Sole Searching: How HOKA Is Perfecting Its Most Popular Trail Running Shoe

This article is the latest in an ongoing series of deep dives into past, present, and future icons called Sole Searching, made in partnership with Vibram. Earlier features outline the founding history of Bedrock Sandals, how Arc'teryx is creating a new category with the Vertex Alpine, and more.

The modern history of running shoes may have started with a waffle iron, but it might as well be discussed in B.H. and A.H.—that’s before HOKA and after. In the decade since the first HOKA shoes were introduced, inspired by powder skis and mountain bike tires and made for running down peaks in the French Alps, the ubiquitous thick sole has changed the entire footwear industry. But proof of the original idea is still easy to find at HOKA—just look at the Speedgoat. With a high-stack midsole and grippy Vibram outsole, the lightweight Speedgoat is exactly the shoe those first protos set out to be.

That first Speedgoat was the result of a collaboration between HOKA and trail runner Karl Meltzer, the brand’s first sponsored athlete. Nicknamed "Speedgoat," Meltzer has won more 100-mile races than any other ultrarunner and even set a speed record for the Appalachian Trail (subsequently broken).

Now seven years after Metlzer’s namesake design was initially released in 2017, the lightweight Speedgoat 6 continues to be a standout favorite among trail runners worldwide. It’s loaded with all the latest tech, including an all-new upper and midsole, and research-driven adjustments to the Vibram outsole's lug pattern. "We modified the spacing and angles of the lugs to optimize their placement for better traction and debris evacuation," says Daniel Yorba, senior designer at Vibram. Simply put, if the first Speedgoat was the product of the novel ideas, it is incremental adjustments and proven data that has created the Speedgoat 6.

"Between each iteration of the Speedgoat, it might not always feel like a huge leap in terms of technology or design," Ryan Crouch, footwear designer at HOKA, tells Field Mag. "However, relatively speaking, the Speedgoat 6 proposes a leap in evolution compared to the first model. Obsessing over fit, material flexibility, and underfoot experience has resulted in the most recent update."

Any running shoe that earns a following will also find its fair share of critique, especially after an update—or six. Improvement isn't without risk. Nodding to the disruptive nature of the first Speedgoat, Crouch says, "We always want to challenge the consumer to see our franchises in a new light." He notes that some feedback is taken earnestly and directly, like how the mesh upper on the Speedgoat 5 tended to stretch out over time and with use. "To solve for this,” Crouch continues, “we updated to a more structured mesh with a thin cage-like backing, reinforcing the silhouette.”

But not every material is overhauled with each new release. One design detail that has remained constant through each iteration is the beloved Vibram rubber outsole. "We’ve integrated key technology such as Vibram Megagrip within the Speedgoat franchise since its debut," confirms Jared Smith, Global Product Line Manager for Performance Footwear at HOKA. When Vibram makes improvements, though, HOKA's designers are ready to adopt them. Like Traction Lug, introduced to the Speedgoat 6. "The technology adds microfeatures to the sides of lugs, which in turn increases the surface area," explains Yorba. "Having more surface area provides more traction in really loose terrain, such as the steep ups and downs found on many of the UTMB courses worldwide."

Other elements seem to have appeared out of the thin mountain air. "Speedgoat" was just a funny nickname for a diehard trail runner before it became the name of a shoe, but in version six the caprine allusion is taken literally with a new lug pattern inspired by the supportive structure of a mountain goat's hoof. Good thing Meltzer wasn't nicknamed after a duck.

Though the Speedgoat’s once revolutionary big-sole may be commonplace among the trail running market, the shoe remains a testament to the once-peculiar vision HOKA's founders had and its popularity endures with every update. All that incremental change is hard to see but it's easy to feel cruising up to a ridgeline. And it's something that Speedgoat fans new and old can count on. "We’ll continue to tinker," Smith says, "as we always have."

Shop Speedgoat 6 from HOKA