Scott Kinabalu Trail Review: Scott’s Gettin’ Hot

Introduction to the Scott Kinabalu Trail

REESE: Either Scott Sports has been pretty quiet about their shoe line-up, or there is a lot of noise from every other brand in the trail space, and I’m just not hearing Scott shouting from the rooftops (mountain tops?) that their shoes are actually really great. I really enjoyed running in the Scott Pursuit Gravel shoe, and I still reach for the shoe every week. The last true trail shoe from Scott I ran in was the Ultra Carbon RC. I enjoyed the shoe, but had some issues with the heel lockdown, so it never made it into my weekly rotation.

And then Scott Kinabalu showed up at my house. At first glance, it looked like a cousin to one of the top shoes of 2025, the La Sportiva Prodigio Pro. My curiosity and excitement were high for this shoe. Spoiler alert: after logging 65 miles on this shoe in the first week of testing, I’m still excited about it. And I’m still reaching for it even after wrapping up my thoughts.

TAYLOR: Perhaps Reese was just hearing my voice echoing off the canyon walls. I get a bit excited about, well, any running shoe out there. There’s almost too much going on in the trail running space, and it’s not easy to break through the constant hum of shoe after shoe after shoe.

More recently, there has been a noticeable increase in volume from Scott, though. The brand itself has been refocusing and revitalizing, and our shoe reviews are reflecting that sentiment. Forget about the Ultra Carbon RC… I really don’t think that shoe appropriately reflects the brand. Check out our most recent reviews of the Scott Pursuit Gravel and the Scott Supertrac RC 3. They’re doubling down on performance in their own right, nowadays, and we are 100% here for it.

Like Reese, I too put in a lot of really enjoyable miles in the Scott Kinabalu Trail. In a surprisingly, perhaps refreshingly, simple manner, this shoe is an early favorite of 2026. Let’s get into the details.

What we like about the Scott Kinabalu Trail

REESE: Where do I start? I like nearly everything about this shoe. I consider myself someone who appreciates the finer things in life, and I believe that to be true. I do enjoy nice things. However, if I’m being honest with myself, I can appreciate a fine wine that costs over $100, but I’m also perfectly happy drinking wine from a bag. Are they different? Yes. Most of the time, I just want something, whether it’s wine, shoes, or a car, that falls comfortably in the middle of the “high-end” and “practical” spectrum.

I feel like Scott Kinabalu sits squarely in that zone. Not too fancy that it costs you a fortune and you’re too precious with it that you don’t use the hell out of it, but high enough quality that you can wear it out.

As I said earlier, this shoe gives Prodigio Pro vibes, but after logging over 100 miles in it, I have to add that it also gives The North Face Summit Vectiv Sky 2 vibes. The stack, 37/29 mm with an 8 mm drop, places it right in the middle of those two shoes. Despite having more cushion underfoot than the Sky 2, I felt that it had more ground feel than both of those shoes. For some, this might be a bummer, but for me, I actually enjoyed it. I think it helps with proprioception, ie, gives me that extra millisecond to react to the ground and avoid a major ankle sprain.

The fit is perfect. And I don’t often say that. Secure in the heel, easy to lockdown around the midfoot, and slightly roomy in the toe box. Compared to the Prodigio Pro and Sky 2, I felt like I had just a little more room in the toe box. I found that the heel cup was deeper than the Sky 2, but I had zero issues with lockdown. On technical trails, the shoe fit my foot perfectly. No slipping or sliding around.

Speaking of technical trails, the traction will be more than enough for just about every trail. The lug material feels softer than most trail shoes, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. I felt like it allowed me to really grab onto any surface and stick to it. While testing, I was that person on the trail, taking the steep rocky line or slick rock section just to see if I would slip. Nope. Glued to the ground.

TAYLOR: Fit is where I’m starting because it is certainly the highlight of the Scott Kinabalu Trail. Goldilocks is the way I want to describe it because it doesn’t have any particular reason why it fits so nicely, other than the fact that it simply does. It’s one of the few shoes that feels accommodating, yet fitted, but not too fitted, and stays secure on any type of terrain I was on. The best fits are the ones that feel like an extension of your foot, and that’s how this one felt.

It seems like Reese had a similar experience, which says a lot on its own because the Kianabalu Trail fit my average/wide foot wonderfully, and it fits Reese’s low-volume foot as well. It’s rare that we’re both so pleased in that department.

The upper is made out of a really sleek engineered mesh. It’s the type of lightweight that I initially wrote off. I thought it would stretch or not be tenacious enough to hold my foot in place. It proved me wrong. It felt lightweight from all angles and is surprisingly gritty too. I don’t have concerns about this stretching out and losing the special fit, or the upper blowing out.

Moderate structure and cushioning throughout the heel and tongue only helped the case of fit and performance because it allowed the ability to cinch up however I wanted to comfortably.

A new recipe of foam is used in the Scott Kinabalu Trail. Their Kinetic Fusion is a blend of EVA and PEBA that has been a winning formula in several similar shoes. While it didn’t blow my mind with character, it had a very consistent midsole feel that did the job of protecting, providing moderate cushion, and packing a little bit of zest off the toe. Part of that is certainly due to the addition of the ER2 Rocker Tech that brought a subtly smooth transition into the equation.

We’ve had a few other shoes recently that kind of give that retro-modern vibe. Shoes like the Arc’teryx Norvan LD 4, Merrell Agility Peak 5, and Keen Seek Trail were similar in having a bit of old-school ground feel and a modern midsole to enhance other performance metrics.

Traction was a non-issue as well. Again, I had my doubts because the rubber felt so soft initially. Two things typically come with this sensation: a solid grip but poor durability. That’s not the case with Scott’s Versatile Traction rubber. Well, at least not the durability piece. These 4 mm lugs dug in and held on to anything I could throw at it – quite impressively, actually. Also, there’s no reason for me to believe that this is anything less than great in terms of durability. There’s literally no wear on the outsole. Typically, even on some of our favorites, there’s at least a little bit of the most forward lugs that are shaved off. Again, not here.

What we don’t like about the Scott Kinabalu Trail

REESE: This section isn’t going to be a novel, just one complaint and one thing to be aware of. First, I found the shoe ran a bit warm. I wear relatively thin socks, and my feet definitely got hot, especially while climbing. The upper isn’t as breathable as I would like or I’m used to. It was also 70 degrees in December… in Colorado, when I tested this. So, also, maybe in the cold I’d have had a different experience. That being said, I can see this being a problem in the summer.

Also, if you’re someone who wants a muted ground feel, this might not be the shoe for you. It’s not a high-stack shoe, and I was able to feel a lot of the ground underfoot. This was never a problem for me; in fact, I kind of want that. As I mentioned earlier, it helps with proprioception, so I don’t snap an ankle again. I’d wager that any run over five hours, I might want a little more cushion for the pushin’, so to speak. That said, I ran over 100 miles in this shoe, including some four-hour runs, and my feet felt fine.

TAYLOR: Is there an echo in this hallway? Like Reese, there’s really not much to say here. The upper was lightweight but so tightly woven that breathability was barely noticeable. I didn’t get the chance to test it in such warm conditions, but my feet were plenty toasty even on a 40-50 degree day.

Also, in a world of a huge variety of exciting shoes, I do want to warn that this one won’t have that wow factor until you put it in dirt. Compared to other models with a similar stack, modern foam, and rocker, it won’t feel like anything super special. Once you take it out for a test spin and experience the comfort and versatility, that’s when it will hook you.

Final thoughts on the Scott Kinabalu Trail

REESE: Considering I’m comparing this shoe to two of my all-time favorite shoes (and shoes that made our Best of 2025 list), you can guess that I’m a big fan of the Kinabalu trail. Very minimal notes on how to improve. The upper, while toasty, is secure and durable. The traction, fit, and overall function are right up there with the best of the best shoes. This has been my go-to shoe, long after I was done testing it. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I can’t wait to see what other shoes Scott has in store for 2026 and beyond.

TAYLOR: Dude! Scott!

I’m impressed! All of the pieces come together in a package that looks good, and may be unassuming on the spec sheet, but it really performs. The Scott Kinabalu Trail is an all-mountain trail shoe that will do anything you ask, from light trails to techy terrain. It shot the middle in a lot of ways, being moderate stack, having mid-sensation underfoot, and a middle-of-the-road lug depth, but again, it all comes together in a very functional trail shoe.

You can pick up the Scott Kinabalu Trail for ~$170 in February 2026 from RunnerInn by using the buttons below.