After using these boots for a couple of months I have nicknamed them "The slippery sieves".
I won't be buying another pair. In fact I cannot wait to buy a new pair of boots, I'll go back to leather.
I will still leave my initial views below.
The very first time I wore these boots was on a quick paced 5 hour training walk across rough terrain, towards the end my toes were feeling a little squashed but this was due to my choice of socks. I'd worn the same combination of socks as I normally did with my old boots but still really had no problems.
The second time was on a navigation practice weekend where I was in the hills for 9 hours on the Saturday and 8 hours on Sunday, I'd worn different socks which proved to be the perfect choice for these boots. I came away from the weekend with no blisters or any foot problems even though at the start of Sunday I was putting wet boots and socks on. The reason for the boots being wet was not due to the boot leaking but due to the terrain; almost knee deep river crossings and mile upon mile of mid calf deep bog (or was it?). People warned me against Gore-tex lined boots as once water gets in, it cannot get back out, I have never noticed any more water held in the boot with any GTX boot than normal leather boots.
The real test for these boots was the fourth time I wore them, when I completed 'Point to Point', which is an S.A.S. test march over rough terrain carrying over 50lb without knowing how long the march is or where your going apart from being given a grid reference for the next rendezvous point which you have to reach within an unknown time. At the end of the march other participants were nursing blisters and general foot problems, I on the other hand just dried my feet and put dry gear on and only had to nurse slightly bruised shoulders.
I don't think these boots will last as long as my old boots which are still OK to train in after 6 years as some of the exterior parts of the sole seem a little softer than the old vibram sole, also when walking over rocky paths I notice rocks through the sole slightly more with these boots, however this is only a minor gripe.
I was a little wrong with the last paragraph. Six MONTHS after buying the boots the toe box started to crack and the white plastic bits on the sides of the sole have started to come off.
The second time was on a navigation practice weekend where I was in the hills for 9 hours on the Saturday and 8 hours on Sunday, I'd worn different socks which proved to be the perfect choice for these boots. I came away from the weekend with no blisters or any foot problems even though at the start of Sunday I was putting wet boots and socks on. The reason for the boots being wet was not due to the boot leaking but due to the terrain; almost knee deep river crossings and mile upon mile of mid calf deep bog (or was it?). People warned me against Gore-tex lined boots as once water gets in, it cannot get back out, I have never noticed any more water held in the boot with any GTX boot than normal leather boots.
The real test for these boots was the fourth time I wore them, when I completed 'Point to Point', which is an S.A.S. test march over rough terrain carrying over 50lb without knowing how long the march is or where your going apart from being given a grid reference for the next rendezvous point which you have to reach within an unknown time. At the end of the march other participants were nursing blisters and general foot problems, I on the other hand just dried my feet and put dry gear on and only had to nurse slightly bruised shoulders.
I don't think these boots will last as long as my old boots which are still OK to train in after 6 years as some of the exterior parts of the sole seem a little softer than the old vibram sole, also when walking over rocky paths I notice rocks through the sole slightly more with these boots, however this is only a minor gripe.
I was a little wrong with the last paragraph. Six MONTHS after buying the boots the toe box started to crack and the white plastic bits on the sides of the sole have started to come off.