RUNNING ON CLOUDS : HOKA ONE ONE CLAYTON (WOMEN) – SHOE REVIEW

Hey, good-looker!

There’s a reason why Hoka One One shoes are the shoes of choice for triathletes.

And I won’t deny it too, that I absolutely love my 2^nd pair of Hoka One One’s – the Clayton in a lovely Ultramarine / Neon Coral color combination.

The mesh-like netting that forms most of the shoe body makes it as lightweight

In this review, I am not going to lay out the details of the shoe specifications. You can find out about that in this link :- www.hokaoneone.com/womens-road/clayton/1012277.html. And there are 2 more sweet fun colors available for this shoe.

Instead, here, I will attempt to tell you how I feel about running with the Clayton.

Frontal view and the flat, very stretchable laces

This road running shoe feels much lighter and softer than the Odyssey (6.3oz for a US size 7) although equally as bulky looking and I think this is partly because of the material constructed around the shoe body resembles more of a single layer lattice-mesh instead of the usual layers of padding that a traditional sports shoe would give you. The material also makes the shoe very breathable indeed.

Firm heel cup held my feet in place to prevent foot movement while running

The Clayton is very responsive and the form fitting heel keeps my feet from rocking about. Added to that, the soft heel cushioning makes my runs, and especially my long hilly runs, extremely comfortable, smooth and light. It almost feels as though I am running on the clouds!

Enjoyed the smooth, fast ride after a long run

However, I found the forefoot a tad too roomy for my narrow feet and although thankfully, I didn’t get any bruised toes from running thus far 180.3km mileage in it since May 2016, I think the shoe might be better suited to wider feet runners.

Pretty roomy front toebox for wider feet

Also, unlike what some shoe reviewers experienced, I, thankfully did not get any blisters on my arches every time I ran in it. Perhaps I am not so much of a flat foot after all, but it did get me thinking as to whether this shoe might be more suitable to a runner with a higher foot arch.

Initially, I did find the inner arch of the Clayton a little annoying because I could feel the edges on my arches each time I put the shoes on.

More suitable for higher arch feet?

But having said that, once I started my run, I could not feel the edges pressing against my foot arches and the light, smooth ride and good cushioning of the shoe, completely over-rode any initial misgivings I had.

Stiff, wafer-thin shoe tongue

The shoe tongue was another concern of mine. Having experienced a very stiff shoe tongue in the Odyssey previously, that proved to cut as sharp as a knife when it stabbed painfully into the front of my ankle causing a permanent scar tissue to form on the bone, each time I ran with it, I was very wary of the Clayton’s shoe tongue.

So great was my concern that I decided to “permanently fold the edge of the shoe tongue upwards” to prevent it from accidentally getting anywhere near the front of my ankles. This method proved good for me and I have been happily running in it with no problems thus far.

And yes, I am known for my creative modification of shoes.

In this picture, it shows how I have folded the shoe tongue upwards
to prevent it from "licking" the tops of my ankles!

As for the Odyssey, well, I shoved a shoe tree against the tongue and the heel of the shoe to permanently open the shoe tongue upwards. This worked very well because after that, I never experienced the same painful stabbing again.

Enjoying the view in the park after a 16-miler in the Clayton

People might be curious as to why I couldn’t do try the same method with a shoe tree on the Clayton. Well, that was because the Clayton’s shoe tongue is wafer-thin and has very minimal padding. It therefore, could not be bent into shape with a shoe tree. But if you fold the edge of the tongue like paper, that worked instead.

Enjoying the feeling of this shoe after a 16-miler hilly run

Now for the lacing bits. I love the springy elastic feeling of the laces. And the length is just right. Not overly long nor too short. The laces also do not come untied easily even though it is a flat design. This is amazing and makes for a happy uninterrupted run.

Good sole and good traction

I ran with the shoe a few times after the rain and I must add that I am impressed by the shoe traction on the slippery slopes.

All in all, this shoe is great for training, intervals, hill-work and even speedwork! I am looking forward to clocking more miles in it.

Cooling down and enjoying the view after one of my morning runs

And oops! Yes, I have another shoe to review soon. Stay tuned!