Norda 001

Norda was founded in Montreal in 2020 by husband-and-wife shoemakers Nick and Willa Martire, joined at launch by Louis-Martin Tremblay on design and Gerard Cleal on brand. The 001 shipped in January 2021 at 285 USD — the most expensive trail shoe on the market that year — and made the case that Dyneema, the polyethylene composite best known for yacht sails and bullet-resistant panels, could be the right upper material for a trail shoe. Five years in, Norda is the Canadian brand the global ultra community wears at UTMB, Western States and the Boréalys Mont-Tremblant by UTMB. Quiet confidence over loud claims.

The 001 is Norda's opening argument: that Dyneema - the polyethylene composite strong enough for yacht sails and bullet-resistant panels - could be the right upper fabric for a trail shoe. Cut from a pattern tested on the rocky climbs behind Mont-Tremblant and the single-track of the Laurentians, the 001 and its refined 001A successor weigh less than most road shoes but shred technical downhills like proper mountain tools. The 005 pushes the same story further with a 100% Arnitel super-foam midsole and a Norda-exclusive Vibram Megagrip Elite outsole; the 002 lowers the stack for runners who want ground feel over the long haul. The original 001 is Norda's opening platform - the one that made the Dyneema argument, a 295 g trail shoe with the first production Bio-Dyneema upper.