gets hooked!
I have introduced so many friends and fellow athletes to these shoes. Whether they're trail runners, obstacle racers, Skyrunners, you name it, once people own a pair of VJ's they legitimately never go back. They have a snug fit and great ground feel, but are hearty enough to sustain technical rocky terrain. They're longevity is incredible, and of course the grip is unparalleled! I wear the MaxX for my long days, the XTRM for obstacle races, the Speeds on the road or in the gym, and the iRock for the muddiest days. My Xero's get worn all winter long.
OCR / Rock Climber
The grip is secure!
VJ shoes opened my eyes to the importance of grip. I thought sliding around on wet terrain and obstacles was normal.
Now I wouldn't dream of running in the mountains in anything else. The grip is thatsecure and in races every little thing adds up.
Mountain and Trail runner
A versatile mountain shoe!
I use this shoe as my "everyday" trainer. I primarily run and train on the trails and peaks of the High Rockies in Colorado.
I feel like these shoes were built for the mountains as they handle technical terrain exceptionally well. That being said, I even use these shoes for workouts on non-techy dirt roads/trails. I love the ability this shoe has to handle anything I throw at it. Incredibly durable, lightweight, protective, and stable, these shoes will go the distance in any terrain!
