Of the very few online stores in the United States currently carrying the Salomon RX Core, a couple don’t ship to Canada or more specifically state that Salomon products can only be shipped in the United States.  Seems odd that some stores can ship to Canada and others can’t.  One online store would ship to Canada but the best priced shipping option was $42 USD.

The last online store with the RX Core available had the best option.  First of all they had the Salomon RX Core on sale for only $87.96 while everyone else is selling them for $110.00.  Second I received free shipping within the United States to a UPS store just across the border.  The UPS store only charges a nominal fee of $5 to hold a box for a week.  Crossing back over into Canada I declared the shoes and paid $11.61 in tax.  So in total along with the gas to drive down and back to get them I ended up paying a little less then $120.00 CAD for the Salomon RX Core.  I think that’s pretty good considering if they’re selling for regular $110.00 in the States I’m sure once they’re available in Canada they’ll be at least $129.99 if not more plus taxes of course.

The RX Core is very light being only 12 oz in weight.  They’re a D width which is perfect, nice and comfortable.  Here’s the specs along with some photos:

• Four-way stretch fabric upper promotes an enhanced fit
• Breathable and lightweight soft-shell.
• DWR (durable water repellent) coating offers lasting protection from the elements.
• Quicklace system allows for a secure, customized fit.  Lace pocket to tuck away laces.
• Protective rubber toe cap.
• Heel sling for stability.
• Plush 3D mesh lining, wicks moisture away.
• Leather footbed supplies a great step-in feel.
• Injected EVA midsole and OS Muscle technology provides lightweight cushioning and stability.
• Non-marking Contragrip® offers the ideal blend of grip and extended wear over mixed terrain.

It’ll take some time to see how well the RX Core wears, hopefully they’ll last at least a year.  Just based from what I know so far and the good price point I’d recommend the Salomon RX Core.

Add to your favourite social bookmarking site

As the story goes the Salomon XA Pro 3D Ultra GTX shoes are available in Canada but in limited colours. When I found that Salomon made them in a blue colour those were the ones I wanted. The only place I could find the Salomon XA Pro 3D Ultra GTX in that colour and the size I needed was in the UK so I ordered them online. These shoes retail for $159 in Canada plus tax totalling $180.79, not exactly inexpensive footwear. The Salomon XA Pro 3D Ultra GTX were so much cheaper in the UK that even after paying $50 for duty/handling I only ended up paying $6 more then if I bought them in Canada, but of course in the colour I wanted.

The Salomon XA Pro 3D Ultra GTX is a great shoe while it lasts although after the 9 months a couple of design flaws became apparent. The first is that the quick-pull laces start on the edge of the shoe right around where the first knuckle of your big toe would be. It then crosses over the top of the shoe to the other side before crisscrossing normally up the tongue of the shoe. The problem with this is that for each stride you take that part of the lace where it crosses over the top of the shoe abrades into the material. Since the shoe naturally bends at that spot it’s already a stress point. Due to this my shoes are no longer waterproof. The second flaw I found is that the heel on the inside of the shoe has two seams, one running vertical and one horizontal. Once those seams start coming apart it’s a painful experience to even walk a short distance in them.

Here are some photos to show what I mean about the laces.

Salomon makes quite a few different models of shoes, ones that don’t have the same design of the quick-pull laces as on this model.  Just something to consider before you go ahead and invest in the Salomon XA Pro 3D Ultra GTX.

Add to your favourite social bookmarking site

I originally had the New Balance Zip in mind as my next sneaker.  I typically prefer Cross Trainers as opposed to runners.  I find they wear better and provide more support.  The NB Zip has runners and Cross Trainers.  I had tried on a pair of the runners which are very comfortable and light.  The Cross Trainers only come in two different styles and I didn’t like either so they were out of the equation.  The New Balance Zip runners sell for around $129 CAD.

I first saw the Salomon XA Pro 3D shoes on the Canadian version of Zappos.com.  The shoes looked really nice and had great reviews, the price wasn’t bad either at $103 USD.  I’m a little sceptical of buying shoes online without first having tried them on.  I tried to find somewhere here in Ottawa that carried these shoes and lucked out at MEC (Mountain Equipment Coop).  They had them listed on their website at a clearance price of only $79 down from $129.00.  I headed out to MEC and tried on a pair in my size and they were perfect.  They’re really light, fit snugly, cup the heel well and have good arch support.  The only problem was that MEC only had one colour and it wasn’t one I was set on.  I didn’t end up buying them and went home empty handed.

I thought it over when I got home and tried to decide between the Salomon XA Pro 3D and the NB Zip.  The Salomons are definitely more rugged, and have a better design, they were also better priced.  I’ve only owned one other pair of Salomons which I still have, they’re now a year old.  I was and still am very impressed with them.  You can read about them here.  I gave MEC a call back to see if any other stores had the colour I wanted in stock and in my size.  It turned out a store in Toronto had them.  For only an additional $6.50 they would ship them right to my house.   I went ahead and ordered them and they should arrive later this week.  Can’t wait to get them, I’ll write more after I get them but for now that’s my story on the Salomon XA Pro 3D.

Add to your favourite social bookmarking site

It all happened about a month and a half ago, Mary Beth was out shopping for a regular pair of everyday sandals and whilst I waited, meandering around the store I arrived at a rack full of soft rubber clogs.  Both Mary Beth and I enjoy frequenting Sport Mart as they are a proudly Canadian owned and operated store and not some American sell-out like Future Shop.  At any rate Komodos are the Sport Mart branded clog and having a rack full in front of me I thought it was time to find out what all the fuss was about.

Komodos don’t come in numbered sizes but rather, small, medium, large, etc.  I grabbed a pair that looked like a good fit and tried them on.  I was almost shocked at how light and comfortable they were, really you can’t get more simple when it comes to footwear!  Given that they were only $15 regularly priced I nabbed a  pair of them and am getting great use out of them.  An added bonus is that they’re just all rubber so when they wear out you can throw them in the recycling bin instead of creating more waste.

I highly recommend Komodos over Crocs as Komodos are everything that Crocs are at less then half the price.  Let’s face it, there’s no need to pay $35 plus tax for a simple soft molded piece of rubber.  Go for the Komodos, you’ll love them and also be supporting a truely Canadian store!

Add to your favourite social bookmarking site

Back in December my girlfriend Mary Beth and I embarked on a trip we won to New York City.  We’re both from Ottawa and though she has been a couple times I myself have never been.

Prior to leaving she was in need of a new pair of shoes and I thought I would just make do what with the couple pairs of sneakers I had kicking around.  We went out shopping at Sportchek here in Ottawa the night before we left and got more than we bargained for.

Mary Beth was looking for a comfortable yet somewhat rugged walking shoe and after trying a few different pairs on finally settled on the Salomon Antero model.  They looked great and fit her well so her mind was easily decided.  She then encouraged me to look at some of the mens models.

I should point out that prior to this point in my life I have never tried on, worn or owned anything by Salomon Sports.   While looking, I did see one pair of Salomon men’s footwear that caught my eye (Freetrek Fall model), they had them in my size and I promptly tried them on.  They fit wonderfully and felt very comfortable walking around the store.  I was a bit leery of hitting the ground running in a brand new pair of footwear once I got to New York City but I purchased them anyhow.

Hit the ground running is exactly what we did once we arrived in the Big Apple and clocked over 40km of walking in under 48 hours through the urban jungle.  Our feet were no worse for wear in our new Salomon footwear and we were amazed at how comfortable and supportive the shoes are.  Their unneeded break-in period was quite surprising.  As we found out their grip is also unsurpassed as we climbed rocks in Central park and I have since been out on trails and through the woods with them as well.

We both share many thanks and gratitude for well made Salomon Sports footwear at a great value in more ways than one!  As you can imagine we’ve both owned and worn through countless pairs of shoes, cross trainers and runners of various brands and nothing to this day compares to the Salomons we now both own! We’re now Salomon Sports customers and I’m sure will continue to be.

This was originally written as an email to Salomon Sports to compliment them on their footwear.  I never received a reply from them so it’s unknown whether they actually received my email or not so I thought I’d share it here on my blog!

Add to your favourite social bookmarking site

I can’t get over how comfortable these shoes are, I mean how comfortable can a pair of shoes be anyway? It really is counter-intuitive when you look at these Pumas. There’s almost nothing to them, and yet they really exceed my expectations. Now we’ll just see how long they last…

Add to your favourite social bookmarking site