Customer Reviews Arc'teryx Norvan VT 2

I've just received these and went on a nice 10-mile hike today encompassing a variety of terrain. The VT 2 fits me much better than my original VT's due to the new wider last. Just as their predecessor, I went up a half size to provide a bit more room for foot expansion. Even so, the fit for my foot couldn't be better. The fit is snug but not restrictive or overly tight: they're supportive and precise. I feel the lacing is much improved as well. The traction on scree, boulders, dirt, forest floor duff and hard-packed trails (the PCT) is just superb. Overall these and the LDs will meet my every need in hiking footwear. I have been through a fair number of shoe brands and the Arc'teryx Norvan LDs and VTs fit me better, provide more comfort, have more grip and are more durable than other shoes I've owned. I have worn Arc'teryx clothing for years and will continue do do so in the years to come. Their products are a bit speedy, for sure, but their useful life, in my experience, is way beyond similar products from other manufacturers. Doubtless the VT 2s will meet these expectations.

The shoe flexes and is tight at the same time, I recommend a runner's lock and give the shoe a few runs before you figure out if you like it or not, sometimes it takes a few time for the TPU to loosens up. An upgrade, or just different use in my opinion to the Norvan VT OG, although still a great shoe. The VT 2, has a much sturdier feel, but for me I can still open it up while flat or down hill. Last year I did the first 66 miles of a 100 mile race (only made it to 87) in the Salmon Ultra Pro's snd honestly my feet felt relatively great. This year I used the VT 2's for the Silverton Ultra Marathon 100K (62 miles), better grip, feet felt more protected, walked through over 10 creeks, rivers, or mud up to my knees. Also, it rained for most of the afternoon, the shoes didn't chafe. Zero blisters, although be careful on over-tightening I did bruise my foot once. This shoe isn't as narrow as other Arc'teryx shoes from the past, I love this shoe, although I think there needs a little bit of tinkering with the mesh upper. 4.9

Hello, This is my second review of this shoe - my replacement that Arc'teryx gave me. Anyways the same exact fault occurred. Tearing fabric around the big toe medial side. I didn't even do any thru hikes in these shoes. Only some light trail running and hiking (less than 50 miles) and actually used them for some occasional golf. Check the photo of the treads and the shoes have barely been worn.. The fabric/mesh is weak and tears after very little stress. This needs to be updated with a different fabric or the guard needs to go up higher to reinforce this wear spot. Does Arc'teryx have plans to update this shoe? I see that many others have torn the shoe in the same exact spot (including the GTX version). This is clearly a design flaw, and I won't be purchasing any Norvan shoes until this is fixed.

I'm an ultrarunner who had surgery last year to repair a partially torn achilles tendon. When I was finally cleared to put running shoes on, I wanted something new. I had previously worn the LD, which I liked a lot, but I couldnt find them in my size so I opted to try the VT instead. I knew the two were designed for different purposes, but since I was starting off walking and hoping to graduate to hiking then running, I thought the VT was a good place to start; certainly, I am sure either would have been ideal to start off with, but the selling point for me was the comfort: they fit well and didn't irritate the scar on the back of my heel; I felt locked in, yet comfortable. I've had the same shoe for over a year and have logged a couple hundred miles in them on surfaces ranging from easy trail surfaces to my favorite rocky technical mountain trails. The soles have worn fairly evenly and still have bite, and the upper is as comfortable as ever. I did change the insole to an OTC-one for additional support. I came here today to leave this review as two days ago, I ran my first ultra since surgery, the Finger Lakes 50k, which featured lots of ponded water and mud, so much mud - and the shoes were fabulous throughout! I planned to change them after the first lap but opted not to because, while the shoes were caked in mud, they were comfortable, I didn't have blisters and the shoe-sucking mud hadn't succeeded in pulling them off so why mess with it? The shoes of course got wet, but the upper drained well. Historically, I always want to try different shoes, rarely purchasing the same shoe over again, but the Arcteryx VT is changing this, I want another pair, they work for me! The picture is post-race - muddied and wet, but comfortable in my VT's and so happy to be feeling good running long again.

Did Mt Katahdin yesterday (Knife Edge Trail... google images of this trail); all granite rock hopping and scrambling. I put this shoe on "out of the box" and it fit perfect (Men's size 10 was size 10) with plenty of room in toe box. In my day-pack I stuffed my worn out Salomon X Alpine Pro's because this was first day out with new shoe; and if I started getting blisters I wanted option to go back to my "go to shoes". 7 hours of pure granite rock hopping, tree roots, and scrambling. Hundreds of "rock scrapes" where the top of my shoes were dragged on rocks, and uppers did now show any evidence of wear-tear. These shoes performed excellent; comfortable all day, did not even make one shoe string adjustment; no foot rubs (blisters); AND most importantly the traction was unbelievable. Really appreciated the traction up on the Knife Edge of Katahdin! All in All I felt these shoes were identical to my Salomon X Alpine Pro's (which probably have 400 miles; now worn). It would be interesting to have new pairs of each and swap-out in middle of technical terrain hike... I'm wondering if there is a difference? Great surprise; this shoe was unbelievable for technical terrains; really enjoyed them.

Super, les chaussures sont trs souples et confortables. La taille est juste

Stylish and technical up to par with all the other leading trail running shoes out there. Love the design and the piece of mind that they will hold up in the muddiest of conditions. A really great Summer or fall trail running shoe!

These look and feel great. Would definitely order again,but at a half size smaller.

This is a well built, solid running shoe that has held up amazingly well! As a full time mountain guide, I've put a lot of miles on it both on and off trail in the Tetons, Wasatch, Yosemite and in the Andes. I've had it for about 8 months now and it still has plenty of life left in it! I usually get only one season or less out of my running shoes so I find this shoe particularly impressive. It has the best grip on rock that I've ever experienced in a running shoe, it's just as sticky on rock as many approach shoes out there. The only con that I've found is that the laces are a little short, especially when I'm wearing thick socks.

I have never been a runner but in this shoe I can run without discomfort. It is lightweight and so comfortable that on my last few trail hikes I decided to run and found I could run up and down hills with exposed tree roots, sand, and sticks. I felt very secure in the Norvan VT 2.

My favourite Arcteryx shoe because of its versatility. They perform great directly out of the box. I used them on many approaches to the climbs and scrambling terrain without experiencing unexpected damage. They are very comfortable even on a really long days but deliver slightly lower performance when climbing/scrambling with them in comparison to the older version of the same model. The laces getting undone are finally the past! Looking forward to many more meters in those shoes.

I've just received these and went on a nice 10-mile hike today encompassing a variety of terrain. The VT 2 fits me much better than my original VT's due to the new wider last. Just as their predecessor, I went up a half size to provide a bit more room for foot expansion. Even so, the fit for my foot couldn't be better. The fit is snug but not restrictive or overly tight: they're supportive and precise. I feel the lacing is much improved as well. The traction on scree, boulders, dirt, forest floor duff and hard-packed trails (the PCT) is just superb. Overall these and the LDs will meet my every need in hiking footwear. I have been through a fair number of shoe brands and the Arc'teryx Norvan LDs and VTs fit me better, provide more comfort, have more grip and are more durable than other shoes I've owned. I have worn Arc'teryx clothing for years and will continue do do so in the years to come. Their products are a bit speedy, for sure, but their useful life, in my experience, is way beyond similar products from other manufacturers. Doubtless the VT 2s will meet these expectations.

A great shoe for scrambling, but reliable edging is still a pipe-dream. Seriously excellent quality and durability. I loved my Norvand LD's and was hoping that these more durable and more boulder-friendly shoes would only add awesome features, but somewhere between the rounded toe-cap, hard edges, and stiff mid-sole the shoe lost its running roots. I would absolutely not recommend this shoe for trail-running, or bouldering for that matter if you expect to leave the climbing shoes at home, but the Arc'teryx quality is unmistakable in these sure-footed rock-hoppers.

The shoe flexes and is tight at the same time, I recommend a runner's lock and give the shoe a few runs before you figure out if you like it or not, sometimes it takes a few time for the TPU to loosens up. An upgrade, or just different use in my opinion to the Norvan VT OG, although still a great shoe. The VT 2, has a much sturdier feel, but for me I can still open it up while flat or down hill. Last year I did the first 66 miles of a 100 mile race (only made it to 87) in the Salmon Ultra Pro's snd honestly my feet felt relatively great. This year I used the VT 2's for the Silverton Ultra Marathon 100K (62 miles), better grip, feet felt more protected, walked through over 10 creeks, rivers, or mud up to my knees. Also, it rained for most of the afternoon, the shoes didn't chafe. Zero blisters, although be careful on over-tightening I did bruise my foot once. This shoe isn't as narrow as other Arc'teryx shoes from the past, I love this shoe, although I think there needs a little bit of tinkering with the mesh upper. 4.9