Hoka Skyward X Assessment | Working Sneakers Guru

Hoka One One Skyward X Introduction

The Hoka Bondi X by no means made a lot sense. It was a shoe constructed for gradual runs but it surely had a stiff carbon plate in its midsole- a operating shoe paradox.

After I reviewed it, I didn’t use it once more. For gradual runs, I don’t want a carbon plate. There have been higher choices which had been lighter and extra environment friendly than the Bondi X.

Since then, Hoka has improved by leaps and bounds within the tremendous coach class. Final yr’s Hoka Mach X was one in every of my favorite plated trainers to this point; comfortable, versatile and snappy.

The Skyward X is a model new tremendous coach that replaces the Bondi X. The Bondi X was a flop so it is smart to rebrand it the Skyward X. It’s marketed as a really plush, smooth-riding coach for simple miles, based on the Hoka web site. It’s a part of the brand new technology of Hokas that characteristic the premium PEBA foam within the midsole.

The Skyward X weighs 11.3 ounces (US 9) which is admittedly heavy for a coach today. It has a 48 mm heel stack top, making it unlawful in World Athletics races and it prices $225, the value of a (cheaper) long-distance tremendous shoe.

Hoka One One Skyward X First Impressions

My first run was a straightforward 10K. It was a way more pleasing experience than the Bondi X. The Skyward midsole had extra power return and it felt much less blocky.

It was fairly agency for a PEBA midsole however the EVA body made it really feel actually secure. The match was slim and I additionally needed to cease mid-run to regulate the lacing to enhance the heel lockdown.

What stunned me was how loud it sounded. Foot strikes had been virtually as loud because the Alphafly 3 as a result of massive cavity beneath it.

The shoe it jogged my memory of most was the Saucony Endorphin Shift (which has been discontinued). Each of them have firmish rides, tall midsoles and outstanding forefoot rockers. The Skyward was simply extra of every little thing: extra cushioned, extra energetic and stiffer.

Hoka One One Skyward X Higher

The Skyward X has a very slim match which is typical of Hokas and it doesn’t are available a large model sadly. It suits true to dimension and it’s greatest suited to slim, low-volume ft.

It’s a really built-up, plush higher which was designed with consolation in thoughts. It’s constituted of flat knit which is comfortable however not very breathable. There are each inner and exterior heel counters for optimum assist and the heel counter flares away out of your leg in order to not irritate it. Heel lockdown is sweet however I’ve to make use of a runner’s knot.

The tongue is broad and evenly padded. It jogs my memory of the Nike Pegasus 38 tongue but it surely’s not gusseted. It doesn’t slide round in any respect throughout runs due to its broad wings.

Hoka One One Skyward X Sole Unit

The Skyward performs the very best when doing the kinds of runs that Hoka designed it for: the simplest of straightforward runs. It has an excellent stiff midsole although really easy runs don’t really feel pure and it doesn’t really feel such as you’re in command of the shoe.

While you choose up the tempo, it feels extra pure however its heavy weight makes it really feel cumbersome and sluggish so any kind of speedwork is out of the query. You are able to do quick, quick bursts but it surely’s arduous to carry a quick tempo for prolonged durations.

It’s not typically that you just discover new carbon plate “innovation” in trainers. The Skyward X has a plate which has a bump in the course of it, located within the midfoot.

The thought is that when the midfoot is loaded, the plate flattens and when launched, it propels you ahead. Hoka calls it a suspension system.

In actuality, I don’t really feel it. It could possibly be that I’m not heavy sufficient (60 kg) so I’m not placing the midsole arduous sufficient but it surely may be that the midsole foam is simply too dense and it’s not compressing sufficient.

New Steadiness’s Vitality Arc is an identical idea but it surely works significantly better as a result of their FuelCell foam is quite a bit softer so you possibly can really feel the carbon plate flatten and spring again when loaded.

The Skyward’s midsole is dual-density. It has a layer of medium-soft PEBA foam straight underneath the foot and a firmer EVA body beneath it for stability. It’s a deeply cushioned experience but it surely’s not a squishy-feeling experience such as you get within the Hoka Mach X and the Hoka Rocket X 2 which even have PEBA of their midsoles.

The issue with having an EVA body beneath is that it mutes the sensation of the PEBA on prime of it so the whole PEBA expertise is diluted. It seems like the whole midsole is supercritical EVA.

The Skyward may be very stiff and structured so it seems like a contemporary stability coach; foot strikes at all times really feel very planted in it and it dictates the way in which you strike. One of many negatives is that there’s no floor really feel so it doesn’t really feel very “partaking”. It feels such as you’re operating on prime of a shoe and never inside it.

The longest run I did within the Skyward was 27 kilometres. It’s a superb long term shoe, not an excellent one. The forefoot rocker is energy-saving however I choose a barely softer experience and a wider final which is extra comfy for lengthy distances.

In the direction of the top of the run, my ft had swelled up and the bucket seat began to bother me.

The Skyward has the Hoka bucket seat midsole. When you’ve ever run within the Clifton or Bondi, you’d have skilled the identical Hoka characteristic. The bucket seat has raised edges designed to centre and assist your ft however it may be troublesome for broad ft or flat arches. Within the Skyward, it solely annoys me throughout lengthy runs.

The outsole takes inspiration from the Bondi 8 but it surely has much more rubber protection on the outer lateral heel and the medial facet of the forefoot.

Outsole sturdiness is average- on my pair, the piece of rubber on the lateral heel (the place I heel strike) is {smooth} however that’s regular for me. Grip is sweet even on moist surfaces.

Hoka One One Skyward X Conclusions

The Skyward X doesn’t really feel as polished because the Cielo X1 or the Mach X.

I don’t suppose that it wants a carbon plate. Its midsole is thick sufficient to stop it from flexing so even with out the plate, the forefoot rocker would work. The plate makes it really feel awkward at very gradual paces.

I feel it fits heavier runners greater than mild runners similar to myself. I don’t really feel the convex plate at work after I load the midsole and the midsole feels a bit too agency for me for simple runs, which is what I shall be utilizing it for.

I choose the Skyward X to the Bondi X as a result of it’s softer and has extra bounce however the negatives are that it’s heavier and it additionally prices much more than its predecessor.

At $225, I don’t suppose the Skyward is value its worth. There are less expensive choices which really feel extra pure and extra partaking: the ASICS GlideRide and Endorphin Shift 3 are examples.

The New Steadiness SC Coach v2 is analogous in that it additionally has a convex carbon plate but it surely has extra versatility resulting from its decrease weight and its extra energetic experience.