Best Rucking Socks - Cross Train Clothes

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Best rucking sock? That’s what we aim to find out.

We’re out in the field , ruck marching relentlessly to find the best rucking sock.

Best Rucking Socks - Testing — Testing products to find the best rucking socks.

Check back in a few weeks and we’ll have test results.

Here’s some of the styles were going to look at:

Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight with Cushion (1403) Darn Tough's Boot Sock is made with 64% Merino Wool and features fine gauge knitting. Merino wool is an amazing material for high performance. These are knitted in the USA and feature a lifetime guarantee.

Click to See Price (Darn Tough)

Hiker Micro Crew with Cushion (1466) Darn Tough calls this the ultimate hiking sock - and it's a good pick for rucking too. Like their other sock the not-so-secret ingredient is Merino wool - and other great features.

Click to See Price (Darn Tough)

Hiker 1/4 Sock With Cushion (1959) How low can you go and still work with MACV-1 boots? The 1/4 sock height from Darn Tough - this has a performance trail fit - that means no slipping, no bunching, and no blisters.

Click to See Price (Darn Tough)

MudGear Ruck Sock Also made with Merino Wool (Are you seeing a trend?) this ruck sock from MudGear was built with ruckers in mind - and the result shows that. Made in the USA.

Click to See Price (Amazon)

On to the socks!

Best Rucking Socks – Overview

What do we need in the best rucking sock?

That’s what we’ll discuss here.

(Stand by for details!)

Our field test will reveal what the key features are.

MudGear – Ruck Sock

Mudgear Ruck Sock — Here’s the MudGear Ruck Sock after a short (3 mile) ruck.

MudGear Ruck Sock side — These stay up – that’s essential in a boot sock.

MudGear Ruck Sock - with MACV-1 Coyote front — Looks good with the Coyote Suede MACV-1

MudGear Ruck Sock - with MACV-1 Coyote boot — The MudGear logo is visible up front – if you are sensitive to that

We put these through some real mud – and they lived up to their name.

This was an 18 mile ruck march through swampy trails that varied from dry to calf deep water – and lots of mud, of course.

GORUCK MACV-1 with MudGear's Ruck Sock — The GORUCK MACV-1 and MudGear’s ruck sock are a winning combination – even in the wet.

MudGear Ruck Sock in the mud — Parts of the 18 mile trail were wet, muddy, or both.

Darn Tough – Hiker Micro Crew Cushion Review

Darn Tough Micro Crew Midweight With Cushion Sock 1466 On Foot 2 — Here’s a Micro Crew height option from Darn Tough.

Darn Tough Micro Crew Hiker Sock — Here’s the Hike Micro Crew with the MACV-1 – just finished a short testing ruck march.

Darn Tough Micro Crew Midweight With Cushion Sock 1466 with MACV-1 Black — Micro Crew means a better look with the 6″ high MACV-1 jungle rucking boot.

Darn Tough Micro Crew Midweight With Cushion Sock 1466 On Foot 3 — Good looking sock…

Darn Tough Micro Crew Midweight With Cushion Sock 1466 Closeup 1 — Closeup of the knitting and supportive toe.

Darn Tough Micro Crew Midweight With Cushion Sock 1466 Closeup 2 — Good cushion in the heel as well.

Darn Tough Micro Crew Midweight With Cushion Sock 1466 with MACV-1 Coyote Suede — Here it is with the Coyote Suede MACV-1.

How do these do when wet?

I had these on for a 10 mile/30 lb ruck march after a stormy, rainy day.

GORUCK MACV-1 and Darn Tough - Great for Getting Wet 1 of 2 — This is why you ruck march in boots and not sneakers.

GORUCK MACV-1 and Darn Tough - Great for Getting Wet 2 of 2 — Socks get wet – but not the end of the world – thanks Darn Tough.

A few places on the trail, I had to go full immersion.

While having wet socks isn’t fun – there were really no problems on the return trip back home (which was about 2 miles.)

GORUCK MACV-1 with Darn Tough Sock — These Darn Tough socks aren’t terrible when wet either – I did 2 miles on the return trip after total immersion. Not a bad experience.

Darn Tough – Hiker 1/4 Sock Cushion Review

Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock with Cushion On Foot 2 — 1/4 Sock – it’s low, but not too low.

Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock with Cushion with Coyote Suede MACV-1 — This is the shortest sock from Darn Tough that I’d use with the MACV-1 Jungle Rucking Boot.

Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock with Cushion with MACV-1 — Good all around coverage

Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock with Cushion On Foot 3 — It’s a shame you can’t see all this when your foot is in the boot.

Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock with Cushion - On Foot 1 — These have a performance fit – that means no slipping, bunching, or blisters.

Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock with Cushion with MACV-1 Jungle rucking boot — One more look with the Coyote Suede MACV-1

Here they are on a muddy ruck march. The socks did well.

MACV-1 Black Jungle Rucking Boot on a muddy trail — Make good boots better with the right sock. The Darn Tough Hiker 1/4 Sock is an excellent option.

Darn Tough – Hiker Boot Sock Midweight with Cushion Review

Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion On Foot 2 — Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion. It’s boot length – so it’s tall. Made with Merino wool.

Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion MACV-1 Gen 2 Black — Here’s the Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion with the MACV-1 Jungle Rucking Boot (Gen 2).

Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion with MACV-1 Coyote Gen 2 — Here’s how it looks with one of our favorite rucking boots- the MACV-1 Gen 2 Coyote Suede.

Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion Closeup 2 — Here’s a close-up showing the fine gauge knitting – and support.

Darn Tough Boot Sock Midweight With Cushion Closeup 3 — One more closeup…

Best Rucking Socks – How About a Trail Running Sock?

During our testing for the best rucking sock we also tried various trail running socks.

Our findings were that trail running socks are fine – with trail running shoes.

They aren’t a stellar match for boots – and not in particular for the GORUCK MACV-1 – our preferred rucking boot.

Trail running socks assume you’ve got the tighter closer fit of a trail running shoe.

As such there is a little too much movement within the boot.

Trail running socks also don’t come up very high – although this isn’t a show stopper, as shown with the MudGear Trail Running Sock and MACV-1 boot here.

MudGear Trail Running Sock with MACV-1 Rucking Boot — MudGear’s Trail Running Socks work great with running shoes, but not so much with boots. The height isn’t necessarily the problem, as it is almost tall enough for a MACV-1 6″ boot, but the sock doesn’t help make a tighter fit with the boot. It was worth a try….

All things considered, Trail Running Socks pair up nicely with tighter fitting Trail Running Shoes – but weren’t a good match with boots.

Boots need more material on the top of the sock to ensure a closer fit.

Best Rucking Socks – How Did We Test?

I did a number of short to medium ruck marches.

Average distance was just slightly over 3 miles (and sometimes 4.5 miles), and using a 20 lb or 30 lb ruck plate – with a GORUCK 15L Bullet ruck, and GORUCK MACV-1 lightweight jungle rucking boots (both Coyote Suede 6″ and Black 6″.)

Times varied, but my best was 51 minutes.

I also did longer ruck marches up to 15 miles (with 30 lbs.)

GORUCK MACV-1 with Darn Tough Boot Sock — Here’s the Darn Tough hiker boot sock in action with the GORUCK MACV-1. This was a very wet 15.5 mile ruck march. Trails were flooded, and it was raining.

These tests were conducted in July, August, and September 2020, in Florida (HOT and HUMID).

I also wore the MACV-1 with these socks for my review of the GORUCK SRT program. This program is more focused on PT-style exercises rather than long distance rucking.

(Tests are still underway)

All testing was done with the GORUCK MACV-1 Gen 2 Jungle Rucking Boot. Highly recommended.

Best Rucking Socks – Cheap Socks?

Did I only test premium, expensive socks?

No. Here’s the “Outdoor Vintage” sock from Walmart. Available in a 4-pack for about $24.

It looks like a hiking sock, but the performance was abysmal.

I wore these on a 10K ruck march with 30 lbs (2 hours time) and developed a hideous blister – that took 5 days to heal afterwards.

These socks immediately went into the trash can upon my return to home base.

Vintage Outdoor Sock from Walmart - No Good for Rucking — This cheap sock is available in a 4 pack from Walmart. It did not pass the test. It went into the trash can immediately afterwards.

Cheap socks ain’t worth it.

7 days after that fiasco I re-did that same march , with a Darn Tough boot sock.

I went 20% further (12,000 meters) faster, and with the same weight (30 lb ruck plate.)

Darn Tough Boot Socks are great for rucking and work well with the MACV-1 — I went 20% farther, faster, and no blisters. No more Walmart socks for me.

Best Rucking Socks – In Summary

Photo Credits

Some product photos on this page are property of the manufacturer.

This website is not affiliated or associated with CrossFit, Inc. CrossFit is a registered trademark of CrossFit, Inc.

MudGear Ruck Sock - with MACV-1 Black Heel — MudGear Ruck Sock with Black MACV-1

Affiliate Disclaimer

We are an affiliate of Darn Tough, Mudgear, and GORUCK. If you buy socks or ruck gear after clicking the links in this article, we receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps us to bring you in-depth information and content on this training gear.

Best Rucking Socks – Overview

MudGear – Ruck Sock

Darn Tough – Hiker Micro Crew Cushion Review

Darn Tough – Hiker 1/4 Sock Cushion Review

Darn Tough – Hiker Boot Sock Midweight with Cushion Review

Best Rucking Socks – How About a Trail Running Sock?

Best Rucking Socks – How Did We Test?

Best Rucking Socks – Cheap Socks?

Best Rucking Socks – In Summary

Photo Credits

Affiliate Disclaimer

Affiliate Disclaimer

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