Hoka Mafate X Review | Winning 100 Milers and Our Daily Runs

If one of the top female finishers of a 100 mile race finds the Hoka Mafate X to have enough cushion, plus pop…well who am I to disagree? Actually I’m a shoe reviewer with a lot of opinions, but on this one I have to say we’re aligned.

A few months ago I saw the outsole of this shoe at an event and well…it was love at first site. They dropped in some Easter eggs with the lugs being shaped like pizza and tacos. As you’ll see below the tacos look like they have smiley faces, but that wasn’t really the intended design.

Anyhow, what I know after a few months of running in these shoes is that they feel pretty dang great.

So great in fact we watched a number of elite Hoka athletes dawn them for the Canyons 100 miler! Yes, even at 49mm stack height it’s not considered illegal in the trail world.

With that mind blowing bit of information, let’s get in to this.

Hoka Mafate X Overview

Sitting down with a couple of Hoka’s top long distance runners, it was interesting to hear their take on the Mafate X after having spent some time developing my own opinions from running in it.

All said it was a go to recovery trail day shoe or a shoe for super long mileage to keep their legs feeling good. It’s not as bouncy as the Tecton X3 (which is a seriously fun, fast shoe), but far more durable.

Introduced 15 years ago, the Hoka Mafate has been a go to for many trail runners. It’s designed to tackle technical trails with a moderate cushion and snug fit. The Mafate X on the other hand is better for gravel and has a wider fit to allow for foot swelling over those long miles.

Seriously, they had me at pizza. Imagine the fun little designs we’re leaving all over the trails!!Now while they said good for gravel, honestly we took these 3.5mm lugs on some sketchy downhills and uphills with zero issues. I felt confident in the traction and Annie wore them through a rainy portion of the race feeling good. The shoes are in fact designed for quick drainage which she can attest to, I have not yet needed to take them through any major downpours.

If you like cushion, this will not disappoint.

And yet, somehow the shoe doesn’t feel slow. Let’s talk about this contradiction.

Like most carbon plated shoes, they used two foams: super critical EVA on the bottom and PEBA for the top layer. Sandwiching the forked carbon plate between these two provides that combo of super soft feeling with stability.

The forked plate is designed to allow for more mobility and spring in the foot over trail terrain. A really smart design choice that you can feel hitting big rocky areas.Additionally, it has a slight meta rocker. This isn’t old school rocker walking shoes, it has a similar feel to the Hoka Skyward X. That’s another huge cushioned shoe with a plate that always surprises in how it can still pick up the pace…forward motion helps! The rocker is helping that transition from heel to toe, which prevents you from feeling weighed down.

49mm is a big stack.

Like way above the 40mm that’s allowed for elites in road racing. Which means we are talking about a lot of shoe. As someone who can trip on flat ground, I was pretty impressed to find the body adapts very quickly to this shift.

In fact, there’s some good data around this. So if height is your concern, let it go. Focus instead on what shoe feels great to you and makes you want to keep putting in the miles.

Which Mafate is Best?

This line has a few different iterations now, so here’s a quick comparison:

• Mafate X – Carbon plated for long mileage and super cushion
• Mafate Speed – Lightest for speed on rugged trails
• Mafate Speed Light – Incredible traction and probably good hiking shoe for most or a short rugged trail race

You’ll be noticing this trend with a lot of brands right now. One overall model that they then tweak for different usages.

Mafate X Fit

If you’ve been running in the original Mafate or the Speedgoat this is going to feel a bit wider. It’s not sloppy or too big, but it’s just more accommodating.

The tongue is very thin and lightly padded, plus attached on each side to prevent any movement. It’s a good tongue. Seriously, some of these thin ones get sharp or lack enough top of foot protection, but this felt really nice. The heel is padded and the cup feels very secure! Having just tested a couple other trail shoes where I noticed my heel feeling unstable, it was a pleasure to step back in to these.

In fact, you can see the molded pieces on the outside of the shoe which they call a Rearfoot-Focused Active Foot Frame™.  Every brand has their different tools, but for Hoka it’s small shifts in the height of the midsole foam to ensure your getting that locked in feeling.

The laces are plenty long to do a heel lock, but I actually didn’t need to! Even with some steep up and downhills, I never really noticed my foot pulling.

Mafate X Feel

This is the first year we’ve seen Hoka come out with 2 shoes that have an 8mm drop instead of their standard 5mm (the Clifton is the other!). This sounds like a small thing, but it’s actually a big shift for many folks.

The reasoning is simple. More cushion requires some changes to ensure that your foot doesn’t just sink right down to the ground. All of that extra stuff underfoot then requires a bit more heel drop to maintain overall stability.

Did I notice it while running? No.

But it’s certainly a different feeling than the hundreds of miles I’ve put in the Speedgoat. That now almost feels like a minimal shoe! And for me it’s really important to have a rotation of both feelings. Too much time in the big cushion seems to really tax the ankles and you want to have some days where you feel lighter on your feet.

Really what you need to know it is feels like cushion.

It feels like traction. It feels like stability and the ability to go long distances with a little less fatigue in the legs. But it’s not a snappy speed shoe, it’s a long run shoe.

It’s pricey. But durable. And really comfy. Should all our reviews be that short?!!

We absolutely love your feedback. How do you feel about the max cushioned trail shoes? Have you tried any that you really like?

Looking for additional trail talk?

• Best Hoka Trail Running Shoes
• First 50K training plan
• Topo MTN Racer 4 (looking for speed and wide toe box)

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