Customer Reviews Hoka Bondi 9

Writing the review that would have helped me most when making a decision to purchase. I had read many helpful reviews here (Zappos rocks!), on the Hoka site, and elsewhere since the Bondi 9 was first available. I have some knee issues and plantar fasciitis issues and the Bondi 8’s have been the only shoe that have gave me the comfort I needed for walks and occasional runs. I have owned so many pairs of them over the years and wear them until they wear out. I ordered some of the final 8’s on sale when they were sunset to put off having to try the 9’s bc I had read the style had changed and I knew what I had gone through to find the 8’s and was concerned the 9’s might not address the issues in the same way. Finally, I had to buy the 9’s bc my last 8’s wore out. By this point, I’d put it off long enough that I could read many more reviews, which was helpful. I did what a few people said and ordered a Wide size of my normal Hoka size since folks said they were more narrow (that turned out to be a great decision fit-wise, btw). Some reviews said they were more plush and comfy when you put them on that the 8’s. Other reviews said people’s feet hurt after wearing them a while and they didn’t have enough cushion. I was confused. How could there be more cushion and also not enough cushion in the same shoe model? I can now report that both of those things indeed are true. For me, when I first tried the 9’s on, they felt more plush and comfy than the 8’s ever did, which was a high bar, and I was very encouraged. This applied well into my first outdoor walk in the shoes (past return window now), probably for 1.5 miles of brisk walking. However, by the end of my first long walk, my feet hurt. They have never hurt when wearing any other Hoka or Brooks runner and they hurt in spots they hadn’t before. It was a sore and aching feeling. It especially hurt where my arch is as I have high arches, but other parts of my foot ached after long walks. Yesterday, I tried running in the 9’s for the first time and my experience was that I couldn’t even tell I had on Hokas. It felt to me like any other running shoe in terms of support to the point that I discontinued my run. So, after spending the money for the 9’s, I am scouring the internet for any remaining 8’s in stock anywhere bc these are not the same shoe. I think my running shoe journey has to completely restart now and I don’t understand why Hoka made these changes in such a substantial way. I rarely write reviews but I wish I had known these things bc these are expensive shoes. I hope this helps someone. Thanks.