I am a big fan of the Mafate speed 4. And so i bought the 5. I was soooo disappointed! This is a totally different shoe. Soooo heavy and unsportive. I really hate this shoe. My toes also hurted: they are not even the same size. I just don't get it! Why not keeping it on the same track as the 4? The 5 has nothing to do with the 4. I really don't get it. I just sent them back. Really hate this shoe
I'm doing the 119k also - I plan on using the Mafate 5 for the whole race. I've tried all hokas and some salomon, but the Mafate 5 felt like absolute winner amongst all. Super stable and cushioned and it does really well on long hours. I planned on doing first half with Mafate Speed 4 then switch to Mafate 5, but the dropbag is so early that i'm not sure if it even makes any diff to swap.
You need to be more specific, Hoka shoes either perform shit or they are amazing
Shit: Clifton 9
Amazing: Cielo X1 3.0 / Rocket X Trail
But all of them are less durable than they should: sole delaminating, hoka lettering pealing off, foam just dying after 400km
I've checked and the place I bought them from are a recommended seller from the Hoka website themselves.
I have friends who disliked the Clifton 9 (back in 2024). I have friends who liked it as a somewhat responsive daily trainer, not as a soft shoe.
I disliked it compared to my Pegasus 38 (back in 2024).
Durometer measurement is a durometer measurement.
Except for marketing and a general mindset about Hoka's being soft with the general population (mostly non-runners) there is nothing actually backing up the fact that they are soft.
I grant that back in 2024 shoes were firmer overal but you're even comparing it to a Vomero 18 and saying it was equal or better which is just 🤷
Edit: I also can't go re-try new Clifton 9's today obviously, but I have 4 pairs of Hoka in my current rotation that are way softer than the Clifton 9 was (both in independent testing and my perception). My current shoe rotation is 13 shoes (which is a whole other discussion), I have a big frame of reference, I know what I'm talking about, a shoe measured as firm (40.5 AC) doesn't magically feel soft...
Edit 2: you only run 750km/yearly? Why do I even bother...
You used a couple of toxic words in there that I did not.
Inexperienced /= unworthy
my argument is that softness is not an opinion
40.5 AC shore hardness = very firm in 2026 = average in 2024
I had an opinion -> your friend disagreed and stated that I must have had a fake pair and thus based my opinion on an incorrect observation -> I further informed that when leaving out opinions a durometer measurement states that the shoe uses a firm midsole foam (sure lets call it average in its time) -> your friend keeps insisting it is a soft shoe even compared to a quite soft shoe in 2026 -> 🤷 I throw my hands up in desperation because you cant counter a measurement with an opinion and further conclude that someone wearing down 1 pair of running shoes a year might not be the most experienced shoe reviewer.
It was a widely popular mainstream shoe, it was marketed and known as a soft shoe, it was on the other hand actually rather firm (see independent data), I was disappointed and annoyed when I bought it and shared this experience in a thread about Hoka build quality. I am amazed by the blind loyalty to one specific model shoe from years ago 🤣
Yeah I'm not impressed by the speedgoats, mafate 5 has some good qualities but for some reason the tongue is just 1cm/half an inch too short so its either bad lockdown or lacebite making it uncomfortable 🤷
I liked the Nike Zegama 2 in the all round trail shoe category, Kipsummit Max looks pretty sweet as well.
I think the Mafate 5 is actually a good option to be comfortable all 119km's.
I personally don't think the speedgoat 7 or slab genesis are that comfortable if you're wearing them for 10+ hours.
I would suggest Kipsummit Race if you're wanting to go fast (Maybe ACG Ultrafly, I haven't tried it but I hear good things) but these are sacrificing comfort for speed.
Or the Zegama 2 for pure long haul comfort, less cushion than Mafate 5 but still plenty and less aggressive outsole but it seems like that wont be a problem in this race. The advantage is that the upper is much more comfortable and the stack height is lower so its more stable.
The Speedcross 6 is indeed a very firm technical shoe, not a pleasant experience for many.
Speedgoat 6 and 7 are allround decent shoes, as are the Mafate 4 and 5. I would personally prefer to get any of them on a discount.
Over these for a beginner wanting a do-it-all trail shoe I would recommend the Nike Zegama 2, there's a new model coming out soon so you should be able to pick them up fairly cheap around or below 100€/$.
Both Speedgoat and H1 might feel a bit faster on technical terrain, and if you run shorter distances (anything sub ultra) they might suite you better. However for long outings I much prefer the Zegama 2 to the speedgoat and the H1 (even returned my H1's after just trying them on).
If I want fast I look towards Hoka Tecton, Kipsummit Race, Prodigio Pro, Cascadia Elite
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