• When I was a teenager, skiing and living in Colorado, my friends used to tease me that I was more coordinated on my skis than walking on my own two feet. Every day, walking on the snow and ice, I’d slip and crash to the ground. I began to suspect the most dangerous activity every week was my walk from the car to the base area of Winter Park.
• Fast forward many years and now there are many companies with products not only to increase traction in parking lots, but that allow us to hike and trail run on snow or ice.
• Kahtoola, located in Flagstaff Arizona, introduced their upgraded line of Microspike traction to the public in early 2015. Their lightweight, runner specific, Nanospikes were released this fall, and I’ve had a chance to test their products.
• Unless you are an avid outdoors person, many people do not know about these products. However, I believe they are amazing for everyone who lives in a cold winter climate. Increased traction and stability is important for everyone but especially for pregnant women, elderly, or those wishing to avoid injury.

• NANOSPIKES

• Tested in: Snow, Ice, Slush, Trail/Road Running, Walking
• Cost: $49.95 
• Availability: REI, Eastern Mountain Sports, Backcountry.com as well as online at their own site (www.kahtoola.com). (Kahtoola is also sold in other boutique outdoors shops
• Best Use: Traction for winter athletes, running.

Selling Points: The Nanospikes make it easy and comfortable to run across slippery surfaces, allowing the shoe to still flex as it was intended.

They are very light and fit into a small tote that I can easily toss into my running pack.

The traction is low-profile, meaning I stay low to the ground and I can still feel the ground beneath my feet. In fact, the traction appears so “low profile” that my husband questioned their overall usefulness from the start. But on ice and snow, I’ve had great success, felt very solid and stable, so overall I give these a major thumbs up!

Major bonus: The size XS fit my son’s size 2 youth running shoes. So kids can* wear them for hiking in the winter as well.

Significant Stats:

• 10 Spikes per foot on all sizes
  • Spike Material: Tungsten Carbide
  • Pack Size: 5¾ X 4 X 2¼ inches (52 in³)
  • Weights per pair:
  Extra Small 7.2 oz (204 g)
  Small 7.5 oz (214 g)
  Medium 8.0 oz (226 g)
  Large 8.3 oz (236 g)
  Extra Large 9.0 oz (255 g)
• 

• MICROSPIKES

• Tested in: Ice, Walking
• Cost: $69.95
• Availability: REI, Eastern Mountain Sports, Backcountry.com as well as online at their own site (www.kahtoola.com). (Kahtoola is also sold in other boutique outdoors shops
• Best Use: Traction for winter athletes, running, hiking, backpacking, safety.
• Selling Points: Lighter and tougher, the new MICROspikes^® are the next “step up” from the Nanospikes with stainless steel spikes and welded chains that wrap the shoe. These are light enough that they are a great traction option to toss in your pack for summer multi-day trips that may take you across snow fields.
• I would not suggest these for kids, even if they fit in the smaller sizes, as the spikes could easily injury someone if say a hand or foot was stepped on. (Not that a kid would mistakenly do that, right?!)

Significant Specs:

3/8 Inch spike length (1 centimeter)
• Weights per pair:
Small 11.0 oz (312 g)
Medium 11.9 oz (338 g)
Large 13.1 oz (372 g)
Extra Large 13.5 oz (382 g)
• Pack size: 5 x 3 x 2 inches (30 in³)
• 12 Spikes per foot on all sizes
• Spike Material: Heat treated 400 series stainless steel

Hiking with the kids and a variety of traction on all of us. My daughter had the Nanospikes on her Stonz boots.

Desired Improvements:

I had no problems with the Nanospikes and for most my winter adventures I’ve defaulted to them.

The rubber harness seems stronger and thicker than competing brands such as Yaktrax but only time will tell if it will weaken, crack and fail.

The bottom line: As compared to other brands, I really like the lighter weight and lower profile of the Kahtoola brand Spikes. They are great not only for winter use, but for high alpine backpacking where snow fields might be involved. Between the two, I prefer the Nanospikes, but my need for the bigger spikes is limited.

Happy trails!

Products received from Kahtoola for the purpose of review. These are our real and honest opinions.