Salomon Pulsar 3 Review

The Salomon Pulsar 3 is what I'd describe as a "trail slipper". It's insanely lightweight, narrow, and has plenty of ground-feel. With 24mm of heel stack and 18mm in the forefoot, the shoe puts you on your toes without bringing you too far from the ground. As soon as you slip it on, you feel faster.

Underfoot Protection

I'd suggest this shoe to anyone who prefers a more minimalist approach to trail running. If you're planning to run on a lot of rocky, technical trail, realize that the Pulsar 3 does not offer a lot of underfoot protection in the forefoot and midfoot. The foam in the heel is quite soft and offers a comfortable ride when descending steep inclines, but as soon as you're onto the forefoot/midfoot again, you'll feel everything underneath--for better or worse.

Outsole/Upper

The lugs are one of my favorite aspects of this shoe's trail performance. Although they look beefy, they are relatively soft and seem to give nicely underfoot. You won't feel like you're running in cleats. As far as terrain goes, the lugs are soft enough to grip onto rocks coated with sand/dust, yet deep enough to also dig into mud. I've run directly through streams in the Pulsar 3 and they drain well and dry quickly.

Lockdown 

I was initially hesitant about the Salomon Quicklace system because I have such a narrow foot and I've struggled with the lacing on the Sense Ride staying tight enough in the past. However, my experience with the Pulsar 3 is entirely different. Once the laces are tied, they don't loosen much--even when the shoe is wet. 

Durability

The Pulsar 3 is by no means a daily trainer, so the expectations for durability were rather low. However, I've logged less than 70 miles in these shoes and they are showing substantial signs of wear on the forefoot lugs. I'll be lucky to get 300 miles out of them; whereas with most of my trail shoes, I'll get 500+. In order to maximize the life of the Pulsar 3, I plan to mainly wear them on dirt trails, avoiding rock and pavement as much as possible.

The Fit

It's no surprise by looking at them, but the Pulsar 3 runs extremely narrow. I have a narrow foot and my toes are smashed into the toebox--another reason why these are racing shoes and not daily trainers. I ordered a size 8.5 in the Pulsar 3 initially, thinking that it would run small based on what other reviews said. Turns out, the length runs true to size for me and I needed to buy what I usually wear in Hoka trail shoes: an 8.

If you're in the market for a fast, light shoe for sub-ultra trail racing, the Pulsar 3 might be worth a try! With a $200 price-tag, you're not getting much underfoot protection, but you're certainly getting an agile trail slipper that might just help you channel your inner Killian Jornet.