Review: One Boot For All Occasions

In Equipment by Doc North

Traveling light means traveling with one pair of shoes. Finding a pair of shoes versatile enough to go from a keynote speech to tromping through the jungle is a real challenge.

My solution: Create a new style. And that style is combat boots, but not just any combat boots.

My 5.11 Tactical Recon Desert Boots are just the right boot. And by all means, get lost in the 5.11 Tactical Website to see what all is out there!

Here’s what I like about these:

  • They look great. I get comments all the time on my boots. I feel like I’m cheating. I’m wearing something I can climb a mountain in or break a dance floor in half in, and I’m getting more comments on style than the guy next to me in thousand dollar designer boots.
  • Lightweight and minimalist. They’re not big clunky boots that make me full unnecessarily clumsy and awkward. I want something that makes me feel and look nimble on my feet.
  • Easy on and off. 99% of the time I leave these boots unlaced. So when I come home, or travel through Europe or Asia where you always have to take your shoes off when you enter someones house, they kick right off. And putting them on, I just plunge my foot into the boot, bend my leg, grab the sturdy loop on the back and pull my foot into it. I don’t even have to bend down.
  • Go time. But when it’s time to go, I simply lean over, gran the laces and pull up. The quick lace system tightens all the way down to the foot, I wrap the laces once, tie them up and I’m ready for the basketball court of dance floor with a reassuring amount of ankle support.
  • Good for warm climates. Not only are the boots fairly breathable, but when I leave them unlaced air moves in and out with every step cooling my feet off.
  • Not waterproof: I know people are all about waterproof boots, but not me. It’s extremely rare for me to be in weather where my feet are going to get soaked and cold (which can be helped greatly by the right socks). But it is extremely likely that my feet will get too warm, and I’ll want to have that heat and moisture escape. Waterproof shoes are great at keeping water out and in. (That being said, for when I have to get into real nasty weather, I do have a pair of MuckBoots in my closet at home.)

 

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