Quandary
Well-Known Member
Last season was one of mainly good weather and from April on I was wearing deckies nearly all the time, afloat and ashore. One or other of three pairs, a pair of new Quaysides, a pair of older Timberland and an old pair of Clarkes. Probably the Timberland more than the others, most of the time without socks. Around July I started to get a pain in my right heel which I attributed to a bruise, perhaps from jumping off the boat. (I have a new metal left knee which I try to protect.) The pain got worse and worse day by day, until I was finding it very difficult to walk anywhere, the pain was awful and built up through the day, the only footwear I could work in was my Vibram sole hiking boots, laced up tight. ( I 'pilot' boats through the Crinan Canal when not away cruising, involving a lot of walking and pushing) Eventually I saw my GP who diagnosed 'plantar fasciitis', a condition I had never heard off until then, though apparently it is commonplace, particularly among runners. It is inflammation of the tendon like tissue that connects the heel at the base of the achilles to your toes and can take up to a year to clear. The Timberland deck shoes were blamed as they are the flat type with little in the form of arch stiffness. On line research of the condition brought me to a number of running websites, the advice was before buying shoes to try bending the toe toward the heel, it should bend ok but not any further back than the instep, then you try twisting the sole while holding the heel, it should completely resist this. New Balance and Cotswold Leisure were recommended as people who new how to make or sell safe shoes.
The Timberland shoes failed both tests, the Clarkes were quite a bit better while the Quaysides with a built up instep and raised heel were good. The Crocs I was wearing around the house and for taking the dog ashore on beaches were also quite stiff in the right places.
The pain persisted without much relief and in September I went to the Cotswold shop in Glasgow where an impressively knowledgeable assistant measured my feet and produced a pair of Lowa boots with Vibram soles, he also had them in a shoe version and they felt so good I was tempted to buy both, but I had never spent £150 per pair on shoes before, not even for my Dubs, so I settled for the shoes, he also persuaded me to buy some Bridgedale socks at over £16 each pair. I also purchased some arch support insoles from a pharmacy a pair of which I use in my Dubarry boots. I wore the new shoes almost all the time when outdoors and within two or three weeks the pain had lessened and now it has almost gone completely, I feel very lucky that it has gone so soon.
The Timberland deck shoes were not that cheap and there are plenty out there with similar characteristics, they are probably OK for occasional wear but I am not taking any chances, quite a lot of pairs of shoes went to the bin. So my advice is to be picky about your deck shoes and if they are soft and flat wear them as little as possible.
The Timberland shoes failed both tests, the Clarkes were quite a bit better while the Quaysides with a built up instep and raised heel were good. The Crocs I was wearing around the house and for taking the dog ashore on beaches were also quite stiff in the right places.
The pain persisted without much relief and in September I went to the Cotswold shop in Glasgow where an impressively knowledgeable assistant measured my feet and produced a pair of Lowa boots with Vibram soles, he also had them in a shoe version and they felt so good I was tempted to buy both, but I had never spent £150 per pair on shoes before, not even for my Dubs, so I settled for the shoes, he also persuaded me to buy some Bridgedale socks at over £16 each pair. I also purchased some arch support insoles from a pharmacy a pair of which I use in my Dubarry boots. I wore the new shoes almost all the time when outdoors and within two or three weeks the pain had lessened and now it has almost gone completely, I feel very lucky that it has gone so soon.
The Timberland deck shoes were not that cheap and there are plenty out there with similar characteristics, they are probably OK for occasional wear but I am not taking any chances, quite a lot of pairs of shoes went to the bin. So my advice is to be picky about your deck shoes and if they are soft and flat wear them as little as possible.
