Reddit mentions of Ultimate Direction SJ Ultra Vest 3.0, Graphite, Small OPEN BOX

Vest

I got the Ultimate Direction SJ 3.0 about two weeks ago and I've since put two runs into it, one trail and one road. It's a nice upgrade from the Camelbak Dart I've been using.

The vest is lightweight and was very comfortable on my trail run, but on the second time out I think i tightened it down too much because it rubbed my collar raw. I'll have to give it another shot and loosen it up a bit, because when I felt the chafe I remembered a video of Jurek talking about how it was designed so that he could run his AT attempt shirtless. idk. The pockets in front do not waste space, and are perfectly sized to fit gu's, chews, or packets of tailwind etc. It's a little tougher to fit an iphone 7 plus in there, but you can make it happen. I'm embarassed to admit this but I do want quick access to my phone because I'm a millennial and I like attaching photos to my Strava runs.

I bought the pack knowing that there are no side pockets, but man, a Salomon style side stash would take this pack to the next level. Oh well. There is a small pocket on the lower back where you can put anything that doesn't need to be readily accessible. Like I said, no wasted space. There's also pole straps on the front which I haven't used, but it's nice to know they're there.

Overall I'm happy with the pack, and I feel like it suits my needs for the time being.

Shoes

My Bondi 4's wore a spot into the heel at about 150 mies so I returned them to Hoka, who agreed to send me a pair of Clifton 3's, so now I will have two pairs! They come tomorrow and they're traffic safety yellow. I'm pretty pumped.

I also picked up my first pair of Altras! I went into a running store looking to try on the Escalante which they did not have in my size, but I tried on everything else under the sun and eventually settled on the Altra Instinct 4, which felt great. I've been wanting to experiment with a zero drop shoe for a while now, and the sales guy was very good at his job.

The toe box feels so awesome, and I really like the splayed toe thing Altra is going for. Squeezing my toes into my Hoka Challenger ATR2's just makes me want to pick up a pair of Lone Peak 3.0's so I can have that feeling on the trails, too. While they do feel much different than my Hoka's, I hadn't experienced the calf-burning zero drop feeling I was warned about until I went to a track workout with my running group for the first time last night for some 400 repeats. Oh my god. The shoes felt so light and nimble on the track, but I seriously feel like I entered a new world of running based on the calf aches that night.

Misc

I broke the nozzle on my Nathan Speed draw plus when I fell on my face like a goofus, and they replaced it without question. Just wanted to throw that in there because they were so cool about it and sent a very lovely email wishing me luck.