[at-l] Re: at-l Boots

[janl2@mindspring.com (Jan Leitschuh)]

Rami,

I have similar feet, long and thin with low volume and high arches - but
very wide in the "bunion" area.

> Basically, if I buy boots to fit the height of my arch (?) then
> they are considerably too long.  If I buy boots to fit the length
> of my feet, they are considerably too tight.  If I buy boots to
> fit the width of my feet, the are usually too wide in the heel so
> I slip around.
> 

I was checked out by the charming and gentlemanly Phil Oren hisself at Trail
Days last year, and after shaking his head and clucking alot, he told me to
be sure I "fit the narrow part" of my foot, and then have the wider, bunion
area (at the joint below he toes) punched out. This I have done, at a local
shoe repair place. And it also helped immediately. At least on the shoes
Phil fitted for me.

That said, my off-the-rack new NB 804s chewed up my feet last hike. 
Sure, some was due to the rain/wet feet, but some other factor was operative
and inexplicable. 
I will say, I didn't think they fit my heel all that well, and that is where
alot of my blisters were (like, five on each foot, from the instep back! I
was papered in Compeed.)

So, now what I want to know is - how does one find out whether a shoe's
basic shape fits the foot type? Anklebear suggested a particular store a
state away that might have this info, but surely this info is on the web
somewhere. Phil Oren rattled off five or six types of shoes to check out,
but I was glazed over by then.

So, my shoe quest also continues.
On my hike to Hot Springs next week, I am going to try thicker socks with
liners, to add volume. And I've bought lots of Compeed...
-- 
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    	Jan Leitschuh Sporthorses Ltd.

	Website:  
	http://www.mindspring.com/~janl2/index.html

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