Shoe Reviews

Our first ever HOKA Mach review, will not be out last. One of HOKA’S nicest rides to date. The Mach 4 is a shoe designed as a sort of cross between a daily trainer, and lightweight speed shoe. It is lightweight, durable, and fast.  In the HOKA range, it fits somewhere between the Rincon and the Clifton. We whacked 84K into our pair, below is the rundown.

Tested for over 11,000 miles, the UA Flow Velociti Wind is the latest chapter in running innovation with a disruptive design and all-in-one cushioning system that eliminates the rubber outsole. What is the flow state? The feeling you get when you could keep running for miles. The feeling of wanting to keep going one more mile - because you feel so good. The feeling of light, effortless speed. The feeling of the wind at your back. Every runner is searching for that flow state.

Continuing Nike’s mission to keep all runners on the run, Nike has released the new Nike React Infinity Run 2. One of Nike’s most tested shoes in history, it features updates informed by extensive scientific testing to create a more intuitive ride, with daily training runs in mind.

Brooks Adrenaline is up to its 21st iteration, a successful shoe, no doubt.  Brooks really lead the way in durability; the Adrenaline GTS 21 is another tough, absolute workhorse of a shoe. The Adrenaline GTS 21 is a support shoe, designed for runner’s who want some traditional stability control.  It’s reliable daily trainer designed to provide maximum stability to correct overpronation for runners of all levels and abilities.

When a pair of HOKA ONE ONE Carbon X 2’s rocked up at RT HQ, we were pretty stoked. Once dubious of the brand, we are now loyal fans. Great running shoes without the in-your-face marketing BS that we see from so many other brands. And free shoes, hell yeah. The Carbon X 2 is HOKA’s go-to road racing shoe. With a full-length carbon plate and light, bouncy foam, it is HOKA’S answer to Nike Next% or Saucony’s Endorphin. Furthermore, HOKA have made some key upgrades from their original Carbon X.

The Brooks Levitate 4 is a true workhorse of a neutral high mileage training shoe. Not the lightest of shoes, nor the fastest; but the trade off is you'll get many extra k's out of a pair of Levitates than you may in many other brands. Runner's Tribe were lucky enough to take a pair through 210km, and below is our unpaid for analysis.

HOKA ONE ONE, the brand known for its max cushioned shoes and metarocker midsole geometry, were second to the table. In 2019 they dropped their Carbon X road racing shoe, all reports indicate they sold like hot cakes. Now zoom to the end of 2020, and HOKA have just launched the Rocket X (dropping soon in Australia). It is to be viewed like the Carbon X, but slightly faster, subtly better.  Its stack height is slightly lower, and the shoe is lighter.   Running in the Rocket X feels more like a traditional shoe than a HOKA. The wide base of a Clifton (and most models) is gone, trimmed down to increase performance. The midsole foam used by HOKA is still their proprietary EVA, they haven’t switched to PEBAX foam used in a few other road racing shoes. The midsole foam found in the Rocket X is the lightest foam that HOKA has ever produced.  The EVA foam works for HOKA, and if it ain’t broke…. Runner’s Tribe took the Rockets through three sessions (15km in total).

The On Cloudflyer is designed for runners who enjoy a decent amount of support, ON refer to it as 'supreme support'.  Without being a maximally cushioned shoe (check out the Cloudstratus or the Cloudace for a little more cushion), with stack heights of 20mm (forefoot) and 27mm (heel), it packs enough cushioning for most runners, but is still ways off the max cushioned shoes such as the HOKA Bondi or Asics Glideride. Runner’s Tribe were lucky enough to put a pair of Cloudflyers through their paces. Below is our review.

Another year, another Hoka Clifton, perhaps Hoka’s most popular shoe. A highly cushioned, neutral high mileage trainer. A workhorse for endless miles.  HOKA called it their ‘Ultra comfortable go to daily runner’ – it’s hard to argue with that Not designed for speed, but for long distances or easy runs. The Clifton 7 is very similar to the Clifton 6 – a nice, soft, lightweight, cushioned ride. The only significant changes are a new upper (mesh) and various minor changes to it’s last/upper/heel counter. The differences between the 6 and 7 are pretty much negligible, some minor tweaks, but hardly noticeable. Runner’s Tribe took these shoes through 110km of mostly road and light trail running, and below is our unpaid for analysis.

If a higher stack height, coupled with a carbon fibre plate and the correct foam, is correlated to more speed, then Asics must have another theory in mind. The Asics is more of a traditional racing flat, but with an extra springy ride thanks to the carbon fibre. There is ample ground feel, and the cushioning feels mild. A vastly different feeling to the Vaporfly road racing shoes so many are used to. Horses for courses.