Goruck Footwear, Led By Paul Litchfield, Focuses On Moving Weight

The Goruck Rough Runner is the newest in the lineup from footwear director Paul Litchfield.

Paul Litchfield, a legendary footwear designer, says working with Goruck as their head of footwear is “literally a breath of fresh air.”

Known for creating the Reebok Pump and leading Reebok’s Advanced Concepts division for decades, Litchfield was first introduced to the brand while still at Reebok in 2014. Now he’s “working on the cleanest footwear I can imagine, all purpose-driven and functionally driven.”

The first Litchfield-Goruck project was the MACV-1 boot, a quintessential tactical boot designed based off the popular 1960s boots used by the military, but with versatility of the modern soldier, which included an urban, sandy and flat terrain. Litchfield and Goruck’s portfolio have only grown, which now includes a MACV-2, a three-year partnership with Crossfit to create fitness-based shoes seen via the Ballistic Trainer and the most recent additions of both a hiking Mackall and a Rough Runner designed for the Goruck lifestyle.

Goruck footwear director Paul Litchfield showing off the MACV-1 boot.

Creating the MACV-1, a boot with a lower profile akin to a sneaker, became a standard for many in the special operations community, Litchfield tells me. “It allowed me to make some really cool, clean shoes,” he says. That has led to a focus on unincumbered footwear that can make a difference.

Goruck is a company created on rucking, the simple act of moving with weight. This can be in a military scenario, as the team has designed for, hiking and backpacking or for fitness challenges that include carrying weight. No matter the end use case, Litchfield says the point is to allow wearers to focus on their task and create footwear that keeps them stable and supported. Each model comes with something Litchfield once did while working with NFL lineman while at Reebok. He has created a special anatomical sockliner with three arch sections intended to create a substantial underfoot carriage so people wearing boots can take them out of the box and get moving.

Litchfield says that while Goruck has a lifetime guarantee on all products, which includes footwear, he was designing for a higher standard, in case Goruck founder and retired Green Beret Jason McCarthy ever needed to share his gear with military colleagues in the place they work. Simply put, “they have to hold up,” Litchfield says.

The Goruck MACV-2 boot comes in a design for safety personnel, part of the brand's focus on tactical ... [+] use.

With that comes a streamlined approach to design. The tactical-looking boots were built to support ankles and offers stability for people who might literally jump out of planes. A high abrasion heel is meant to last for hundreds of miles, while a stickier rubber comes in the forefoot for traction. The arch in the middle has a high abrasion property akin to rock climbing shoe material that is durable and slippery in case people are climbing with rope. “This is the kind of stuff [we are designing],” he says, “but we want to make it look like a normal shoe. We don’t blitz it up, it needs to be understated.”

The MACV-1 and MACV-2 both come military compliant, which means it isn’t emblazoned with logos and embellishments. “Our consumer likes that,” Litchfield says.

But going beyond the tactical boot world has been the challenge for Goruck, all while retaining a fully outdoor feel. That’s why Goruck has introduced a special MACV-1 with an all-leather upper and suede lining that has all the technical ingredients and architecture of a tactical boot, but with a look that can dress up.

Rucking, the practice of moving with weight, has Goruck bringing out a range of footwear options ... [+] that include boots, trail shoes and running shoes.

The brand’s three-year partnership with Crossfit has led to the expansion of the Ballistic Trainer. The rucking community has embraced the Mackall as a trail-rucking shoe and the Rough Runner doubles as both a regular running shoe and a rucking runner.

For the Rough Runner, Litchfield says the geometries are spot-on to all the research to fit a proper running gait, from heel strike angle to flexibility. What makes it different is the midsole material, the brand’s own formulation with more rubber added so that it retains its cushioning over time and under weight. Popular foams today, he says, break down quickly, even if they feel soft and bouncy at the start. “These shoes will be maintained,” he says. “The cushioning will be consistent whether rucking or running.”

Add in an aesthetic that fits an old-school running shoe from the late ‘90s or early 2000s, the peak days for running shoe functionality, Litchfield says, and the Rough Runner has a distinctly Goruck feel.

Litchfield says that as consumers gravitate toward Goruck for packs and training gear, they are getting introduced to the expanding world of Goruck footwear. “When they get into our shoes, the majority of people are shocked at them,” he says. “These things really work.”

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