La Sportiva Jackal 2 Review

Just a month before trialling the Jackal 2, I purchased a pair of Jackal 1 (old stock), and having been taping plasters over my lacerated heels, I have to admit my expectations were relatively low on the new model. 

I opened the box to a very pleasing colour - something La Sportiva do well. I was advised these might come up small but as I had recently bought my usual size of UK7.5, I stuck with them. The upper seemed to be solidly made whilst not being too rigid. A pretty lightweight shoe at 245g, the tread and supportive construction still appeared to pack a good punch out of the box. 

My running is a real mixture of terrains on a daily basis as well as distance and duration so I was prepared to put the shoes through their paces and see if this would satisfy the long list of requirements I want in a shoe. In this day of responsible sourcing and sustainability I think we're all looking more for a one size fits all, so-to-speak.  Living in North Snowdonia, I have a huge variety of terrain to play on - even during one run, I often have open fells, dry rock, wet rock, scree, bogs, slate, tarmac and sand. Could one shoe really ever cope with this? Throw into that mix a 38kg dog pulling me around a Cani-Cross race. 

My first impression of the shoe was that I was putting on a slipper. The harsh heel cup of the previous model was gone, there was no need to pile on sports tape to prevent open sores after 30 mins. It felt like I was putting on  a faithful old pair of well worn in trainers, however with a clean sharp tread and full cushioning you only get from a box-fresh pair of shoes. 

Something which I found particularly pleasing were the laces - I have not found a pair of shoe laces which stay done up for more than 10 minutes. It could be my inability to tie my own shoelaces, of course. However, these laces seem to be slightly sprung which helps them to stay done up. It's fundamental, but if you've had to stop every 10 minutes (or more) during a run, or worse a race (!) to retie your laces, you will appreciate this almost as much as me. 

My first run in these shoes was a mixed mountainous terrain run over 5 hours, with Diego, my New Zealand Huntaway who was pulling me for some of it. There is a tarmac steep uphill section to begin with, and I felt well cushioned and supported. On the wet open fells (it had been raining for about 7 days straight) in general the grip was great. Only on some sections where the grass seemed to move like a slab of snow away from the mud, did they slide. The wet rock we ran down, they held well, and over a long run, I felt well supported, not a single blister and amazingly, I didn't have to stop once to re-tie my laces! 

A week later, we had snow, they managed well with this on the less steep hills - descending from Moel Elio was a little like skiing, especially once more with a strong dog attached. Regrettably, I didn't pack my micro-spikes however on this occasion I did stay upright. 

We've been experiencing some drier weather lately which is where these shoes have come into their own. Bouncing over dry rock is where these shoes really excel; they are supportive yet you can feel what is going on underneath your feet which I find important in the mountains, and the energy exchange through the foot isn't lost. Bouncing from one rock to another I felt secure, stable as well as well supported with added confidence that I wouldn't hit a damp patch, lose a foot and land on my teeth. 

They coped well with steep scree descents and even falling into a thigh deep bog, they were determined to stay put! I wore them on a cani-cross race and they flew over slippery roots, kept me upright on steep single track descents and reacted well to turn of speed. 

So far, I'm yet to find any fault with them - have I perhaps finally found my perfect all rounder?!

Anna Buckingham

Anna is an ultra runner in North Wales. She has competed in races such as the Tor Des Geants and the Dragons Back Race. Winning The Winter Spine Race and Grand 2 Grand are some highlights and her favourite event is The OMM, where she can usually be found every October.

She is also a Mountain Leader who instructs Navigation, hill walking and mountain running for groups in the outdoors.