Dynafit MS Feline Vertical

Field Notes: Known for its alpine and vertical running gear, Salewa is built for running steep trails. Even if you don’t live in the staggering terrain of the Swiss Alps, we recommend this shoe to anyone living near steep, rocky trails where traction, balance, and response are paramount. The MegaGrip technology on the Vibram Outsole ensures ridiculous amounts of traction and grip on wet and slick surfaces. This means responsive braking when it counts and eliminating the “one step forward, two steps backwards” problem encountered on steep, crumbly terrain. 

Dynafit makes this shoe with a minimalist fit, so your foot gets hugged all run long and your heel kept securely in place. As Dynafit promotes, these shoes did particularly well on the steep trails of the Trinity Alps and had just enough cushion to remain comfortable on medium to longer runs. The quick-pull lacing system makes this shoe perfect for those who frequent the phrase, “ain’t nobody got time for that.” A word of advice from the company: their sizes run small, and Active Junky testers found going a half size up is perfect, and Dynafit even recommends a full size up, which would likely be determined by the thickness of socks you pair with this Feline Vertical trail running shoe.

Tester Comments: “With less cushioning than a lot of trail running shoes, these are more for experienced runners whose feet are conditioned to the trails. This Dynafit shoe is nimble for vertical running, so if you’re looking for a stiff shoe, you won’t find it here.”

Pros: Quick pull lacing and a close streamlined fit put these women’s trail running shoes under your command, something you definitely want on steeper terrain. 

Cons: Due to then thin and breathable upper, if you are doing a lot of vertical running, testers were concerned that the shoe will wear more quickly where the foot bends over time compared to other women’s running shoes we evaluated.

Key Attribute: Performance