Customer Reviews Hoka Speedgoat 4

I have tried many different brands of shoes and have really struggled to find the right grand for me. I am someone who has had multiple stress fractures and stress responses in both my feett. My mom has been using Hokas for years and finally convinced me to try a pair. I have to say I love the Speedgoat 4 as a trail running shoe. They are extremely comfortable and have nice support. However, the reason that I'm giving these 3 stars is because the tongue of the shoe is sharp and cut into my ankle. I tried everything to prevent the shoes from digging in: taping, bandaids, higher socks, you name it. I have no idea what material the tongue is made out of on these shoes, but the tongue is a design flaw. I have never had this issue with ANY pair of shoe I've ever bought before. That being said, I would recommend Hoka as a brand to someone, but maybe try a different shoe so you don't end up with cuts on your ankles (unless you don't care).

I'm so disappointed! Have heard so many good things about Hoka Speed goats and really needed a pair of great trail running shoes, but I'll need to return these Speed goat 4's The material the tongue is made from feels like wetsuit material with no padding. It's stiff and pushes right into the top of my foot where my ankle bends to meet my leg...there's no bend in the material. When I walk the tongue hits my ankle with each step. I wish I could reshape it or change the material so it has some give Will have to return. (Bought from a local running store, not online).

I wore a single brand new pair of Hoka Speedgoat 4 during my entire thru-hike of the Colorado trail. The GOOD things about these shoes-very comfortable spongy bottoms for long miles and lots of rocks. Good traction and stability even in snow. The wide toe box is especially comfortable for my advanced bunions. The BAD things about these shoes-tread was completely worn down on the heels and toes by mile 240 causing loss of traction on steep slopes. When they get wet the uppers stretch and you have to continually readjust the laces to obtain a proper fit. The shoes do not dry out quickly after a rainstorm or stream crossing. They averaged at least a day and a half to dry which is not good for repeated exposure to water. The dampness contributed to blisters and extreme shoe odor. The UNFORGIVABLE is the sharp tongue. I will have permanent scars on the front of my ankles from these shoes. I leukotaped the front of my legs and trimmed the tongues but still developed significant skin cuts from the tongue material particularly from hiking up and down sharp inclines and declines. Good shoes do not injure the wearer. I will not recommend these shoes or purchase another pair until the tongue is redesigned. Otherwise these shoes are excellent for single day ultra-marathon events but not for extended thru hikes or exposure to repeated dousing or water exposure due to the slow drying.

They are wonderful; like walking on clouds. I am overweight with bad joints. These shoes are light and relieves my joint pains. I can even walk longer.

My first hokas . Ive been having tons of foot pain, fatigue, on the balls of my feet, hiking, working, running and these are changing all that! Maby getting the pressure back to my heels? The tongue jabbed me but its soft like neoprene. Why didnt others just trim it?

I purchased the Cliftons for road running and absolutely love them-so I thought I would feel the same about the Speedgoat 4. They are narrow on me and the tongue dug into my ankles causing deep red lines-They also gave me terrible blisters on the back of my heels. Unfortunately I'm sending back.

I forgot to mention a couple of things in my first review: Though I need this Speedgoat 4 in wide width, my heels are narrow. Therefore, my heels were slipping when I first tried these outside, BUT all I needed to do was take the laces into the upper 2 eyelets and no more slipping! They feel so much better, very secure now. Plus, these laces, as with the Challenger ATR, stay TIED!! Such a bonus!! Hoka thinks of everything!!! And, good grief, I was spending $150 for the Brooks Glycerin and it isn't 1/100th of this Hoka shoe!!!

I love the goats. I was a little worried about some reviews mentioning that the tongue rubs their feet. I'm guessing if you wear socks that are "no show" the tongue could contact skin and rub. I wear ankle length socks and the tongue does not irritate my foot at all. I've been a fan of HOKA for several years now. I have Plantar Fascia and the Hoka's thick soles prevent heel pain. My partner has the previous model Goat's and is wearing these hiking instead of hiking boots. We work in Yellowstone NP in the summers and hike quite a bit in rocky terrain. Will be wearing my Goat's instead of my Merrell's on the trails this year! :)

I have the speed goat, the Bondi, and the recovery slide and I can truly say they've changed my life. I was a runner for many years but had to stop due to major knee pain/patella femoral syndrome issues. Knee pain so bad it would wake me up in the middle of the night, and I was only in my late 20s. Now after finding Hoka, after reaearching best shoes for knee pain, in my early 30s I am like a walking billboard for these shoes. I have zero knee pain, I can hike (recently did a 20 miler), run, and squat and lunge to my heart's content. Thank you Hoka!

Same great speedgoat shoe but they changed the construction of the tongue. Tongue is super sharp where it hits the ankle and cuts in. I would change tongue construction back to prior models

I just purchased these in store today. Have been wearing them around the house for the past two hours. Loved them until I realized the fronts of my ankles were becoming raw. The tongue feels like some type of thin wet suit type material that doesn't bend nor is flexible. The edges are sharp and dig into and are cutting into my skin - and I'm wearing decent mid calf socks with them. This is a horrible design flaw and it makes me wonder if Hoka didn't product test before producing these models. So disappointed....guess I'll go back to my reliable brooks cascadias.

I am a hiker with very sensitive feet. My feet have always been my body's weakest link and were always deeply sore after a long hike--until I switched to Hoka trail running shoes. I have both the Speedgoats and the Challengers, both of which I love for different situations. The Speedgoats are simply an amazing shoe (paired with a Protalus insert). The grippy soles are perfect on desert terrain. The padding is so helpful for any rough landscape. They feel like feathers, which helps me feel less tired. And my feet only ache at the end of the day, which is a huge improvement over the pain and deep soreness I previously experienced with many different brands/types of hiking shoes. I can hike longer distances as a result. I usually wear an 8.5 and went with a 9, which feels good on my feet. Although I agree that the tongue is a strange material, I have not experienced the same issues as other reviewers. I did not like these shoes at first because they felt so stiff but after about ten miles, they felt good enough to keep. I just ended an eight week work-related trip in Death Valley and put many hard miles on these shoes, including backpacking and 200 miles of cross-country day-hiking. I also wore the same pair for about 125 trail miles in Zion NP last autumn (two backpacking trips and lots of day-hiking). The shoes are showing quite a bit of wear from the difficult terrain but my feet feel great. Other shoes might last longer but feeling better makes more frequent replacement fine with me. I have converted four friends to these shoes and they all agree that they are perfect for hiking and even backpacking, if they fit your feet. As I said, these shoes are a miracle, at least for me.

I have been wearing the Speedgoat 4 for about 2 months (~75 miles running, plus some hikes) and couldn't love them more. I wore an earlier version of this shoe and didn't like how narrow it felt; these are wider and feel much more comfortable. They have a perfect amount of cushion and are grippy enough to feel secure on slippery, rocky trails in Pennsylvania. Other reviewers have mentioned that the tongue can be sharp; I find that a 'mini-crew' height sock eliminates this risk (and protects the ankles a bit more). I can't wait to get another color!

Extremely happy with this shoe. I'm on my feet as an RN and need a supportive comfortable she. I wish I had discovered this brand years ago.

I've put about 180 miles on these so far, entirely SoCal & Sierras mountain hiking this spring and summer. They took a couple hikes to fully break-in. Most recently, I wore them for the Mt. Whitney day hike. This trail has about as many types of terrain as you could encounter in a day. They are super-grippy, comfortable, and offer the right balance between being cushioned and responsive. My feet felt tired, but fine by the end of a long day. There is a bit of fraying around the toe, where the rubber meets the shoe. Given how hard I am on shoes, this is not unexpected. They will still last for many more miles. Will likely get the same or very similar HOKA when these wear out. Can't speak to how they will perform in cooler/cold weather; haven't submerged for any river crossings to see how fast they dry. I always wear them with mid-weight, mid-height, medium-cushion wool socks, which works great. No blisters yet!

I walk walk walk these are perfect.