I swear, in the 15 years I have been in the National Guard, I have bought damn near every type of military boot you can buy: Standard Corcorans, Rocky S2V’s, Rocky C4Ts, Nike SFBs (Original cloud boots), New Balance, Salomon’s, and Merrells (first generation). I had settled on Garmonts/Merrells being the primaries. I always own at least two pairs of serviceable boots. Ideally a patrolling boot (with some good traction) and a lightweight ruck boot.
The Merrells died in a spectacular fashion with the heel coming off one of them. They also caused me some decent patella pain. I liked how they had a wide forefoot but never was in love with the sole. They really did not feel like they walked all that efficiently and also felt like they did not absorb much impact. I was not impressed with the quality. The newer versions do, in appearance, look like they have addressed some of the issues in the original boot. I was also bummed that Merrell did not help with a warranty issue regarding the heel falling off.
I have been ultra-impressed with Goruck as a company. They have incredible quality and thought put into their products. They also pick up the phone and fix things when they break (so I have been told by a friend, though I have never had a problem).
I really liked the sales pitch (feature set) of the Goruck MACV-2 boots and have been eyeing them for quite some time. The following is a brief sales pitch from them: an aggressive triple compound outsole.
What attracted me the most was the idea of the rucking offset they proposed (13mm). No other brand broadcasts that they actually thought about what these boots would be used for. Through the years, I have found that some military boots choose far different angles which, over time, can greatly increase the chances of Achilles tendonitis and other ailments that plague most infantrymen.
They also state they offer a wide toe box. This is critical for me as I have found, through experience, that my feet rarely become tired anymore if there is a wide foot box, allowing my foot to work as intended. It also significantly reduces the chance of blisters on the front and sides of toes, a common starting point. I also loved the layout of the sole as it appeared to be a good blend of traction without being overkill and mud collectors (like Rocky S2Vs). The weight was also very attractive to me as they are around 17 oz per boot, which is very lightweight for boots in general, but even more so for a boot meant for rucking/patrolling/everything under the sun (Nike SFBs are an example of ultralight boots great for rucking on a road but not so great in the dirt).
Really, this is the new top pick by a long shot in the military boot world. It makes sense too as this company built itself around the activity of rucking: backpacks and events. It has a highly proven record of quality and thoughtfulness in product design. Lastly, although shoes for them are relatively new, with the aforementioned stated, it should be no surprise that a rucking company hit the mark completely on boots for rucking.