HOKA Speedgoat 5 Men's Trail - Running Shoes review
Guys who follow my notes probably know I've been really hyping up the HOKA Speedgoat 5. Since I got it at the start of the month, I've done two road runs and three outdoor hikes in 'em. The light weight, comfy midsole, and great grip really stuck with me. I even told my buddies about how awesome these shoes were more than once.
But this morning, my love for HOKA hit a brick wall. Over the weekend, a friend told me that during their training at Houcheng Chibi, some hiker's brand - new Speedgoat 5 got its sole stabbed through by a little branch, and the guy ended up getting hurt. I was like, no way! I mean, how could a Vibram rubber outsole get punctured? I thought it was just some crazy one - in - a - million thing.
Then, this morning, I randomly decided to check my own HOKA. Man, was I in for a shock. Turns out, the so - called "Vibram outsole" on the Speedgoat 5 isn't a full - on, cover - the - whole - foot deal. It's this outsole - midsole combo with holes in it. You see this kind of thing in road - running shoes a lot. It makes the shoes lighter and more flexible, but it really drops the ball on protecting your feet. For a shoe that's supposed to be for outdoor trails, that's a huge red flag.
And get this, my own shoe had a hole in the sole, too, from who - knows - what. And the midsole looked like it had been through a war. I get that shoes wear out, especially outdoor ones. But my hikes were at Yinshan Pagoda Forest in Beijing, Braemar Hill in Hong Kong, and the MacLehose Trail. These aren't like, super - extreme places. After just five times wearing 'em on these trails, the shoes are already falling apart. This isn't just a normal wear - and - tear thing; it's like these shoes are made of glass!
I was so mad, I went straight to the customer service. And you know what? They had the nerve to say it was a full - sole Vibram. When I showed 'em the hole in my shoe, they just kept making excuses, saying it was a sharp object and not a quality problem. Are you kidding me? What do they think trail - running shoes are gonna step on? If a little stone or twig is a "sharp object," then what isn't? If the shoe can't handle basic stuff like that, how can they call it an "all - terrain trail - running shoe"?
For outdoor shoes, safety is the number - one thing. Getting hurt on the trail, especially on your feet, can be a total disaster. And here HOKA is, using a design that's just asking for trouble, but still acting like their shoes are the real deal for any trail. It's so annoying!
So, to all the friends I hyped these shoes up to, I'm really sorry. I was way too quick to judge. I shouldn't have been so sure this was the perfect gear. I hope I didn't make you waste your money. If you were thinking about using these for tough trails, just forget it...
