Hoka - Mafate X

good eye! Yes. they did well during the race. when I switched to the Speedgoats at mile 50 is when my feat started to hurt. maybe that was the speed goats, maybe it would have happened anyway. I don't know. but my feeet were feeling pretty good for the first 50 in the Mafate X.

Not really, they have done them fo a while, it's for flat not technical trail that you could do with normal shoes except they have more protected foam that would otherwise get destroyed by rocks. The naming is really confusing though, mafate speed is great for technical trail while the X (this one) would honestlmy be dangerous to use on something technical So overall it's not a big market, at least regular trail shoes can also be used for hiking, these ones havea very specific use case

I'm part of the target market. I have a 30 Mile in August at Lean Horse (Custer, SD) on a gravel railroad bed followed by a 50K at the Wolverine State 100 (Alpena, MI) on crushed limestone and then the Dead Horse 50 Mile (Moab, UT) on slickrock. While I'll be wearing the Adidas Terrex Agravic Speed Ultra for them as I'm a small guy and need a lighter shoe, the Hoka Mafate X trail is going to be ideal for a medium or heavier runner running ultras on similar surfaces. Because I live in Michigan, I do a lot of my trail running on forest single track. I wouldn't wear a shoe like this for training. The always dependable Saucony Peregrine for easy runs or a shoe like the ASICS Fujispeed 3 for faster paced trail workouts is a safer option. But there are many ultramarathons that aren't on gnarley forest single track where plushness is much more important for long-haul events than trail feel or stability. But also where the trail surface would quickly chew apart a max stacked road shoe.

There's absolutely no running shoe that really works on wet, slippery rocks, you'd need crampons for that or whatever. I just did a 32k/2500m mountain crossing recently in heavy rain, and it was absolutely abysmal, although I'm an avid runner and mountaineer. It took me over an hour more than usual and I really reached my limit several times during that run. For everything else there are special rubber compounds that are more sticky than regular running shoes (like Vibram Megagrip). A lot of performative trail running shoes (Scarpa Spin Ultra 2, Hoka Tecton X, Hoka Mafate X, Dynafit Ultra Pro 2) use this very sole, others use a similar system (La Sportiva Prodigio Pro). They perform very well in a dry alpine environment, but have, as I said before, their limits in rain and mud. Also the additional grip adds to the already high abrasion, which means your soles will disintegrate even faster than regular runners. Not as bad as the early Salomon Speedcrosses, but don't expect to do 1000k in these boots. Edit: spelling

Mafate X is a great Clydesdale shoe. I've been loving mine so far. Speedlands as well.

It’s great to hear they worked out well for you! I went with yellow too. Put about 40 miles on mine so far and they feel great. Looking forward to using them on my first 50k. It was a choice between Mafate X, Speedgoat, or the Rocket X Trail.

I’ve really enjoyed the new HOKA Mafate X. They’re expensive, but really good

I have the cascadia 17 (now retired from my rotation) and the Gel 13 (bought to replace the cascadia’s). I can’t really comment on fit other than to say I went half a size up in both, but I should have gone for my usual size in the Gel13’s as they’re slightly too big. The cascadia is a better shoe. the Gel13 has really terrible grip in the mud. I only use it for dry / non-muddy runs. It’s a fairly average shoe. doesn’t really sparkle. not plush. not sure where it excels, if at all. I prefer my HOKA’s overall (Mafate 5, Mafate X and Challenger 8) but none grip in the wet/mud like the cascadia’s did. The Mafate’s are SUPREMELY comfortable though. its a shame as the Gel 13’s look really really good.

Depends on the shoe… I did a trail marathon wearing HOKA Mafate x shoes - they have a 49mm stack height! They felt extremely stable.

I ran 6 technical miles in the Mafate X a few days ago. My current fave trail shoes are Mafate Speed 4 and Adidas Agravic Speed Ultra, with more mellow days in Speedgoat 5. Verdict? Mixed. This is by far the SQUISHIEST and highest stack height shoe I've ever worn — and that would take getting used to. Even in my many different pairs of Hokas over the years, I've tended toward their more minimal models: Torrent, Instinct, Speed Instinct, etc. The tread was meh for steep/tech trails. The lugs are pointed like skinny arrows, rather than the massive mud-tire tread of the Mafate Speed. And the tread does not cover the entirety of the foam, which makes me wonder if they will break down or delaminate like other recent models. There's a big rock-grabbing hole in the foam, to boot. Now, for smooth and rolling "California carpet" types of trails? Might be great. The rocker is noticeable and add a good feeling of propulsion. But in these shoes I don't feel FAST, like I do in the Agravic Speed Ultra. And super rocky technical trails might eat this shoe alive. FWIW, the high stack height did NOT make my ankles feel unstable. The Adidas are more "tippy" than the Mafate X. That's a cursory take on my run. I was happily not in love with them (cuz I didn't want to plop down $225, but if they were magical I would consider it).

No particular recommendations because we have different needs, but as a New England runner, be careful optimizing for something like stack height. I would be guaranteed to bite it on our downhills in Agravic Speed Ultras or Mafate X, it's just too much shoe and too unstable when dealing with the rockhopping. If you do a lot of less technical running too then you'll find use for them, though. What's your race?