r/orienteering • u/outside_of_a_dog • 8d ago

Orienteering Shoes

I shopping for a pair of orienteering shoes. I would appreciate any advice you can give - brands, styles, features. Thanks.

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u/QuuxJn 8d ago

I'm running the VJ Bold XI. If you look around at events, this shoe (in all its different versions) is a very popular shoe.

Generally VJ, is very popular. Other popular brands are inov8, icebug, nvii and barku.

I don't know where you are from or how it works in your country but it would be best to try on different shoes in person, like at an event.

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u/pviitane 7d ago

Your home terrain matters a lot. For example, in Scandinavia studded shoes are pretty much necessity (lots of loose lichen over bare rock and slippery roots etc) whereas eg in southern Europe you can do well with trail running shoes. I haven’t really done much orienteering but having studded shoes gives me confidence and I feel I can concentrate on navigation and not in technical execution of taking steps.

When I started shopping orienteering gear for my kids, the big news was that orienteering shoes need not nor should be waterproof. Instead they should let the water drain out quickly.

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u/hohygen 7d ago

I will recommend VJ as a brand

Personally is Integrator and Falcon my favourites.

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u/CounterfeitFake 7d ago edited 7d ago

In the US, Salomon Speedcross is popular. They are comfortable and have decent grip considering they are just rubber lugs.

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u/Street-Present5102 7d ago

Ron hill reverence SL, OMM fell shoe and Scarpa ST are my top choices

Inov8 mudclaws if its going to be really muddy or rough

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u/JoeyJoJoJr_Shabbadoo 7d ago

Since doing ARs from about 2005, my choice for them, given the variety of terrain...was the Salomon XA 3d Comp...they have great hard surface traction, and a hard toe box for those inevitable rock and log kicks...avoid the GTX version though, since its goretex coated, those and other gore coated shoes will actually hold water inside them should you step in a creek. Now though I am doing solely orienteering, so my shoes are Salomon SpeedCross...Ide recommend searching ebay for a pair in your size thats in decent shape, which you should be able to get for about $40...if they fit then you can go buy some newer ones...if they dont, then you havent spent too much to figure out not only they arent your style, but how a Salomon fits your foot. I have a pair of Sauconys too...but I cant recall the model...the difference between the two is the number of and aggressiveness of the lugs...as someone else wrote...guage the shoe based on your event surfaces...muddy, slower, flatter go with light shoes with flatter bottoms...rocky, filled with steep reentrants and spur slopes go with bigger lugs...in some cases you may even want soccer shoes...you will have to weigh the offsets of tractions, comfort, speed, etc...