Scarpa Spin Ultra review

Who should buy Scarpa Spin Ultra

Buy it if you want a protective and reliable shoe for everyday running on the trails, even on technical terrain. It’s a great choice for any distance, be it a 5k or an ultra-marathon, especially for slow paces. 

Who should not buy it

It’s not ideal if you:

• want a lighter shoe. The Salomon Ultra Glide is a great alternative
• need a responsive shoe. The Hoka Torrent 2 is a better choice

All about protection

Runners who tested this shoe appreciated the “overall rugged protective nature” of the Spin Ultra, which does “an excellent job of protecting the foot from impacts from rocks and other trail obstacles.” This is particularly obvious when looking at the sturdy toe bumper that is “essentially impenetrable,” and as another expert said, it can “successfully take a bullet.”

Secure lockdown

As pointed out by a tester, he felt very confident while running on rough terrain, thanks to a fantastic upper and its overlays placed around the midfoot, which form “a sort of cage for superb security” and adds stability.

Another expert added that during his testing his foot “has remained completely secure in these shoes.”

Responsiveness is not its best trait

Although cushioned, comfortable and effective for longer distances on all terrain, according to those who tested it, this shoe felt somewhat firm and not very lively. A runner perfectly described it when she said that the shoe “overall didn’t feel especially fast”, there was “a bit of a flat feel” and “it felt like it absorbed a notable amount of energy when taking a step.”

A versatile Scarpa shoe

Other than being a great all-around shoe for running, the Spin Ultra can be a fantastic choice for hiking and walking too, no matter the difficulty of the trail.

Traction is 9/10 in the Spin Ultra

Testers agree that traction is one of the best reasons to consider this shoe, as they perfectly put it:

• it has “effective, well shaped and well spaced” lugs
• it provides “excellent grip on all terrain [they] have tested on, from steep off trail, loose dirt, rock slab, either wet or dry”
• “[they]’ve had zero slippage on steep rocks”
• “when going downhill on loose gravel, [they] felt confident that the shoe was not going to move/slip unexpectedly”
• the shoe’s “grippy outsole was a huge confidence booster”

Comfy and ready

As an experienced runner said, it’s clear “right away that the build quality is superb” and the excellent comfort is a given consequence. This shoe has a roomy toe box, needs no breaking-in period and testers had zero issues with rubbing or blisters.

Not the lightest shoe   

Considering that it provides a high amount of protection and is a long distance shoe, 10.9oz (309g) is not dramatically heavy for its category (the average is 10.7oz (305g)). Yet there are lighter options and as a runner said after a test, it feels “a bit more dense and heavy than the scale indicates.”

Spin Ultra will withstand lots of miles

The Scarpa Spin Ultra is not only sturdy, but also very durable, mainly thanks to the hard rubber compound on the outsole.

This was confirmed by a runner, who after 250 miles found only “the slightest bit of wear showing in the heel lugs.”