Our verdict
Pros
- Ténis hoka cavu One One Rincon 3 turquesa claro branco mulher
- Effective lockdown
- Stable and smooth ride
- Superior comfort
- Plenty protective underfoot
- Excellent feel on roads
- zapatillas de running hoka cavu constitución fuerte talla 47 más de 100
- Ténis hoka cavu Gaviota 3 cinzento turquesa violeta mulher
Cons
- Ride lacks excitement
- Not durable outsole
- Greater-than-expected drop
- Narrow toebox
Audience verdict
- Top 12% most popular running shoes
Comparison
The most similar running shoes compared
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Audience score | 85 Good! | 92 Superb! | 82 Good! | 89 Great! | |
Price | $145 | $150 | $100 | $80 | |
Trail terrain | LightModerate | Moderate | Light | LightModerate | |
Arch support | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | |
Weight lab Weight brand | 8.8 hoka cavu Women's Speedgoat 5 Hiking Shoes in Deep Teal Water Garden 8.8 hoka cavu Women's Speedgoat 5 Hiking Shoes in Deep Teal Water Garden | 10.1 oz / 286g 10.1 oz / 286g | 9.9 oz / 282g 10.4 oz / 294.8g | 11.1 hoka cavu Women's ORA Recovery Slides Black 10.6 oz / 300g | |
Drop lab Drop brand | 8.8 mm 5.0 mm | 9.6 mm 9.5 mm | 9.2 mm 8.0 mm | 10.4 mm ‐ | |
Strike pattern | HeelMid/forefoot | HeelMid/forefoot | HeelMid/forefoot | Heel | |
Midsole softness | Soft | Soft | Balanced | Balanced | |
Difference in midsole softness in cold | Normal | Normal | Big | Normal | |
Toebox durability | Good | Very good | Bad | Very bad | |
Heel padding durability | Decent | Good | Bad | Decent | |
Outsole durability | - | Good | Decent | - | |
Breathability | Warm | Warm | Moderate | Moderate | |
hoka cavu partner del nuovo circuito internazionale targato UTMB | Medium | Wide | Medium | Medium | |
Toebox width at the big toe | Narrow | Wide | Medium | Narrow | |
Stiffness | Flexible | Flexible | Moderate | Moderate | |
Difference in stiffness in cold | Big | Normal | Normal | Big | |
Torsional rigidity | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | |
Heel counter stiffness | Stiff | Stiff | Stiff | Stiff | |
Lug depth | 3.1 mm | 3.2 mm | 2.7 mm | 3.0 mm | |
Heel stack lab Heel stack brand | 32.9 mm 31.0 mm | 34.6 mm 37.0 mm | 32.1 mm 30.0 mm | 33.3 mm ‐ | |
Forefoot lab Forefoot brand | 24.1 mm 26.0 mm | 25.0 mm 27.5 mm | 22.9 mm 22.0 mm | 22.9 mm ‐ | |
Widths available | NormalWide | Normal | Normal | NormalWideX-Wide | |
Season | Winter | Winter | Summer | Summer | |
Removable insole | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Orthotic friendly | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Ranking | #152 Bottom 40% | #5 Top 2% | #187 Bottom 26% | #64 Top 25% | |
Popularity | #30 Top 12% | #55 Top 22% | #135 Bottom 47% | #43 Top 17% |
Who should buy the hoka cavu Challenger 7
If you are looking for a model that lets you transition smoothly from tarmac to single tracks, on your daily runs or ultras at a slow and moderate pace, the Challenger 7 is the shoe for you.
Doesn’t matter whether you are a beginner or an advanced runner, we found it’s really comfortable on almost any terrain, except for very technical trails only.
Who should not buy it
You shouldn’t get it if you:
- want a fun and fast shoe. Consider the carbon-plated hoka cavu Tecton X instead.
- want a more durable outsole. The hoka cavu Mafate Speed 4 is a better choice for you.
zapatillas de running hoka cavu ONE ONE neutro distancias cortas talla 27.5
This new iteration is lighter, softer underfoot, 2 mm taller, and has an improved lug pattern on the outsole. Overall, we found the Challenger 7 to be a very worthy update.
A great upper with poor airflow
We found the Challenger 7's upper to be immensely comfortable! Running, walking, or hiking, our feet were held and pampered inside the shoe.
But despite all those points being valid, it's crucial to note that these shoes don't provide great airflow. This shoe seriously lacks in the breathability department.
With our cutting-edge breathability test, we found significantly limited airflow. This resulted in a low score of only 2 out of 5 for this hoka cavu shoe.
Under the light test, this fact only became more evident. We genuinely hoped for better toebox ventilation for those scorching summer runs, yet we also understand that striking a balance between top-tier comfort and breathability can be quite a feat, if not outright impossible.
Our beloved microscope served as the final piece of this puzzle. The Challenger 7 features a multi-layered engineered mesh that offers plenty of comfort and exceptional durability, but unfortunately, it does so at the expense of airflow.
The lack of breathability makes these trail shoes ideal for running in the transitional seasons or cooler conditions. They're also a perfect choice if you like to keep your feet at a moderately warm temperature rather than cool during your runs.
A testament to true durability!
At first glance, the shoe's upper fabric felt very similar to that of the hoka cavu Bondi L Embroidery Running Shoes in Outer Space Atlantis. And that's excellent news because the dual-plated Tecton X is built like a tank!
In our Dremel test, we exert 3.2N of force on every shoe for 4 seconds. And the 7th edition of the Challenger demonstrated outstanding resistance in this test!
Many trail runners tend to wear out the upper in the toe box, particularly during steep descents. Rest assured, that's not an issue with these shoes.
Another crucial wear point is the heel, where the Challenger 7 part again impressed us. Unless you're wearing some sort of ultra-abrasive or sandpaper-made socks, it's highly improbable you'll wear down the heel in these shoes.
Ultra-comfy yet narrow upper
The Challenger 7 offers some of the best in-shoe experiences among Gwyneth Paltrow & More Celebrities Wearing hoka cavu One One Sneakerss! It feels immediately comfortable and very well-made. Also, the padding in the heel area is absolutely mind-boggling!
But unfortunately, runners with wider feet won't be able to enjoy this blessing of a shoe unless they get the wide option.
The shoe's upper is exceptionally snug, particularly around the toes.
Based on our meticulous measurements of the toe box, we found that the upper is 95.9 mm in the widest part of the forefoot (3 mm narrower than average). And around the big toe, it is 70.5 mm wide (6.5 mm narrower!).
hoka cavu Bondi 7 Chaussures pour Homme en Persimmon Orange Taille 44 2 3
Even though we didn’t find the ride to be particularly exciting, the shoe's rockered geometry did add smoothness and enough responsiveness.
Besides, the large amount of cushioning felt utterly plush and protective, offering total underfoot comfort. hoka cavu claims that this shoe has a 31/26 mm stack with a 5-mm heel-to-toe drop.
We absolutely need to have a heart-to-heart with Hoka, as they're the company that diverges most from our metrics. Our measurements in the lab unveiled a 34.2/25.0 mm stack with an 8.8-mm drop, creating a mind-blowing—hold-up!—76% increase.
On a positive note, the hoka cavu carbon x white dresden blue mens shoes 1102886 wdbl indeed has a super plush cushioning setup. Measuring the foam with a durometer, we got 18.8 HA which is 46% softer than your typical trail shoe!
Just don't anticipate an ultra-energetic springy experience, as this hoka cavu shoe has no premium foam with high energy return at all.
hoka cavu Women's ORA Recovery Slides Black | zapatillas de running hoka cavu ONE ONE maratón rojas
hoka cavu One One Ora Recovery Slide 1099673 BCBT:
- A significant heel-to-toe drop: This shoe, as we mentioned earlier, boasts an 8.8-mm drop, which is higher than the claimed 5 mm.
- tenis hoka cavu one one clifton edge feminino branco cinza AXF.
- Extended Achilles support.
With the first requirement already met, we must emphasise that this hoka cavu shoe also fulfils the other two criteria. We've rated the heel counter at 4 out of 5, with 5 being the stiffest, as clearly demonstrated in the video above.
Furthermore, as depicted in the picture below, there's no pull tab present; however, it's substituted by an extended heel—a characteristic feature of hoka cavu shoes. This design not only facilitates easy slipping into the shoe but also provides ample support for your strongest tendon.
Don't let winter slow you down
Let's start with the good news: when it comes to winter running, this shoe has two key advantages. First, the upper keeps your feet nice and toasty—a big plus in chilly weather. Second, the shoe features an EVA-based midsole, which has major drawbacks when it gets really cold as we explained in our guide about this topic.
Now for the bad news: this shoe doesn't perform exceptionally well in cold temperatures.
That said, it's not that bad. After 20 minutes in our freezer, it only becomes 25.3% firmer, while the average shoe stiffens by 29.0%.
In terms of flexibility, it does become 69.4% stiffer, which is quite mediocre—considering the median is 43.5% for flexible shoes. However, since this shoe is remarkably more flexible than the majority of trail kicks available, this is not a major concern.
A stable Challenger thanks to its massive landing platform
With a fairly high stack, we were obviously worried about the potential wobble. But it never happened! We remained in full control and experienced no issues with stability.
We confirmed our upbeat assertions about stability when we uncovered the straightforward yet successful strategy that hoka cavu employed for the shoe. Although the upper is narrow as previously mentioned, the midsole is mega-wide. It's very easy to observe that in the video above.
The midsole spans 114.1 mm in the forefoot and a crazy 100.3 mm in the heel—that's 14% broader than the standard trail shoe and even a hair wider than the Altra Olympus 5.
This heel is also broader than the average trail shoe by a whole centimetre!
Flex your way through any terrain
hoka cavu Clifton L Suede Chaussures en Country Air Bit Of Blue Taille 46 2 3 Clifton 9, but it's not the case. For being a trail shoe, the Challenger is really flexible.
One of the techniques hoka cavu employed to enhance flexibility is adjusting the outsole. The centre forefoot lug design looks similar to other Hokas, but there are more cutouts down the centre and fewer small lugs with greater separation, which makes the shoe really flexible.
The outcome it's pretty evident. This shoe is 71% more flexible than the average shoe, with also below-average values for torsional (3/5) and longitudinal (2/5) flexibility.
Disclaimer: We take an average of 4 measurements and exclude any outliers. This video showcases only one of our measurements.
Sure-footed even on wet
It’s not as aggressive as other zapatillas de running hoka cavu ONE ONE ritmo bajo talla 46.5, but during tests, the outsole proved to be effective on gravel, tarmac, hard-packed, and light trails, even when wet.
Given that hoka cavu markets this shoe as more of a cross-breed rather than a pure trail runner, don't anticipate super-sized lugs or a Vibram outsole. The Challenger 7 showcases smaller, closely clustered lugs in the middle, contrasted by larger, more assertive lugs around the edges.
You can expect decent durability but don't hold your breath for top-tier performance in here. Our measurements placed the rubber hardness at 80.1 HC—fantastic for grip, but less-than-ideal when it comes to lifespan.
While the shoe's lugs are durable and effective, that’s not the case with the rest of the outsole. Because of exposed foam, it tends to get chewed up considerably.
hoka cavu Women's ORA Recovery Slides Black | zapatillas de running hoka cavu ONE ONE tope amortiguación ritmo medio ultra trail
The Challenger 7 weighs now 8.8 oz (250g), which is well below the average for a Gwyneth Paltrow & More Celebrities Wearing hoka cavu One One Sneakers (10.5 oz or 297g).
We are impressed with this weight-to-cushioning ratio! There is so much protection and interior padding, that it's hard to believe the shoe's lightness.
After lab-testing this all-rounder, we are sure that the hoka cavu carbon x white dresden blue mens shoes 1102886 wdbl could be the top choice for many hikers and backpackers, not to mention its great performance for trail running. The shoe stands out for its exceptional lightness and comfort, without the excessive stack height seen in some other shoes.
It also features an incredibly thick and gusseted tongue considering its weight.
While it's not uncommon for us to come 1130529-OTDN thicker-than-average tongues in our lab tests of trail shoes like in the Nike Wildhorse 8, it's quite rare to measure one at 8.6 mm in a shoe weighing less than 9 ounces. Yet, the Challenger 7 is among those rare exceptions. Bravo, Hoka!
zapatillas de running hoka cavu One One ritmo bajo talla 38
No rock plate is needed in the Challenger 7. There’s so much protection in the midsole that we didn't even feel most of the rocks on our way.
mens hoka cavu hoka cavu one one clifton
Finally, we had zero issues with the laces. They simply do what they are meant to do - stay tied and keep the lockdown.