Just like the secret ingredient in your grandma’s world famous spaghetti sauce, Vibram® is keeping pretty hush-hush about the rubber technology in its Arctic Grip. With an exclusive agreement with Wolverine Worldwide through the 2016 winter season, Vibram’s advanced soling technology was a huge hit at this year’s Outdoor Retailer Winter Show. It could be the fact that they brought a huge ice block allowing show-goers to test Arctic Grip’s performance on slippery wet ice.
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Vibram, the world leader in high-performance soles, may have just created the most advanced cold weather gripping system on the market today. With a tread made out of “rubber compound with an advanced filler system,” Vibram says Arctic Grip has up to “three times better grip” on wet ice surfaces than its other premium rubber products. Michael Gionfriddo, President and CEO of Vibram USA, during an interview with GearJunkie said, “Our intention with Vibram Arctic Grip is to push the bound of sole technology on icy surfaces.”
Vibram has clocked in over two years worth of R&D before launching Arctic Grip and it looks as if the due diligence has paid off. Arctic Grip’s sturdy, yet grippy rubber lasts over 200 miles of wear and tear. For the rugged outdoorsman that needs traction and durability out of his footwear – look no further than the six Wolverine Worldwide shoes that will be sporting Arctic Grip this winter: Merrel Moab FST Ice & Thermo Waterproof, Sperry Cold Bay Ice, Hush Puppies ParkView Ice, Saucony Razor Ice, Wolverine Crossbuck FX Ice, and CAT Footwear Stiction HI WP Ice. Blake Krueger, Chairman and CEO of Wolverine Worldwide said, “Our partnership with Vibram allows us to be the first in the industry to bring this technology across our entire brand portfolio.”
Vibram’s state-of-the-art sole technology is on the cusp of changing winter footwear as we know it. Despite miles of abuse, the super rubber maintains itself. Arctic Grip, advertised as an advanced cold weather gripping system, works on both wet and dry ice. All Wolverine shoes featuring the magic rubber will have a mix of Arctic Grip and IceTrek (Vibram’s tested dry ice compound). Whether you’re adventure leads to shoveling out your car or a day of ice fishing, the surface conditions do not matter. The Arctic Grip has been rigorously tested to ensure maximum grip across all ice conditions.
The Arctic Grip is poised to take over the outdoor footwear industry; so much so, Vibram is setting up their Sole Factory Program anticipating the request to outfit people’s own shoes with their sole technology. If you’re living in an area that transforms into a tundra during the winter months, you’ll see Arctic Grip in full effect. Just look for the shoes that turn blue when temps drop below freezing. Those are Arctic Grip’s thermo chromatic lugs – designed to look cool while its wearer confidently treks across the ice.
I got the Merrell shoe with arctic grip vibram sole Friday November 4th. I am very dissapointed as I fell flat on my face after just 10 minutes both on snow and ice. I love the look and they are very comfortable, but I only trust my spikes.
I bought the Saucony Peregrine +Arctic Grip about a month ago and highly recommend them! It feels so weird to walk on ice with confidence. Living in Atlantic Canada our sidewalks are pure ice most of the winter. Since it’s trying to grip ice there will always be a little slippage but it is nothing you can’t control. I can’t say much about durability yet but expect it will hold up well. this shoe even holds up well while running on ice also.
I bought the Saucony Peregrine +Arctic Grip about a month ago and highly recommend them! It feels so weird to walk on ice with confidence. Living in Atlantic Canada our sidewalks are pure ice most of the winter. Since it’s trying to grip ice th