Blake_T1
* Ace Member *
I've scouted out a TON of different Merrells and found a few things... but it also leads me to a couple of questions for those who have a lot of experience with em.
They have two distinct shapes to their trail shoes. There's the rounded shape, which is more like the Chameleons and Intercepts. There's the straighter shape, which is more like the Moabs, Outland, etc. If your feet flare out towards the front of the foot, you will be much better off with the rounded shape. If your feet are pretty much a straight line, you will probably do better with the straighter shape. If you have a wide, flared foot and go with something that has a lot of mesh (such as the Moabs), I don't foresee them lasting very long for disc golf.
Also, the sole stiffness varies a ton by model. The more expensive Merrells tend to have stiffer soles and a much sturdier footbed.
I suffered 3rd degree sprains to both ankles and feet playing sports in high school and I had fairly wide feet to begin with. Due to the loss of ligaments, my arches collapse completely when I set my foot down. When I'm not standing, my left foot is a EE width and my right foot is an E width. When I stand, my left foot goes to a EEEEE, and my right foot goes to an EEE. I've found the straighter Merrells are uncomfortable when new and break in will involve busting out the sides of the shoe (which will lead to quick breakdown/tearing). The other stupid thing is that I have to go with medium width shoes or they won't hold my arches up (even with orthopedic inserts). Last sept I picked up a pair of Chameleon 3 Ventilator GTX. After wearing them every day and being on my feet for 4+ hours for a year, everything is intact but the sides have started to stretch out quite a bit and because of that they are losing support. Sadly, the Chameleon 3's standard shoes are discontinued (while you can still get stretches).
Does anyone know which models have a similar fit? I picked up a couple of pairs of Intercepts on clearance and the fit is close, but I can tell they are going to stretch in the same spots faster than my Chameleons did. The Chameleon 4's fit closer to the Refuge, which falls somewhere between the Moab and Chameleon. My foot won't even fit into the Chameleon 3 Stretch, so those are a no go.
To add, I don't use these for disc golf, just for day to day use. My skeleton and muscles have adjusted to a high level of support and now I feel miserable if I spend a day in shoes with poor support.
On a side note, if you live near a Cabelas, they are clearancing several models of Merrell (both in store and on the website but the site is pretty much out of em now). On the site they had the Intercept Urban for $49, the Seismic for $39, and the Pantheon for $39. Went to a physical store the other day and they had an extra 40% off clearance tags (although the base price was higher). They had Intercept GTX's for $54, Chameleon 3 Ventilator GTX's for $54, Seismic for $36, Pantheon for $36, as well as a few others but their sizes were extremely limited.
They have two distinct shapes to their trail shoes. There's the rounded shape, which is more like the Chameleons and Intercepts. There's the straighter shape, which is more like the Moabs, Outland, etc. If your feet flare out towards the front of the foot, you will be much better off with the rounded shape. If your feet are pretty much a straight line, you will probably do better with the straighter shape. If you have a wide, flared foot and go with something that has a lot of mesh (such as the Moabs), I don't foresee them lasting very long for disc golf.
Also, the sole stiffness varies a ton by model. The more expensive Merrells tend to have stiffer soles and a much sturdier footbed.
I suffered 3rd degree sprains to both ankles and feet playing sports in high school and I had fairly wide feet to begin with. Due to the loss of ligaments, my arches collapse completely when I set my foot down. When I'm not standing, my left foot is a EE width and my right foot is an E width. When I stand, my left foot goes to a EEEEE, and my right foot goes to an EEE. I've found the straighter Merrells are uncomfortable when new and break in will involve busting out the sides of the shoe (which will lead to quick breakdown/tearing). The other stupid thing is that I have to go with medium width shoes or they won't hold my arches up (even with orthopedic inserts). Last sept I picked up a pair of Chameleon 3 Ventilator GTX. After wearing them every day and being on my feet for 4+ hours for a year, everything is intact but the sides have started to stretch out quite a bit and because of that they are losing support. Sadly, the Chameleon 3's standard shoes are discontinued (while you can still get stretches).
Does anyone know which models have a similar fit? I picked up a couple of pairs of Intercepts on clearance and the fit is close, but I can tell they are going to stretch in the same spots faster than my Chameleons did. The Chameleon 4's fit closer to the Refuge, which falls somewhere between the Moab and Chameleon. My foot won't even fit into the Chameleon 3 Stretch, so those are a no go.
To add, I don't use these for disc golf, just for day to day use. My skeleton and muscles have adjusted to a high level of support and now I feel miserable if I spend a day in shoes with poor support.
On a side note, if you live near a Cabelas, they are clearancing several models of Merrell (both in store and on the website but the site is pretty much out of em now). On the site they had the Intercept Urban for $49, the Seismic for $39, and the Pantheon for $39. Went to a physical store the other day and they had an extra 40% off clearance tags (although the base price was higher). They had Intercept GTX's for $54, Chameleon 3 Ventilator GTX's for $54, Seismic for $36, Pantheon for $36, as well as a few others but their sizes were extremely limited.
