Road to Trail Shoe Verdict | Craft Nordlite Ultra Running Shoe 2.0 Shoe Review

I was recently sent a pair of the Craft Nordlite Ultra 2.0 to review. I have never worn a pair of Craft running shoes before so I didn’t know what to expect. This was the shoe I chose to review because of the description that it could go from road to light trail. Beyond that, the color was too good to pass up. 

From my reading, the Nordlite Ultra 2.0 has a redesigned upper that gives it improved durability and fit as well as a new last. This new last is to provide improved reliable fit and designed for both elite and everyday athletes seeking responsive performance. 

I am not a professional shoe reviewer and will say upfront that there is no perfect shoe out there. The following review is how the shoe felt and performed for me but your experience may differ.

The Fit Factor

When the shoes arrived and I opened the box the first thing that stood out to me was the color of the shoes. I loved the fade from yellow in the front to the orange in the back. It looked sleek especially on top of the white outsole that has a hint of blue in it. That blue in the outsole connects to the blue in the tongue and is a nice added touch from a design perspective. 

Picking up the shoe, it felt really light. I don’t know that I was expecting the shoe to feel as if it was heavy but this certainly did not come close to that. It was, shall we say, feathery. 

Turning the shoe over and you could see the traction that would help you on the trails. I did wonder how it would feel on the road as well as on the trail. From a first glance and touch the thoughts of running on a trail in the PNW came to mind. I wondered if it would feel good on a hard trail similar to what you would find in the desert of Arizona.

One thing that caught my eye attention was the Swedish flag on the aglets of the laces. Such an amazing and unexpected touch. I don’t know if they do this on all their shoes or in the other colors but the blue and yellow matched the tongue and the shoe colors perfectly. Great touch.

Tech Specs From The Website:

• Drop 6 mm. 
• Stack height incl. insole: Heel 40 mm, forefoot 34 mm.
• Weight: 308 g in size US9
• Supercritical process foam offers a non-toxic, reusable midsole material.
• Lightweight, high-rebound Cr Foam™ midsole. 
• HyperGrip lugged traction outsole for versatility.

With all that technical jargon out of the way and I’ll be honest, I don’t know what much of that means other than the drop. The 6mm drop works for me. I’ve tried 0 drop shoes and others that are 9+mm drop. Neither of those drops works for me and I have found the most comfort in the 5mm-6mm range.

Sliding my foot into the shoe for the first time was very pleasant. I could feel the snug foot around the middle of my foot and the weight was barely noticeable. I did worry about the toe box as I’ve been running in Topo’s for a couple of years. Going from their wide toe box to the Nordlite Ultra 2.0 was noticeable but not to the point where it was constricting my toes.

I have taken the Craft Nordlite Ultra 2.0 on three different run. Each one is much different than the other. I wanted to see how the shoe would feel in different circumstances. After all, it says that the shoe can go from road to trail…..let’s find out.

First Test: Saturday Stairs Workout

The Saturday Stairs workout takes place at the Hollywood Bowl and is a combination of running and plyometrics. The running is done on the steps of the Hollywood Bowl but there is also pavement that we run on.

My first impression of the shoe while running on the pavement was that it didn’t grab the road so hard that it required effort to pull my foot up. This was a bonus because I fully expected the shoe to grab the road and require me to pull up so that I could keep moving forward. 

As I went through the workout, I forgot about the shoe and that is a good thing. If I’m constantly reminded that the shoe is on my foot then I know it is not a shoe for me. I want to run, not worry about the shoe I’m running in.

The workout is 40-ish minutes and I forgot about the shoe unless I actually thought about this review. When that happened, I noticed that the toe box was just slightly more tight than I am used to. It wasn’t debilitating in any way but it gave me something to think about as I was about to test out the shoe on longer runs.

For this workout, this shoe is good to go.

ADVERTISEMENT

</center

Second Test: Running 1.5 Hour On The Strand

The day after Saturday Stairs, I took the shoe to The Strand. The plan was to run for 1.5 hours. This was going to be a test of the lugs as the Strand often has sand blown over it that can make running a bit slippery.

Similar to what took place during Saturday Stairs the pavement and the grip didn’t create an issue. I was able to run on the concrete as if I were wearing a shoe that was solely designed for the road. In addition to that, I forgot the shoe was on my foot which is another good sign for whether or not I am going to keep a shoe.

The toe box, despite running for 1.5 hours, was not noticeable in a way that made my toes ache. There is enough room in the toe box to allow for some movement but not so constricting that my feet felt like they were in a vice that was getting squeezed.

Now, running on the sand over the concrete. Would I feel like I was Elsa in Frozen or would this be just another run. The answer is that it was just another run. I purposely sought out the sand to see if I would slip and I never did. The grip did its job on the pavement and the sand.

For this run, this shoe is good to go.

Third Test: Running 1 Hour And Going From Road To Trail

For the third and final test in this entirely scientific and professional review, I would go take this shoe from the road to the trail. After all, the description on their site literally says:

A Suitable Shoe For Both Road And Light Trail

I wanted to see how accurate that was. From where I live there is a trail that is 1 mile away. The trail itself has a 3 mile section. That means that in total this would be a 5 mile run with 2 on the road, 3 on the trail and a bit over 650 feet of elevation gain. How would the shoe hold up to this?

On the road, the shoe performed as it did at Saturday Stairs and on The Strand. Once I hit the trail, the shoe also performed. I didn’t slip on the dirt areas nor did I feel any issues on the harder sections of the trail.

While I was running I tried to find ways to make the shoe feel uncomfortable. Take a hard turn, go harder than normal on the downhill, lean into the run on the uphill. The shoe responded each time and without anything noticeable that would make me pause.

After leaving the trail and hitting the road again, I wondered how the shoe would feel now that it didn’t have to grab the ground beneath me. Would there be rocks or wood chips stuck in the lugs and cause me to have to stop to dig them out? No, that did not happen. Smooth sailing going from the trail back to the road.

Verdict

It has only been three runs and all less than 2 hours but so far, so good. This is a shoe that is worth keeping my rotation and seeing how far I can run before my feet say no more, especially on the trails.

I have my concerns about running an ultra on a hard packed surface but based on the testing I did, I would have no issue taking the shoe to a race where I would be running for 3-5 hours. I won’t know about 5+ hours until I do it but at this point, I would say that a trail half, full or 50k would not be a problem in this shoe.

For the road, this shoe feels like it can handle the marathon distance without any problems. That means that distances less than that will also be able to be handled.

One area that I do not have a verdict on is the treadmill. I enjoy running on the treadmill which means another test has to happen. I will provide a follow-up for you but until then…..Happy Running.

Disclaimer: I was sent these shoes for free. I was not required to provide a review in exchange for the shoes. Craft Sportswear is an affiliate partner of Run Tri Bike and we may earn a commission if you purchase using the links above.