Buy Once. Cry Once: GoRuck MACV Boots
It’s time for another edition of Buy Once, Cry Once. I got a lot of positive feedback from my last installment about Self Reliance Outfitters’ water bottles. I want to keep this series very tightly focused on only the most rugged gear…but I’m finally back with another one! I make my living on my feet, so I feel qualified to recommend a pair of boots, so this time we are focusing on GoRuck MACV boots.
I have no relationship at all with GoRuck, aside from being a customer. This review was not coordinated with GoRuck in any way, and I received no financial incentive for a favorable review. This is my unbiased opinion. This article contains Amazon affiliate links. Using these links gives us a small commission but costs you nothing. Please consider using our Amazon link to support this blog.
My GoRuck MACV Boots
I recently ordered a new pair of GoRuck boots. Each year I get a boot allowance and this year I decided to use it on a new pair of MACVs so I could get them broken in before I needed them. They arrived, I started wearing them around the house and mowing in them. Then I put them away and put my old ones back on. And then I started thinking…
I know that a pair of boots will never be a one-time purchase. No matter how bombproof a pair of boots is, it will eventually wear out. I’m scratching my head wondering when, exactly, my 34-month old GoRuck MACV boots wear out. I bought this pair on June 26th, 2023. I was gearing up for a GoRuck Tough with a couple of friends. I rucked a lot that summer getting ready for the beat-down of the event, and I did the actual event in them.
Immediately after the GoRuck Tough I participated in. I wasn’t sure they’d bounce back from this! Little did I know, they were just getting started.
I put them away for winter, and busted them back out the following spring. In addition to some hiking, these became my lawn-mowing boots. I mowed grass in these all summer in 2024. They got pretty beat up and scuffed, but functionally were still just fine. And then I decided to go to the police academy.
My “jungle slippers” - well broken-in but still totally functional GoRuck boots. Here they are all cleaned up for the police academy.
Not wanting to pay for a brand-new pair of boots for class, I slathered the polish on the old GoRucks. They shined right up. I wore these for the duration of the academy. After the academy wrapped up, remembering how lightweight, supportive, and comfortable these boots are, I kept them on my feet when I went back to my regular shift at EMS. As most readers know, I left. my full-time EMS position in late-summer 2025 and became a full-time cop. Needing an all-black, polishable shoe I decided to stick with the GoRuck MACV boots.
Nearly new back in 2023.
Now I’ve been wearing these boots every day at my cop job. In total I’ve owned these for almost three years. That’s a long, long lifespan in boot years, at least on my feet. I can thrash a $250 pair of Salomon’s to death in 9 months. My favored Asolos last quite a bit longer than Salomon boots, but eventually bite the dust after a couple of years. The longevity of the GoRuck MACV boots has seriously impressed me.
Inspiration for MACV Boots
So what are these boots and why are they so special? They are essentially an updated military jungle boot. I was a big fan of the green “JCBs” (Jungle Combat Boots) and wore them for as long as I could. Unfortunately, a little over halfway through my eight years in the corps, the uniform changed to the current digital pattern. The boots changed as well and I had to give up my old Panama sole jungle boots.
Yours truly on an automatic weapons range circa 2004. You can see my green JCBs peeking out below my unbloused trousers. Nasty.
The old jungle boots are pretty simple, though. They have a leather lower and a canvas upper. This keeps them nice and lightweight. They also have built-in drains that let in water, but more importantly drain water away. Trust me, water will find a way into your boots if the conditions are bad enough. GoRuck built on the old jungle boot design.
I didn’t think the the old, green jungle boot was broken, but there have doubtlessly been some improvement in the boot since my military days (which are rapidly approaching two decades ago). The boot has been kept very simple, though.
GoRuck MACV Boots
GoRuck MACV boots are very simple. They feature a rubber sole, a leather lower, and a nylon upper. Don’t let the simplicity fool you, though. These boots are ultra-rugged. I have worn out two pairs of laces on them, but the boots keep going strong.
I love that these boots are minimally marked. There is a a GoRuck arrow head stamped on each heel. There is a GoRuck tag sewn to the tongue, but this is hidden when the boot is laced up, so I don’t consider it excessive.
The boot has four eyelets and two speedlacers. I admit being a little mixed on speedlacers. They certainly work but I liked the simplistic look of the old, green jungle boots. After wearing these GoRucks for three years I understand now that these speedlacers are amazing. They are just as rugged as eyelets and are fast on and off.
GoRuck boots are also “proudly not waterproof.” They are built with side vents to flush out water when the boot is submerged. This is probably a good thing in many situations, like the GoRuck even I did where we had to submerge. For day-to-day use, this has questionable utility, sometimes letting in water that would otherwise have been kept out if the vents weren’t there. I’ve stepped out of my car and into a puddle and ended up with wet feet. Overall, though, if you keep these polished (to protect the leather) they shed water really well, and will keep your feet dry as long as you don’t submerge the vents.
If there is one complaint I have about the GoRuck boots it is the sole. It just doesn’t have a lot of traction. It is great on pavement, concrete, carpet, and other grippy surfaces, but not so good on wet grass, mud, snow, etc. Fortunately, this complaint was rectified a couple of years ago with the MACV-2 series of boots. The tread is much more aggressive. I have ordered a set of MACV-2s; we’ll see if they’re as durable as the MACV-1s.
GoRuck MACV Options
Unfortunately the old MACV-1s are no longer available, but the MACV-2s are available in several styles. The original, basic black (black upper, black lower), the green “Origins” model (black lower, green upper and my favorite), and coyote (tan suede lower, tan upper). These boots aren’t cheap, but they also aren’t super expensive. at $175/pair, you’ll almost get two of these for the cost of a pair of Saloman’s, and these will last three times as long (at least for me).
GoRuck does offer the MACV-1 in one variation: the Traveler. This is an all-leather, rough-out boot meant for casual wear. I admit that I really like the idea of a tough, rugged boot for every day wear that still looks somewhat stylish. I may pull the trigger on a pair of travelers in the near future. If so, I’ll let you know…and I’ll update you on the MACV-2.
In the meantime, if you need a pair of boots, I can’t recommend the GoRuck MACVs strongly enough. They are lightweight, comfortable, don’t cost a fortune, come in several styles, and get about as close to a “one time purchase” as a pair of boots can. If you’re on the fence about them, go ahead. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.