The Altra Torin 9 is an Everyday Trainer With a Revived Low-to-the-Ground Ride
The Torin 9 returns to its roots, but with a bouncier midsole and a new Vibram outsole.
The Hoka Clifton Pro is the second coming of what we all loved about the original max-cushioned daily trailer with a modern vibe and lasting power.
I’ve written about it here before, but the launch of the original Hoka Clifton in 2014 is the shoe that really made the maximalist cushioning trend take off and boosted Hoka into a new stratosphere that, for a while, made it the No. 1 brand in running shoes.
But somewhere along the way, that reputation calcified into something else: reliable, sure, but a bit basic and dull. Having run in every model of the Clifton since its inception, I’ve increasingly felt like the shoe was standing still while the rest of the everyday-trainer category kept moving. The Clifton Pro (women’s/men’s) finally fast-forwards that story—and it’s the shoe I think the Clifton franchise should have become years ago.
Let’s be clear about what’s not different: both the standard Clifton 11 and the Clifton Pro are soft, cushy, plateless everyday training shoes. What separates them is everything underfoot—the foam, the weight, and, most critically, the sensation of actually being propelled forward instead of just cushioned through a run.
The standard Clifton, especially in its most recent 10th and 11th iterations, still leans on Hoka’s old compression-molded EVA (CMEVA) midsole— soft, comfortable, thoroughly unremarkable foam Hoka has been using for a while, one that isn’t super responsive but is comfortable, leaning more toward easier efforts. Although the Clifton 11 has been an improvement over the Clifton 10 and probably the best version of the shoe yet, it still lacks the pop and energy return I want while picking up the pace, especially compared to what we can all find in a lot of other everyday trainers on the market.
The standard Clifton has been coasting on name recognition for a couple of generations now. The Clifton Pro doesn’t just add a new foam and higher stack height, it exposes exactly how little the standard version had left to offer.
Bottom line: the Clifton Pro is the shoe that could — and probably should — end the outdated standard Clifton model. The Pro is the second coming of the Clifton and what will help Hoka rise again in the competitive everyday trainer space.
What’s New: The headline is the midsole. The Clifton Pro ditches CMEVA for a nitrogen-infused supercritical foam Hoka is calling ProGlide+, marking the first time the brand has rebranded its midsole technology with the goal of giving each franchise a clear, recognizable feel. It’s paired with a more aggressive MetaRocker geometry and built on the same Clifton 10 last, so the shoe still fits like a Clifton—it just doesn’t run like one anymore. The outsole has been updated, too, and now features a structure that uses less rubber, similar to what’s on the bottom of the Hoka Bondi 9.)
Price: $165 (women’s/men’s)
Approximate Weights: 8.7 oz. (women’s size 8); 10.4 oz. (men’s size 9)
Heel-Toe Offset: 8mm; women’s: 38mm heel, 30mm forefoot; men’s: 46mm heel, 38mm forefoot
Fit/Feel/Ride: The Clifton Pro fits true to size with a medium volume interior and plenty of wiggle room in the forefoot. It fits and feels very similar to the recent models of the Clifton, only better—thanks to a more premium set of components. It has a cushy, partially gusseted tongue and softly padded heel collar that cinches down the breathable engineered mesh upper with wrap-like security through the midfoot, but still allows the toes to flex and splay.
The ride of the Clifton Pro feels nothing like what you might have known from the Clifton, but everything you might have hoped it to be. The ProGlide+ midsole feels noticeably more responsive and springier than standard Hoka EVA, delivering a ride that’s soft, light, and airy while adapting well across foot strikes and paces.
Why It’s Great: This is where the Pro earns its name. It’s not just a cushioned basic trainer anymore—it’s a shoe that responds pretty well when you push the pace. For the first time in the Clifton line, there’s an actual energetic snap in the midsole instead of just cushion for cushion’s sake. The sleeker midsole shape backs this up, built with a more streamlined, agile profile geared toward speed rather than just shock absorption. It’s the propulsive sensation the standard Clifton has never had, and once you’ve felt it, going back to the CMEVA version feels like a step backward.
Why You’ll Love It: You’ll probably love it because it’s a much more versatile everyday trainer than any other Clifton has ever been. If you’ve always liked the Clifton’s plush, forgiving ride but wished it had some life in it, this is your shoe. It handles everything from easy daily miles to steady efforts without sacrificing the plush ride Hoka loyalists expect, and it’s versatile enough to go from a track workout to a long recovery run without feeling out of place.
Why You Might Not Like This Shoe: Where it runs out of room is at real speed. Push into intervals or hill repeats and the tall stack and firmer platform start working against you rather than for you. You’ll still want to reach for something like the Mach 7 to push the pace during a faster workout like mile or 1K repeats, and save the Pro for tempo runs or long runs with a progressive pace.
Pros: The combination of the advanced cushioning and increased propulsion is what makes this shoe worthy of being in your quiver, and, of course, those qualities also give it mid-range versatility.
Con: It’s lively, stable, and versatile through easy-to-moderate efforts, but not built for chasing a fast finish. This is a daily-miles-with-personality shoe, not a workout shoe.
Contributing editor Brian Metzler is the Content Director for UltraSignup.com, who has raced every distance from 5K to 100 miles. He has wear-tested more than 2,000 running shoes and is the author of “Kicksology: The Hype, Science, Culture and Cool of Running Shoes” (2019) and “Trail Running Illustrated” (2021). He has raced just about every distance from 100 meters to 100 miles, but he’s most eager to share stories about his experiences pack burro racing in Colorado and riding trains to run trails in Chamonix, France.
RELATED: Tracksmith Eliot Ryder Serves Up Smooth, Stable Springiness
RELATED: The Saucony Paramount Max is a Soft, Bouncy, Stable and Fun Daily Trainer
RELATED: Nike Pegasus 42 Continues its Workhorse Legacy with a More Responsive Ride
RELATED: ASICS Novablast 6 Blends Soft Cushion and Increased Energetic Pop
RELATED: The Hoka Clifton 11 Serves Up a Smoother, More Refined Ride
RELATED: The 5 Best Shoes for Fall Marathon Training This Summer
RELATED: The Adidas Hyperboost Edge Pairs High-Stack Cushion with A Lively Vibe
