Leather or rubber soles for everyday shoes?

[yorkshire pud]

Modern military combat boots have a good deal of support and cushioning.

I know, but are they actually any better than the traditional boots (broken in) or is it just marketing to tempt soldiers into buying supplementary kit??

Boots | Alt-Berg

The Warrior Microlite is the original Altberg military boot, tried & tested for the past 20 years, men's & ladies versions available, a classic, fast drying, rough terrain operational boot

www.altberg.co.uk

 

[yorkshire pud]

“men of Troy! Hear me. Pick up your arms and bear your shields. Strap on your sandals and fight for your homeland. Defend the Gods! But do so without walking for more than 30 minutes lest thy feet start to hurt.”
-the lost fragments from The Iliad by Homer.

Both my Grandads marched across Europe in hobnail boots, drunk out of streams and ate that foreign muck, and it never done 'em no bloody harm 😉

 

[rjc149]

I know, but are they actually any better than the traditional boots (broken in) or is it just marketing to tempt soldiers into buying supplementary kit??

The Bates style combat/tactical boot, which is pretty universal (whether issued or purchased off-base) is pretty cushioned and supportive. No one wear hard-soled leather boots with their BDU's anymore -- at least not in the US.

The overall evolution of footwear, whether for athletes or soldiers, or just for casual around-town wear, has gotten more and more cushioned. This is a function of cost and mass-production, of course, but it also caters to evolving preferences for function -- and comfort -- over form.

The majority of men don't wear leather-soled, cork-bedded shoes unless they have to or they specifically want to, and that's primarily because of their aesthetic appeal, not because of their superior comfort. To me, the fact that my dress shoes are comfortable is secondary over the fact that they complete a professional outfit.

 

[yorkshire pud]

The Bates style combat/tactical boot, which is pretty universal (whether issued or purchased off-base) is pretty cushioned and supportive. No one wear hard-soled leather boots with their BDU's anymore -- at least not in the US.

The overall evolution of footwear, whether for athletes or soldiers, or just for casual around-town wear, has gotten more and more cushioned. This is a function of cost and mass-production, of course, but it also caters to evolving preferences for function -- and comfort -- over form.

The majority of men don't wear leather-soled, cork-bedded shoes unless they have to or they specifically want to, and that's primarily because of their aesthetic appeal, not because of their superior comfort. To me, the fact that my dress shoes are comfortable is secondary over the fact that they complete a professional outfit.

Boots | Alt-Berg

The Warrior Microlite is the original Altberg military boot, tried & tested for the past 20 years, men's & ladies versions available, a classic, fast drying, rough terrain operational boot

www.altberg.co.uk

Try these, they are the "dogs bollocks" as we say in the UK.

I like the hard Birkenstocks they do help with the back and knee pain when you get older!!

If I wear sneakers I like Superga (ltalian Converse you can machine wash without melting the glue) as they are nice and flat

 

[dieworkwear]

I take it you also yearn for the days of yore when people died of cholera, women couldn't vote, and people didn't require such silly things like cushioned footwear.

now you’re unhinged. You’re replying to posts not even directed at you.

 

[rjc149]

I'm glad you're enjoying yourself, Mr. Workwear.

 

[rjc149]

Both my Grandads marched across Europe in hobnail boots, drunk out of streams and ate that foreign muck, and it never done 'em no bloody harm 😉

I think orthopedic comfort was low on the totem pole of concerns for early 20-something soldiers facing German fire.

Here's an interesting video... apparently, military boots back then were quite well-made.