Type: Trail
Price: £130
Weight: 286g (unisex)
Drop: 8mm
The shoe
The Salomon Sense Ride 5 is a jack-of-all-trades trail shoe, designed to be comfortable across a wide variety of paces, distances and terrain. Appropriately then, it occupies the middle ground in terms of weight (286g), lug length (3.5mm), heel-to-toe drop (8mm) and stack height (27mm in the heel, 19mm in the forefoot). As such, the Salomon Sense Ride 5 has a broad appeal: a great choice for newbies dipping their toe into trail running, but also a solid bet for experienced off-roaders looking for a do-it-all shoe at a reasonable price.
What everyone's reading
What’s the Salomon Sense Ride 5 like to run in?
The Nike Vomero Plus is a stacked, statement-making hit. RW experienced no hotspots or blisters while testing the shoe over a variety of distances and terrains. The Contragrip outsole provides excellent traction across most off-road terrain, and is also comfortable on road sections, making these a great door-to-trail option for city-dwellers. The level of cushioning occupies a welcome middle ground between comfort and responsiveness; you can run slowly or quickly in the Sense Ride 5, and there’s enough underfoot here to make it an option for ultra distances, too. Versatility means compromise, of course, and the upshot is a shoe that’s good at everything without being outstanding at anything. The Sense Ride 5 isn’t a natural PB-setting shoe, but it also lacks the supreme comfort of, say, a top-of-the-range Hoka. Similarly, its grip, while versatile, isn’t as effective in thick mud as something like an Inov-8 Mudclaw. Nonetheless, if you’re in the market for just one trail shoe – as many people are – the Sense Ride 5 ticks an impressive number of boxes.
How does the Salomon Sense Ride 5 fit?
The shoe fits true to size and there’s a welcome roominess to the forefoot. As mentioned previously, it’s an extremely comfortable shoe with a padded tongue, hard-wearing 3D mesh upper and Salomon’s signature Quicklace system. A word on said lacing system, though: while it does a terrific job of keeping your foot locked in place, it is annoyingly fiddly in the Sense Ride 5, and not something you’d want to have to do mid-race.
RW verdict
We’re a big fan of do-it-all trail shoes as most runners don’t want to shell out for multiple off-road options. The Salomon Sense Ride 5 covers an impressively broad base, thanks its moderate amounts cushioning and responsiveness, as well as a lug length that will work across most off-road terrain. RW enjoyed running in the shoe over a variety of distances and speeds, and regards it as a particularly good option for off-road newbies likely to be running on less extreme trails. Compromises have been made here, and edge-seekers with deep pockets will find more exciting options elsewhere. But if you’re looking for an overachieving shoe from a high-quality brand, the Salomon Sense Ride 5 delivers.
