Boot Fit--urgent question

imported
#1

Ok, here’s the thing. I normally wear a size 10, but when I went to the outfitter and got fitted for my Lowas, I got sized a 9.5. I got measured two seperate times and both said the same thing.

I have the boots and have worn them around the house. I don’t feel my toes rubbing or anything, but my heal slips a little bit when I walk. Does this mean they’re too small?

I need to know what you guys think because my parents are going down to where I bought them tomorrow and they can exchange them for me if they need to, but it’ll be another month before I get back down there again.

Thanks for any advice!

Joy

#2

You may wanna do a nice fifteen before you go back to the outfitter so your feet will be a little bigger. When we finished the Maryland Challange we hit REI the next day and NOTHING fit…all to narrow. But if you get your pack light, as previously covered, you’ll do most goodly. You need some room to move, no toe hits and should feel good right out of the box. A little heel lift is okay as they’re stiff when new. You might like Vasque Sundowner MX2s, though. Kind of glovey…is that a word?

BW

#3

I learned the hard way to buy your boots at LEAST 1/2 size larger than you normally do and in my case 1 full size. You don’t want to loose your toenails after the first week of hiking because your big toes are hitting the front of your boots while hiking downhill. Funny BW mentioned the MX2’s because those were the boots that caused me to loose my toenails. I never had a problem wearing them around the house and even on some day hikes but none of the dayhikes were steep downhills like coming off Blood Mtn or Cow Rock Mtn. (where my injuries occured). The Sundowners are good boots, but the Goretex liners are known to pull loose from the inside of the boots(I got my money back because of this) and they take forever to break in. I’d also spend the money to buy inserts like Superfeet to help stabilize your foot. I thought the arch was too high at first, but when you load yourself down with a pack, the higher arch feels great.

Nooga

#4

Thing is you’ll hear all kinds of advice. I saw a lot of people loose toenails and I saw a few people that never got a blister. They say your feet grow longer as you hike. I guess, I dont think mine did. A little slippage in the heal is okay,Ive been told.No more than 1/4 inch But I found that if they are comfortable with no hot spots from the start, wear them. I did hear some people swear by “superfeet” Of coarse I got blisters last year so what do I know.

Virginian

#5

There has been tons and tons of stuff written about boots and boot fit in this forum. Just do a search and you will find it all. I’ve written quite a bit of it. Just look it up. Above advice seems quite good and I concur, but lots more you should know and read. Just do a search and read.

:cheers

Maintain

#6

Length:
A good check for length is to slide your foot forward in the unlaced boot until the your toes hit the front. You should be able to put one finger behind your heal. If you can’t fit a finger it is too small if you can get two fingers it is too big.

Check both feet because one foot should be bigger then the other.

Slipping

On a flat surface your boot shouldn’t slip more then a quarter inch (half the width of your pinky finger). Any more slippage then a 1/4 inch and you have a good chance of getting a blister. Also a stiffer boot will take time to break-in or soften up, so initally they might slip more then 1/4 inch.

Overall
You want a snug fit with no pressure points. A loose fit will cause blisters. Your feet will swell some and they will lengthen a bit. The amount depends on the person. Do your feet swell if you have been on them all day or after a hike or run? Maybe try the shoes on with a thicker pair of socks then you will normally use. My feet didn’t swell much during my hike and the lengthened maybe a half size. A friend of mine had really hard time because his feet lengthen 2 sizes from a 9 - 11. There isn’t much you can do at the begining of your hike to plan for this. Other then actually hiking for a few weeks.

It’s a fine line between loose, snug and tight. Don’t be concerned with boot size as much as how they feel. Sizes will vary between brands. So my advice it to get a good fit with alittle room for swelling.

ZipDrive

#7

Please do not pay any attention to the size number. One brands 10 is another brands 9.

Blue Jay

#8

Let me second Zipdrive and Blue Jay’s comments and add… The Sundowner MX2 runs narrower and lower volume than the Sundowner. Many women will still need to use tongue depressors (or tongue pads on the inside) because the padding in the tongue is rather skimpy IMHO. I got custom Superfeet in Damascus which, with my long, narrow feet, seem to have solved my problems of slippage at last. :tongue

Lady Di

#9

Just wanted to affirm what most here have said. It has to fit YOU. I tried on some Lowa’s recently and was told they run big, so don’t be concerned about the number on the box. It sounds like you can’t take them back if you’re worn them outside, so that’s a tough one (Beans took back my Crestas after wearing them 100 miles out of DWG last year). What I found was (and this is only my experience), yes my feet “grew” “stretched” whatever by the middle of my hike but I didn’t know this since the boot stretched with them. iow, the boot stayed comfortable. My mistake was ordering the same size for #2 (couldn’t try on, they only exist in Maine). I ended up with a half size larger and for the most part my foot is now needs a half size larger shoe. Which means much of my footweat at home has had to be replaced this year, slowly. you’re just going to have to hike in them to know, by going up hills and down hills.

As for insoles, I have said this before, don’t just get Superfeet cause everyone says you should. I went 1700 miles with mine before realizing they were making my feet hurt more, they’re not for everybody (at least the off the shelf type).

Bluebearee

#10

Might I suggest you take your loaded pack to the outfitter and try stuff on, walk around for as long as it takes to make a pair feel good. I did that in Portsmouth for over an hour doing laps around the store. Looks weird as hell but when you’re on trail who wants to guess. They now have 2000 miles on them and they still rock. Asolo 530’s.

BW