[moderator's edit: it's one thing to hurl an f-bomb in your post. another thing to hurl it in your thread title. title therefore edited.]
Hoka is a four letter word. Appropriate. I've always had a like / loathe relationship with them. I learned about them first here on ST a few years back. For the most part, I've used them as you would like condoms for your feet and legs, very much disconnected from the sensual experience at hand, but not worried about what you are going to wake up with tomorrow.
And for that, they've worked. Since adding them to my running shoe rotation, I've been generally injury-free. That being said, nothing great ever happens in MY Hokas. My recent pair, the Bondi 4s, I bought on clearance at Nytro in the winter of 2017. I bought them a size too big. They were to be my go to shoe for the second half of the Ultraman run segment in Penticton.
When the day came, I put them on (along with a fresh pair of socks) at about mile 30. They lasted about 400 metres before I threw them into the ditch in a ultra-fatigued and childish fit of rage. What felt sooo “right” on the sales floor at Nytro, felt like foot surgery by a wolverine masquerading as a podiatrist.
Finally, yesterday, after fourteen months of being in storage, I thought I would give them another try. It was going to be a realistic endeavour, a 50 minute run on a mix of pavement and trail. I always feel like shit for the first five minutes of any run and this was no exception. I tuned out any feeling, or lack of feeling that these blue beasts created as I began.
Seven minutes into the run on a nasty downhill, I started to believe in them as they buffered the pounding of my “winter-weight” frame on the decline. Seven minutes after that, I was mildly annoyed as somehow, after being double-tied, the shoelaces came untied.
Shortly after that, on a gnarly trail section, it started to happen. That freaking nasty Hoka induced arch burn. The one that annoyed the hell out of me during the ultra. This time, however, I couldn't just throw the bastards into the ditch, as I didn't have a support crew and I thought running back in sock feet would be worse than running back in the Bondis. I was wrong.
I cut the run short, my feet searing in pain with the unmistakable joy of a blister being born. All within 30 minutes of running. Upon returning home, the first thing I did was take off the shoes, throw them into the garbage, look at them, and said, “fuck you Hokas.” A most cathartic experience.
What's a piece of gear that has caused you pain, discomfort, annoyance or amputation? Fire away!
http://www.fitspeek.com the Fraser Valley's fitness, wellness, and endurance sports podcast
Hoka is a four letter word. Appropriate. I've always had a like / loathe relationship with them. I learned about them first here on ST a few years back. For the most part, I've used them as you would like condoms for your feet and legs, very much disconnected from the sensual experience at hand, but not worried about what you are going to wake up with tomorrow.
And for that, they've worked. Since adding them to my running shoe rotation, I've been generally injury-free. That being said, nothing great ever happens in MY Hokas. My recent pair, the Bondi 4s, I bought on clearance at Nytro in the winter of 2017. I bought them a size too big. They were to be my go to shoe for the second half of the Ultraman run segment in Penticton.
When the day came, I put them on (along with a fresh pair of socks) at about mile 30. They lasted about 400 metres before I threw them into the ditch in a ultra-fatigued and childish fit of rage. What felt sooo “right” on the sales floor at Nytro, felt like foot surgery by a wolverine masquerading as a podiatrist.
Finally, yesterday, after fourteen months of being in storage, I thought I would give them another try. It was going to be a realistic endeavour, a 50 minute run on a mix of pavement and trail. I always feel like shit for the first five minutes of any run and this was no exception. I tuned out any feeling, or lack of feeling that these blue beasts created as I began.
Seven minutes into the run on a nasty downhill, I started to believe in them as they buffered the pounding of my “winter-weight” frame on the decline. Seven minutes after that, I was mildly annoyed as somehow, after being double-tied, the shoelaces came untied.
Shortly after that, on a gnarly trail section, it started to happen. That freaking nasty Hoka induced arch burn. The one that annoyed the hell out of me during the ultra. This time, however, I couldn't just throw the bastards into the ditch, as I didn't have a support crew and I thought running back in sock feet would be worse than running back in the Bondis. I was wrong.
I cut the run short, my feet searing in pain with the unmistakable joy of a blister being born. All within 30 minutes of running. Upon returning home, the first thing I did was take off the shoes, throw them into the garbage, look at them, and said, “fuck you Hokas.” A most cathartic experience.
What's a piece of gear that has caused you pain, discomfort, annoyance or amputation? Fire away!
http://www.fitspeek.com the Fraser Valley's fitness, wellness, and endurance sports podcast