Shoe nerds help me out - what the hell is Hoka and is it worth $170?

Hokas have been around the past year or so and are very popular among the ultra / trail community. Help cushion the feet when running over rocky surfaces (such as Western States 100).

Hands down the most cushioned shoe on the market. Great shoe for the older runner with lots of miles on the body. Just bought a couple more pairs of the Bondi model today.

I seriously might try these for a downhill 10k race.

I also like how some of them are 5mm-6 drop and some 7mm-8 drop.

The more options the better. Personally, I think there may be too many shoe companies now and inevitably the good independents will get bought out with bad results.

I bought a pair to see if they would help my knee injury. They seemed to help when my knee was at its worse, but I stopped using them when got a similar shoe from another company to wear test. I will go back to wearing them at some point to get my money's worth. (I paid full price, but you can get older models for almost half off.) I have about 200 miles in mine, and they seem durable. Some of my observations:

Obviously, they are well cushioned. The foam is low density and something like twice as soft as standard midsoles, and there is more of it underfoot.

They are not as high off the ground as they look because the soles wrap up high on the sides of the shoes. The stack height of the Hoka I own is about 32/38 mm vs something like a Nike Pegasus at 20/32. The heel is not that much higher than many conventional shoes, but the forefoot is quite a bit more.

The height offset from forefoot to heel is relatively low at 4 to 6 mm, so some open-minded minimalists actually use and like the shoes.

They are remarkably stable side to side because of the wide sole width, which is something that might surprise some people, who think they are stilt-like. The width along with the wrap means that though I slightly to severely overpronate in many shoes, I don't at all in my Hokas. They are the most stable shoes that I own of many.

They are not that heavy. They weigh about the same as many conventional running shoes.

They are too clunky for faster pace running, but are fine for most training. Ultra runners (I'm not one) like them because they keep their legs fresher. Some people say they can bomb downhills faster in them, especially on rocky trails. Some runners with injuries find that they can run in Hokas and when they are not able to run in normal shoes. They are not my favorites, but serve a purpose for me.

I am an older guy with lots of miles and can not agree with the poster above that said they were for my type.

I have worn them as I have a training buddy that is a rep for that line and comped me a pair. In an attempt to solve an injury issue I walked in a pair for several days. They seemed okay for that, and yes they did feel soft... and they made me feel taller! I ran in them maybe three sessions of 3 miles each- all on the road. I felt a bothersome rocking motion due to a pivot point under the ball of my foot (I've never had on Sketckers mall walking shoes, it could be a similar motion). They were the most firm pair of running shoes I have ever worn. Yes, they were soft AND firm. I had the feeling of running in a Green Bay Packers foam cheesehead hat, or maybe-sorta like running on a memory foam mattress. The shoe is HEAVY and it took a lot of energy to lift my feet. And there was zero movement of the foot inside the shoe.

The foot is encapsulated deep into the midsole so they will attempt to sell you on zero-drop.

Maybe the first Air Max of the mid 80's was the first highly cushioned shoe? Debatable.

For me they are not worth the big price tag, or closeout pricing. Even as freebies I found no value in them as car washing and grass cutting shoes so I passed them on to an ultra-type. I'm seeing them more out on the road but only on the feet of newbies and back-of-the-packers.

The developers did sell the company recently so I guess it was good for them.

Disclaimer- 53 yo male, 130 lbs that has been training in race flats since college. I feel the foot has 26 bones that articulate in many planes and should be allowed to do so- IF the person is not overweight or has other biomechanical issues.

The real question is why you are reading something on a CGI website.

I just got a pair of Hokas -- love 'em. :)

Competitor group yay!

Rojo,

A kid on the team I coach works at the running store and had me try them on. As everyone said they are cushioned and strangely feel good.

That said these are not for the competitive runner. I ran in college and post collegiately five years. You are looking for a fast minimalist shoe. Working out in flats or spikes. This shoe is not for that runner.

But to echo what has been said here I could see it working for older runners. Imagine sketchers shape ups with super cushion. Odd.

As has been stated, they aren't nearly as high up as they look. I twisted my ankle in a pair while on a trail; not stable for me as another post felt they were for them.

The target market (says me) is people who get beat up by the eccentric part of running (to the point of injury) and typically run on flat hard surfaces.

I know of someone who raved about them and then needed heel surgery.

It seems very unlikely that our feet could need THAT much help to run.

The Animal Within wrote:

Rojo,

A kid on the team I coach works at the running store and had me try them on. As everyone said they are cushioned and strangely feel good.

That said these are not for the competitive runner. I ran in college and post collegiately five years. You are looking for a fast minimalist shoe. Working out in flats or spikes. This shoe is not for that runner.

But to echo what has been said here I could see it working for older runners. Imagine sketchers shape ups with super cushion. Odd.

I'm so old now I'm be afraid I'd twist and ankle and fall. Anyone had that problem? You seem so high off the ground based on the pics.

Dan Empfield is converting all the triathlon sheep to them on Slowtwitch. I think he must have shares in them.

Did any of you actually look at the Hoka site?

http://www.hokaoneone.com/athletes.html

Doesn't exactly look like they are marketing the shoe to blaze a fast 5k.

It looks like they are made for LONGER runs primarily on trails.

The last couple pairs of Brooks Ghost I bought were REALLY cushiony and I love them for TRAINING. I wouldn't race in them though. That's why I have racing flats.

I haven't tried a pair myself, but if I decided to do some really long runs, I would give them a try.

rojo, couldnt you use your internet celebrity status to ask for a trial pair from hoka itself?

Here is another page on their site

http://www.hokaoneone.com/about.html

"HOKA ONE ONE footwear is designed for recovery runs with its oversized, increased forgiveness"

Rojo, if you want to get really nerdy about it this article goes into some depth: http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-gear/footwear/Sole-Power-Nicolas-Mermoud-Minimalist-Running.html

I'm a decent college runners and use a pair of Hokas as a recovery day shoe. They are fantastic.

rojo wrote:

I'm so old now I'm be afraid I'd twist and ankle and fall. Anyone had that problem? You seem so high off the ground based on the pics.

I am an old guy (46 y.o) with about 90K on his legs and the typical HS/College/Marathon-Road Racing progression over the past 30 years. I have also done dozens of ultras on roads, track and trails. My last 5 pairs of running shoes over the past 2 years have been Hokas. I am 6'0" 155-160 lbs and run about 35-50 mpw. They are not the holy grail, but I do train more regularly in them than I had simply because they have made my runs more comfortable, absorbed some shock that other shoes seem not to. Never twisted my ankle in them. Not for everyone, but they seem to have quite the following in the ultra crowd with some pretty top end folks wearing them. Dave Mackey set the Quad Dipsea CR in them a few weeks back:

and Mike Wardian wearing them at JFK:http://www.irunfar.com/2013/11/2013-jfk-50-mile-results.html Note the discussion in the comments section re: the Hokas.

I'm 48 and have been quite comfy in Salomons and Adidas. Bought some Hokas for ultras, had a great time. Went over bad on pavement. Distracted by girls college soccer team. Now convalescing in Pearl Izumis. Rethinking the height of the Hokas for flat trails and long road runs.