>less weight less durable
spoken like someone with zero experience using light gear. ive had the same ultralight backpack for 20 years. my trail runners that would be too worn for a long trail are fine for most hikes. its not that the shoes fall apart. its the cushion becomes too compressed for months of 20 mile days. and changing the insole isnt the same. what long trails have you hiked?
>its not that the shoes fall apart.
Depends on the shoe and the terrain.
I wore a pair of Salomon trailrunners on my last trip to Nepal. They were pretty much new at the start of the trip and literally falling apart by the end of it. That was only 6 weeks, hiking 3-10 hours daily.
What killed them was the terrain, lots of scrambling over jagged boulders that put a lot of lateral or rotational force on the shoes causing the upper to tear away from the sole along the sides.
I'm still glad I chose them, the reduced weight vs boots was definitely worth the money given the amount of elevation change we were dealing with each day, but durability is a legitimate downside to trail runners.
>lots of scrambling over jagged boulders that put a lot of lateral or rotational force on the shoes causing the upper to tear away from the sole along the sides
Suggestions for this?
I have similar issues with Sierra granite. The jagged shale, sometimes calf-deep scree, and the solid granite seems to shred soles and eventually rip them off the boot. I've been buying the cheap $200 pairs of Danners and just going through them.
idk think about it. just endure more foot pain on your dream thru trail hike and you can use the same boots to go on day hikes when youre done. sounds great if you ask me
>just endure more foot pain
No, I'm not moronic enough or enough of a masochist for that. I like my feet and I'd like them to outlast my shoes. Also, do you own just a single pair of footwear?
The urban parasites always need something to look down on
>2004: Nature is so uncool. What kind of loser hikes, fishes, and camps on weekends?
>Present: Hiking is so cool now that social media has made it trendy and popular. Now we, the newcomers on the scene, get to decide what's in style. We will look down on anyone who wears any footwear that was predominantly used before we started hiking.
Its not like that. They can not wear boots without hurting themselves. It is physically painful for them.
And you simply don't need boots on tourist trails because those are essentially roads with maintenance and service.
"Hiking" became the city. City people were and are not interested in hiking. They are interested in a reliable, popular, and safe tourist experience.
> you simply don't need boots on tourist trails because those are essentially roads with maintenance and service
That's strange. I don't seem to need boots anywhere below the snow line, trail or not. Seems like bootgays just have weak ankles.
Wouldn’t pliable shoes be less likely to give you blisters?
5 months ago
Anonymous
You get blisters from wet feet or when the foot moves and rubs against the shoe too much. So as long as you can keep your feet dry and the shoe fits well when broken in it doesn't matter.
5 months ago
Anonymous
Yes, this is exactly why hikers prefers breathable trail runners that yield to the movement of their feet rather than non-breathable, stiff boots.
5 months ago
Anonymous
Same argument could be made for boots. No wet feet and no shifting around of the foot because of pliable shoes with loose uppers.
Depending on the environment and weather both can be good.
In my experience people who only wear trailrunners have orthopedic issues.
4 months ago
Anonymous
Please link to a pair of non-breathable, stuff trail runners. >my experience >orthopedic issues
Get more experience.
>bushwhacking in dense vegetation >thick, deep mud or snow >creekwalking in cold water
This should be obvious to hikers whose experience isn't limited to casualgay trails
4 months ago
Anonymous
>bushwhacking
Pure fricking cope. Trail runners aren’t made out of tissue paper. >deep mud
Doesn’t matter. Put on some gaiters so you don’t get mud into your shoe >creek walking in cold water
Moving the goal post or legitimately moronic. You’re talking about rubber boots or waders, not hiking boots. If the water is deeper than the top of your boot then your feet are getting wet, and I hope you’re not a waterproof leather boot moron. >snow
If it matters at all then you’ll need snow shoes. Otherwise get gaiters (optional, really) and goretex shoes.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>bushwhacking
I've had trail runners torn apart within a few months of doing this. I have the holes to prove it and even posted a photo before the Black person mods deleted it. Strangely, that never happened in all the decades I've spent in the backcountry wearing boots, even cheap ones
>deep mud and cold water
Both of these things have hardened my trail runners, thus removing their cushiness (one of the few advantages of wearing them in the first place)
>t. fell for the "trailrunners are superior in every situation meme" and have since gone back to wearing boots for most of my hikes
4 months ago
Anonymous
>the mods deleted the evidence
Oh wow >mud and water hardened my trail runners
Oh ok.
https://i.imgur.com/Q3BGP5G.jpg
>bushwhacking >deep mud >creeks >snow
Let's be honest. The people who look miserable in bad conditions are always city slickers in trailrunners. They put up with trailrunners because they can't handle walking a few weeks in boots.
Your feet are wet, and will remain wet. >few weeks
Please tell us more about the theoretical thruhike you’ve never been on.
Make another thread and wine more, gaygit.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>wine more
You meant to say "win more" right? Because the biggest whiners in any footwear debate are trailrunner homosexuals whining about boot wearers who are just going about their own business in the woods.
Example of an overemotional b***h crying about boot wearing chads
[...]
4 months ago
Anonymous
>Because the biggest whiners in any footwear debate are trailrunner homosexuals blah blah blah
Make another thread about it, gay
lol
4 months ago
Anonymous
Just did. Cope and seethe.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>bushwhacking >deep mud >creeks >snow
Let's be honest. The people who look miserable in bad conditions are always city slickers in trailrunners. They put up with trailrunners because they can't handle walking a few weeks in boots.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>they can't handle walking a few weeks in boots
I just prefer not to when I can get away with it.
4 months ago
Anonymous
Sure I also prefer trailrunners when the weather is good and dry. It just almost never is.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>dry
homie, on the trek I took the bottom pic it was raining half the time and half of the time it was dry I was crossing streams and tracking through mud.
4 months ago
Anonymous
If there is a chance of rain and it's muddy I would have taken boots, unless it was a tourist trail on a weekend.
>the mods deleted the evidence
Oh wow >mud and water hardened my trail runners
Oh ok.
[...]
Your feet are wet, and will remain wet. >few weeks
Please tell us more about the theoretical thruhike you’ve never been on.
Make another thread and wine more, gaygit.
Nope. Keep coping. I live at the arctic circle and been everywhere and in between from Russia to Norway and know a few things more than you on how to keep feet dry and healthy.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>non-American with a terrible take on the outdoors
Stick to your EDM festivals and Nigerian immigrant dick sucking.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>tourist trail on a weekend
Two weeks on a trail no tourist ever visits. Hell, there were days I didn't even see a local and some stretches there wasn't even a trail at all.
>non-American with a terrible take on the outdoors
Stick to your EDM festivals and Nigerian immigrant dick sucking.
>non-American with a terrible take on the outdoors
Shut the frick up.
4 months ago
Anonymous
>If it matters at all then you’ll need snow shoes. Otherwise get gaiters (optional, really) and goretex shoes.
moronic take. You've obviously never hiked in the snow.
>milsurp boot enjoyer
Me in 2006. Now I wear trail runners. Problem?
I really like Merrels and Kenetrek but I've never done a thru hike more than a week. I can definitely see how tennis shoes would be preferred after months on the trail.
woah 90% of """hikers""" are moronic and sovlless
t. milsurp boot enjoyer
The urban parasites always need something to look down on
>2004: Nature is so uncool. What kind of loser hikes, fishes, and camps on weekends?
>Present: Hiking is so cool now that social media has made it trendy and popular. Now we, the newcomers on the scene, get to decide what's in style. We will look down on anyone who wears any footwear that was predominantly used before we started hiking.
Its not like that. They can not wear boots without hurting themselves. It is physically painful for them.
And you simply don't need boots on tourist trails because those are essentially roads with maintenance and service.
"Hiking" became the city. City people were and are not interested in hiking. They are interested in a reliable, popular, and safe tourist experience.
There's no one pair of perfect "forever" shoes for any occasion which will last for decades under any adverse condition. I have two pairs of boots which I wear frequently and this summer I'll probably get a pair of trail runners and give those a shot. Currently I have a pair of Merrel MOABs, which are great for summer hiking and a pair of Kodiak McKinney 6" leather boots. The Kodiaks are much heavier but they're waterproof and signifigantly warmer. I wore the MOABs while hiking the Crawford Path to Mt. Washington in early November and my feet got pretty cold, the more flexible soles also weren't as good at holding onto my microspikes. Yesterday I did the Falling Waters Bridle Path loop and I opted for the McKinneys, they held the microspikes much better and my feet stayed warm. There's always going to be a comprise of weight/insulation/ankle support/durability/waterproofing vs ability to dry out or dissipate moisture and you just need to decide what comprises you're willing to make and what works for you.
wtf are your soles made of they they last for 1000’s of miles?
Concrete?
No seriously, even the “durable” vibram boot soles wear out for me after 6 months at work.
Lots of graphs but I’ll just post them here
The sample size is never very big compared to the general public but is sizable for the AT
Good reasons to switch. “I didn’t like the color” isn’t mentioned.
Can confirm that Altras aren’t very sturdy, but 4 or 5 pair? Mine last about 500 miles. Maybe Pennsylvania really is a jagged rocky shithole.
its the cushion that wears out first.
Socks too. No surprise there tbdesu.
darn tough is a meme
>always wears out on color border.
>hoka
>altra
maybe is should just buy addidas terrex.
Annnnmd there’s a typo in the topic headline. Guess I’ll just go kms.
>less weight less durable
spoken like someone with zero experience using light gear. ive had the same ultralight backpack for 20 years. my trail runners that would be too worn for a long trail are fine for most hikes. its not that the shoes fall apart. its the cushion becomes too compressed for months of 20 mile days. and changing the insole isnt the same. what long trails have you hiked?
>its not that the shoes fall apart.
Depends on the shoe and the terrain.
I wore a pair of Salomon trailrunners on my last trip to Nepal. They were pretty much new at the start of the trip and literally falling apart by the end of it. That was only 6 weeks, hiking 3-10 hours daily.
What killed them was the terrain, lots of scrambling over jagged boulders that put a lot of lateral or rotational force on the shoes causing the upper to tear away from the sole along the sides.
I'm still glad I chose them, the reduced weight vs boots was definitely worth the money given the amount of elevation change we were dealing with each day, but durability is a legitimate downside to trail runners.
>lots of scrambling over jagged boulders that put a lot of lateral or rotational force on the shoes causing the upper to tear away from the sole along the sides
Suggestions for this?
I have similar issues with Sierra granite. The jagged shale, sometimes calf-deep scree, and the solid granite seems to shred soles and eventually rip them off the boot. I've been buying the cheap $200 pairs of Danners and just going through them.
The health and comfort of my feet matter more to me than some romantic ideal of durability.
idk think about it. just endure more foot pain on your dream thru trail hike and you can use the same boots to go on day hikes when youre done. sounds great if you ask me
>just endure more foot pain
No, I'm not moronic enough or enough of a masochist for that. I like my feet and I'd like them to outlast my shoes. Also, do you own just a single pair of footwear?
woah 90% of """hikers""" are moronic and sovlless
t. milsurp boot enjoyer
You don’t use your boots nearly as much as they do, so your opinion doesn’t really matter as much.
The urban parasites always need something to look down on
>2004: Nature is so uncool. What kind of loser hikes, fishes, and camps on weekends?
>Present: Hiking is so cool now that social media has made it trendy and popular. Now we, the newcomers on the scene, get to decide what's in style. We will look down on anyone who wears any footwear that was predominantly used before we started hiking.
Its not like that. They can not wear boots without hurting themselves. It is physically painful for them.
And you simply don't need boots on tourist trails because those are essentially roads with maintenance and service.
"Hiking" became the city. City people were and are not interested in hiking. They are interested in a reliable, popular, and safe tourist experience.
> you simply don't need boots on tourist trails because those are essentially roads with maintenance and service
That's strange. I don't seem to need boots anywhere below the snow line, trail or not. Seems like bootgays just have weak ankles.
That's ok. Enjoy your wet blistered feet.
It's not like I'm the guy who rolled his ankle in hunting boots.
Wouldn’t pliable shoes be less likely to give you blisters?
You get blisters from wet feet or when the foot moves and rubs against the shoe too much. So as long as you can keep your feet dry and the shoe fits well when broken in it doesn't matter.
Yes, this is exactly why hikers prefers breathable trail runners that yield to the movement of their feet rather than non-breathable, stiff boots.
Same argument could be made for boots. No wet feet and no shifting around of the foot because of pliable shoes with loose uppers.
Depending on the environment and weather both can be good.
In my experience people who only wear trailrunners have orthopedic issues.
Please link to a pair of non-breathable, stuff trail runners.
>my experience
>orthopedic issues
Get more experience.
>keep your feet dry
Oh ok
That's because you're too much of a subhuman to do the kind of hikes where boots would be the obvious choice.
>they’re obvious so I won’t mention them by name
>bushwhacking in dense vegetation
>thick, deep mud or snow
>creekwalking in cold water
This should be obvious to hikers whose experience isn't limited to casualgay trails
>bushwhacking
Pure fricking cope. Trail runners aren’t made out of tissue paper.
>deep mud
Doesn’t matter. Put on some gaiters so you don’t get mud into your shoe
>creek walking in cold water
Moving the goal post or legitimately moronic. You’re talking about rubber boots or waders, not hiking boots. If the water is deeper than the top of your boot then your feet are getting wet, and I hope you’re not a waterproof leather boot moron.
>snow
If it matters at all then you’ll need snow shoes. Otherwise get gaiters (optional, really) and goretex shoes.
>bushwhacking
I've had trail runners torn apart within a few months of doing this. I have the holes to prove it and even posted a photo before the Black person mods deleted it. Strangely, that never happened in all the decades I've spent in the backcountry wearing boots, even cheap ones
>deep mud and cold water
Both of these things have hardened my trail runners, thus removing their cushiness (one of the few advantages of wearing them in the first place)
>t. fell for the "trailrunners are superior in every situation meme" and have since gone back to wearing boots for most of my hikes
>the mods deleted the evidence
Oh wow
>mud and water hardened my trail runners
Oh ok.
Your feet are wet, and will remain wet.
>few weeks
Please tell us more about the theoretical thruhike you’ve never been on.
Make another thread and wine more, gaygit.
>wine more
You meant to say "win more" right? Because the biggest whiners in any footwear debate are trailrunner homosexuals whining about boot wearers who are just going about their own business in the woods.
Example of an overemotional b***h crying about boot wearing chads
>Because the biggest whiners in any footwear debate are trailrunner homosexuals blah blah blah
Make another thread about it, gay
lol
Just did. Cope and seethe.
>bushwhacking
>deep mud
>creeks
>snow
Let's be honest. The people who look miserable in bad conditions are always city slickers in trailrunners. They put up with trailrunners because they can't handle walking a few weeks in boots.
>they can't handle walking a few weeks in boots
I just prefer not to when I can get away with it.
Sure I also prefer trailrunners when the weather is good and dry. It just almost never is.
>dry
homie, on the trek I took the bottom pic it was raining half the time and half of the time it was dry I was crossing streams and tracking through mud.
If there is a chance of rain and it's muddy I would have taken boots, unless it was a tourist trail on a weekend.
Nope. Keep coping. I live at the arctic circle and been everywhere and in between from Russia to Norway and know a few things more than you on how to keep feet dry and healthy.
>non-American with a terrible take on the outdoors
Stick to your EDM festivals and Nigerian immigrant dick sucking.
>tourist trail on a weekend
Two weeks on a trail no tourist ever visits. Hell, there were days I didn't even see a local and some stretches there wasn't even a trail at all.
>non-American with a terrible take on the outdoors
Shut the frick up.
>If it matters at all then you’ll need snow shoes. Otherwise get gaiters (optional, really) and goretex shoes.
moronic take. You've obviously never hiked in the snow.
>milsurp boot enjoyer
Me in 2006. Now I wear trail runners. Problem?
I really like Merrels and Kenetrek but I've never done a thru hike more than a week. I can definitely see how tennis shoes would be preferred after months on the trail.
There's no one pair of perfect "forever" shoes for any occasion which will last for decades under any adverse condition. I have two pairs of boots which I wear frequently and this summer I'll probably get a pair of trail runners and give those a shot. Currently I have a pair of Merrel MOABs, which are great for summer hiking and a pair of Kodiak McKinney 6" leather boots. The Kodiaks are much heavier but they're waterproof and signifigantly warmer. I wore the MOABs while hiking the Crawford Path to Mt. Washington in early November and my feet got pretty cold, the more flexible soles also weren't as good at holding onto my microspikes. Yesterday I did the Falling Waters Bridle Path loop and I opted for the McKinneys, they held the microspikes much better and my feet stayed warm. There's always going to be a comprise of weight/insulation/ankle support/durability/waterproofing vs ability to dry out or dissipate moisture and you just need to decide what comprises you're willing to make and what works for you.
wtf are your soles made of they they last for 1000’s of miles?
Concrete?
No seriously, even the “durable” vibram boot soles wear out for me after 6 months at work.