I have the Hoka Stinson Tarmac and been having problems with rolling ankles on trails. It’s happening too frequently. Can’t really avoid it no matter how careful I am on planting my feet.
Anyone know of a way to deal with this? Replace the fast ties with standard laces? Remove my orthotics? Buy mafates or the Stinson trail when running trails?
thanks.
I can’t afford to roll my ankles, which is why I did not buy the Hokas or Altra Torin. If I rolled an ankle from “up high” like that, it would be fairly catastrophic.
Best solution…use trail shoes on trails, and use these highly cushioned shoes on road where I think they have their best usage. When I was sponsored by Newton I had an agreement with them that I would not use their shoes on any races with cross country or uneven run courses (uneven/pitted grass). I don’t think these highly cushioned shoes are ideal in that environment. Using an automotive analogy , no point taking a highly cushioned cadillac off road.
i’ve had a lot of trouble rolling ankles for pretty much my whole life, and i run almost exclusively on trails. and in hokas. with no trouble. however, i run in the bondi. i find this an exceedingly stable shoe. more so than the stinson.
It depends on what causes you to roll your ankles. If the sole is slipping out laterally, then perhaps the trail Hoka’s would fix it.
More likely, your ankles aren’t quite strong enough to keep all that shoe underneath your foot. (So when you step on something uneven, you cannot recover.) If that is the case, then I don’t think any other big shoe would help.
I’m not sure what’s causing my ankle to roll but perhaps I have weak ankles. I thought the soft cushioning of the hoka would absorb any uneven or loose rocks but I guess that isn’t the case. I notice it also happens when I used to wear softer neutral shoes like the Brooks launch. Since I’m used to wearing stability shoes, maybe it has to do with the lack of a post or something.
Anycase, thanks for the responses. I heard Hoka might be coming out with a stability version of their shoes next year. Anyone heard anything about this?
I was having this problem too. I switched to the standard laces and no more issues. Interestingly enough, Yankz thinking I would use them to race but I couldn’t get the same grip with the elastic laces as with the standard laces. Though they are heaven on my knees, they feel clunky to me and I’ll continue to use them mainly for recovery runs.
I don’t have any issues with rolling ankles but I agree with Dan that the Bondi is a more stable shoe than the Stinson. My first Hoka’s were Stinson EVO’s that I ordered online. By the time I got my second pair the running store near me stocked them and I was able to try them on. Once I tried the Bondi, the Stinson’s felt kind of loosey goosey to me. I do 98% of my runs on the trail and I think the Bondi B is a far better shoe. I would hate to tell you to make another major investment in a shoe that’s not working for you but if you can get to a store that has them you’ll probably see what I mean.
I have the Torins and there isn’t any more of a chance of rolling your ankle in them than there is in any other shoe. I also run in Kinvaras and while there is more cushioning in the Torin, they don’t sit any higher than anything else. Can’t speak to the Hokas.
Thanks, ill check out the bondis when it’s time to get a new pair. I switched the laces and took out my orthotics today so ill see if that helps.
I picked the Stinson over the bondis because it provides a softer cushy feel. I guess the trade off is a less stable shoe.
I’ve ran with orthotics in all my shoes except my Hoka’s- no need for them. I run exclusively in Hoka now- Bondi B (Race) Stinson Tarmac (Tarmac) Stinson Evo (Trail). I think if you remove the additional support which is likely causing you to over supinate you will solve your problem. Hoka’s are a game changer for me as a larger athlete 6’1" 176lbs. Currently training for IMLT and have 2 23+ mile runs in this week and legs are good! NO way I could have done that with my Kayano’s or anything else for that matter… 
I am going to echo what a couple of other have said. I have had problems with rolling my ankles for over 20 years. I have been running in the Bondis for three years and never rolled an ankle in them. I use them for both trails and roads.
i’ve had a lot of trouble rolling ankles for pretty much my whole life, and i run almost exclusively on trails. and in hokas. with no trouble. however, i run in the bondi. i find this an exceedingly stable shoe. more so than the stinson.
Ditto. Try the Bondi B. I haven’t found many people that have had luck with the Stinson. The Bondi B seems to be the dominate favorite.
I got the Mafate 2’s a month ago on clearance to try out the brand. Ran with them in an Xterra and rolled my ankles at least 4 times on the trail. Might have been me being tired after the bike, but no matter how much I tried to concentrate on not happening, the uneven ground made it difficult. The shoes are great for me at 6’3 220 and helping huge with Morton’s neuromas in both feet, but I don’t think I’ll spend alot of time trail running in them, at leastnot on tired legs. They do let me run more often without much pain on hard flat surfaces. It’s the first shoe I can say that about, and I’ve tried alot of them.
I’ve got 1200 miles on the original Bondi, Bondi S, and Bondi S2. Observations:
The wide platform is stable, protecting from rolling an ankle. But, if you do roll it, there is a lot of leverage and sprains are more severe than on a lower shoe. I have “problem” ankles and have rolled them three times in my Hokas, taking me out for 6-8 weeks each time.
I hate the unisex last. It seems like a cost saving compromise that fits neither men nor women correctly. (I have huge Hoka calluses on the outside edges of my big and little toes from the narrow toe box.)
I have to tape the “knuckles” of a couple of my toes every time I run in them as the seam where the tongue is sewn to the upper cuts into the top of my toes when the shoes flex.
They are huge, heavy shoes, especially if you have to size up to make up for the narrow toe box. The weights listed on the Hoka website must be for a size 6.
They are hot. The upper material doesn’t breathe well enough for me in hot weather.
Despite the problems above, I like the cushioning on my old joints, and I like the fact that I can bomb downhill when racing. For me, anyway, they seem to be a few seconds per mile slower than Newtons (which gave me calf and heel troubles), but faster than just about everything else I’ve tried. YMMV.
How do you know when it’s time to replace you horas? I’ve probably got about 300 miles on mine and the outer sole is starting to separate from the Eva foam on the heel side. Still, it looks like the uppers would go before the foam does because there so much foam on the sole.
How do you know when it’s time to replace you horas? I’ve probably got about 300 miles on mine and the outer sole is starting to separate from the Eva foam on the heel side. Still, it looks like the uppers would go before the foam does because there so much foam on the sole.
The tread does seem to wear fast. But ignoring that, I’ve swapped them out when the midsoles start to collapse and the shoes either don’t feel springy any more or noticeably cant towards the medial side. I got only 260 miles on my first pair before the cant was unbearable, but I got 700 miles out of my second pair.
Try running in shoes without a 37mm stack height. That should fix the problem.
I’m intrigued by the discussion here. Especially when it comes to ankle turning, toe taping etc. Why would you stick with a shoe that doesn’t fit properly or one that doesn’t feel properly? I understand why you find Hoka good. I’ve run 300 miles in the Stinson and Bondi combined and find really good things about both of them. I’m just curious why you would stick with it if it doesn’t work? That goes for any running shoe really.
I’ll echo what others have alluded to. The bondi’s have such a wide platform you’d be f’d if you actually rolled your ankle. I’m honestly not sure how you would in most conditions. I have 1 very bad ankle that I repeatedly sprained playing hoops. I’ve never once rolled it in bondi’s…but if I did, I’d assume it would be terrible. They are great shoe’s for big guys (I’m just shy of 200lbs).
Similar to the experience of others, my ankles rolled outward in the Stinson on slanted trails and the Bondi did not feel much better… despite my flatten, overpronated feet. Also, I found the Hokas unstable when running down steep rutted trails. IMO, there are much better specialty shoes for trail running to choose from.