New Shoe Suggestions

[NegaSnapples]

I purchased the Adidas Gore-Tex shoes about a year ago, and they have already been shredded to the point of not being wearable anymore.

I got it during that special 40% off and an extra $20 off (I think) with the code and registering an email for Adidas.

It's sort of bizarre because I have a pair of non waterproof Terrex shoes that have lasted two years now and have no sign of any wear and tear. I've worn those just as much or more than the waterproof ones.

So, I need a new pair of waterproof shoes. After that terrible experience with the Gore-Tex Adidas I'm wanting to move on to a different brand. I just want to hear what the community thinks about different trail running shoes.

I'm open to any suggestions. I just want something durable.

 

[wolfmandragon]

Best trail shoes I have found are Oboz.
Having said that, I quit wearing trail shoes to play dg in. I am now playing in casual flats. Flat bottoms give much better weight transfer.

I cannot find any trail runners, that are flat, in any store. I did find an Aussie company that makes them....but I really dont want to pay international shipping on a pair of shoes that may not fit.

 

[Quinum]

I've been using Keen Oakridge low-cut waterproof hiking boots for over a year and they are holding up great. Not the most comfortable pair of shoes out of the box, but after breaking them in a bit they feel great.

 

[Luckybeavers30]

Just a heads up, Mine fell apart after about a year as well. I sent them back to adidasoutdoor.com and they gave me 120 credit. I just had to pay shipping

 

[Chaz58]

I am currently in possession of a pair of Merrell Moabs with Vibram soles. Not enough usage yet to give testimony about long lasting, but the vibram soles provide very good traction and the shoes are light weight for an ankle high WP hiker.

 

[wolfmandragon]

I am currently in possession of a pair of Merrell Moabs with Vibram soles. Not enough usage yet to give testimony about long lasting, but the vibram soles provide very good traction and the shoes are light weight for an ankle high WP hiker.

I have had several pairs of Moabs. They live for about 6 months and the heel is too high for good weight teansfer. Vibram soles is great for dirt and mud, but scary slick on wet rocks.
....We have lots of rocks in East Tennessee.

Really good hiking shoes though

 

[wolfmandragon]

The casual flats I am wearing are sketchers. They are awesome for correct dry grip and weight transfer over the heels...not so good for mud.

 

[Tripper]

I started my waterproof show experience with Merrell Moab's. Very comfortable shoe. Waterproofing is provided in the form of a thin plastic membrane between inner & outer shell. The stay dry until you break the in at which point your foot has made holes in the plastic waterproofing. Durability wise they lasted me about 6 months playing about 10-15 rounds a week.

I switched to Vasque which took longer to break in but the waterproofing was great. Took me a year to wear a hole in the toe. Can't find the same model at my local REI so i switched again.

This time to Oboz, a little stiff out of the box but durability & waterproofing are the best I've come across. On my 3rd pair now.

 

[NegaSnapples]

Just a heads up, Mine fell apart after about a year as well. I sent them back to adidasoutdoor.com and they gave me 120 credit. I just had to pay shipping

That's pretty interesting... Did you just email or call and let them know about your shoes falling apart, and they told you to send back for credit?

Thanks for all the responses so far everyone. I've been researching online as well. Does anyone have any experience with Keen or Salomon?

And @WolfManDragon all of the courses around me are half hiking, half disc golf. Flat bottoms aren't really an option for me. Especially when trying to play this time of year.

 

[Grippenripp]

Keen and merell both make high quality, durable shoes in waterproof models. Is suggest the saltzman from keen but look into these companies on your own both are high quality shoes imo

 

[Tripper]

That's pretty interesting... Did you just email or call and let them know about your shoes falling apart, and they told you to send back for credit?

Thanks for all the responses so far everyone. I've been researching online as well. Does anyone have any experience with Keen or Salomon?

And @WolfManDragon all of the courses around me are half hiking, half disc golf. Flat bottoms aren't really an option for me. Especially when trying to play this time of year.

I have heard good things about Keen. I tried them and the arch was too far forward for my foot. So be sure to try them on before purchasing.

BTW if you buy your shoes at REI (get the membership for $20), you can return them within a year if you wear them out and don't even need a receipt or box. Added bonus they send you a 10% dividend check once a year. So if you buy $140 Oboz, you will get a check for $14 at the end of the year.

Side note, I went into REI to get a new pair of Oboz and they were having a "Garage sale" (twice a year I think) for members only. Went into the garage sale shoe area, found pair of Oboz that had been returned due to fit for $60. Sizes are just whatever has been returned so get there early.

 

[wolfmandragon]

I love REI.

 

[Wendell Baker]

I have played in two pairs of Scarpa and love them both. They make rock climbing shoes but also approach shoes and that's what i love. The rubber is great even on mud and rocks. The only issue is they're not waterproof.

I have been thinking about stepping up into a mid but can't rationalize the price of the higher quality ones for something I'm just going to beat up.

 

[discerdoo]

Getting old sux, over time I've developed an issue with one of the toes on my right foot- not chronic but the wrong shoes make it hurt. The real problem is it's difficult to tell which shoes are a problem without wearing them for an extended period.

So I've found the Reebok trail shoes from their outlet store are comfy and work well for me. They always have some kind of sale so I get 2 pairs for around $90 and they last 6-8 months before breaking down on the outer edge of the right foot. Spent $120 for a pair of merrell only to find they irritated the toe. It's me, not the shoe, so I stick with what works.

 

[Luckybeavers30]

That's pretty interesting... Did you just email or call and let them know about your shoes falling apart, and they told you to send back for credit?

Thanks for all the responses so far everyone. I've been researching online as well. Does anyone have any experience with Keen or Salomon?

And @WolfManDragon all of the courses around me are half hiking, half disc golf. Flat bottoms aren't really an option for me. Especially when trying to play this time of year.

I emailed them at [email protected] . Someone on the Reddit discgolf page told me about it. It worked out great for me, I almost just threw them away, haha. But they gave me the credit in like November and they were having some crazy good sales so I gokt a pair of the non waterproof ax2s for dry and a pair of tevid , I think they were called high top waterproof hiking boot/sneaker things just for the price of shipping them.

 

[Emoney]

Merrell just arent worth the money. I had 2 pair of moabs fall apart in less than 6 months. The vibram sole is great but the rest of the shoe was trash.

Iam currently on an adidas kick. When on sale they are very cheap. They have enough models where you can try different ones. Iam not a fan of the Tracerockers but i have a pair of the Terrex swift r and the Caprock that i have yet to try.
The materials seem very high quality but im not sold on the comfort yet. I hope to click with one of these models. Paid less than 60$ for each pair

 

[Lazerface]

To the OP, when your talking waterproof shoes, regardless of brand, your mostly going to be looking at a Goretex coating which holds up for a while and works good in my experience. I had the same experience with the Swift R GTX that you did. I think the fabric is just too rigid where it bends at the start of the toes and will split within a year or even 6 months with heavy use. My soles are starting to separate as well, but mine are over a year old.

There is not really a magic shoe that is constructed well enough to handle the crazy stress pivoting on concrete over and over again puts on a shoe. I can't do heavy, but some of the shoes that will take the greatest amount of abuse over a long period of time are heavy - because strong materials tend to weigh more. Either way, rubber is rubber and for disc golf you don't want a really rigid rubber sole because if it's a nobby trail running shoe and the tee pad is damp the lack of surface area turns into a serious slip risk. Softer rubber is best for disc gold IMO, but of course soft rubber will break down a lot faster on concrete tees. Honestly the best shoes on wet concrete are a good ol' pair of flat soles, but what happens when you get out in the field where the rest of your shots are thrown from? It comes down to shoe strategy and the kind of course your playing I guess. I will pay extra for waterproof to handle the early morning dew and wet rounds, but have to have light weight. The Swift R GTX actually fit my feet very well and I found them to have great traction, but they fell apart pretty quickly.

I like the idea of joining REI and just screwing them over every 11.5 months and getting a new pair, because I don't think their is a shoe in this world that is light enough for me to play in and can handle disc golf for 1 year. Something will tear, separate, etc, regardless of brand. Maybe eventually REI will catch on and make customers sign a disc golf waiver....

 

[Tripper]

To the OP, when your talking waterproof shoes, regardless of brand, your mostly going to be looking at a Goretex coating which holds up for a while and works good in my experience. I had the same experience with the Swift R GTX that you did. I think the fabric is just too rigid where it bends at the start of the toes and will split within a year or even 6 months with heavy use. My soles are starting to separate as well, but mine are over a year old.

There is not really a magic shoe that is constructed well enough to handle the crazy stress pivoting on concrete over and over again puts on a shoe. I can't do heavy, but some of the shoes that will take the greatest amount of abuse over a long period of time are heavy - because strong materials tend to weigh more. Either way, rubber is rubber and for disc golf you don't want a really rigid rubber sole because if it's a nobby trail running shoe and the tee pad is damp the lack of surface area turns into a serious slip risk. Softer rubber is best for disc gold IMO, but of course soft rubber will break down a lot faster on concrete tees. Honestly the best shoes on wet concrete are a good ol' pair of flat soles, but what happens when you get out in the field where the rest of your shots are thrown from? It comes down to shoe strategy and the kind of course your playing I guess. I will pay extra for waterproof to handle the early morning dew and wet rounds, but have to have light weight. The Swift R GTX actually fit my feet very well and I found them to have great traction, but they fell apart pretty quickly.

I like the idea of joining REI and just screwing them over every 11.5 months and getting a new pair, because I don't think their is a shoe in this world that is light enough for me to play in and can handle disc golf for 1 year. Something will tear, separate, etc, regardless of brand. Maybe eventually REI will catch on and make customers sign a disc golf waiver....

Well that is a way you could go. As for me, I will return them one time for a new pair. I am not trying to get free shoes for life. If I can get 12-16 months out of 2 pairs of shoes for $140 I feel like i am getting my monies worth.

 

[Tripper]

Another option for prolonging the life of your shoes is to get Tuff Toe https://tufftoe.com/pages/demo-application-video
I used to use it to repair my sons hockey skates and 46YearOldSlinger figured out it is good for disc golf toe as well. Thanks CB!

 

[`cjc]

The black New Balance sneakers are very durable.

They're not waterproof, but their durability is surprisingly well.

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