--- description: Find out why Merrell SpeedARC Surge BOA is one of the best inventions of 2024. title: Merrell SpeedARC Surge BOA: the 200 Best Inventions of 2024 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd2fe6d06f82d2030/698a8a140116820eff98adb1/Merrell_SpeedARC_Surge-best-inventions.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Oct 30, 2024 # A Slimmer Hiking Shoe by [Ashley Mateo](/author/ashley-mateo/) ## Ashley Mateo Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close  Tucker Friend - Merrell—Merrell Hiking shoes have always been synonymous with clunkiness. But with the SpeedARC Surge BOA, launching in January, Merrell has slimmed down and streamlined the standard. Inside, a nylon plate is sandwiched between two layers of a new nitrogen-injected supercritical foam, for a midsole that mimics a car’s suspension system. “The top piece adapts to your foot for immediate cushioning, while the bottom layer adapts to the terrain,” says Ian Cobb, senior design director at Merrell. “The plate acts like a strut bar that brings everything together to push you forward.” In lieu of laces, two adjustable dials allow wearers to finetune their fit. These are independent reviews of the products mentioned, but TIME receives a commission when purchases are made through affiliate links at no additional cost to the purchaser. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2024/7094735/merrell-speedarc-surge-boa/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2024/7094735/merrell-speedarc-surge-boa/"},"headline":"Merrell SpeedARC Surge BOA: the 200 Best Inventions of 2024","datePublished":"2024-10-30T11:19:35.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T11:55:10.893Z","description":"Find out why Merrell SpeedARC Surge BOA is one of the best inventions of 2024.","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2024/7094735/merrell-speedarc-surge-boa/","keywords":["Tech","E-Commerce","list","franchise","Magazine","best inventions"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd2fe6d06f82d2030/698a8a140116820eff98adb1/Merrell_SpeedARC_Surge-best-inventions.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Ashley Mateo","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/ashley-mateo/"}],"creator":"Ashley Mateo","articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd2fe6d06f82d2030/698a8a140116820eff98adb1/Merrell_SpeedARC_Surge-best-inventions.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-inventions-2024/7094735/merrell-speedarc-surge-boa/","name":"Merrell SpeedARC Surge BOA: the 200 Best Inventions of 2024"}}]}] ```