Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Essential Motorcycle Gear - Great Big Stompy Boots

Having an excuse to wear excessive amounts of rugged clothing is one of the perks of motorcycling on a daily basis. Every day, we get to pull on our armor and go out into that post-apocalyptic biker world, ready for anything and everything that comes our way.

Great big stompy boots are probably one of the most important items we wear as far as staying comfortable is concerned when dealing with anything and everything that comes our way. Don’t believe me? Ride 6 hours on a bike with footpegs (floorboards do not count) in a pair of Chuck Taylor’s and let me know how your feet feel.

Great big stompy boots make feet happy. They’re stompy because the soles are far from soft or flexible. Maybe bad for stealthy walking, but great for keeping your entire foot supported on a peg that’s less than two inches wide. And great big means you’ve got 12 or more eyelets for your laces, which means you can snug them up good and tight around your ankles, providing a ton of support, which means more comfort.

It doesn’t hurt that in case of an unexpected get-off, the boots will keep your feet and ankles protected from the cruel, hard ground, hot exhaust components, and Kathy Bates. Barring that, if you stub your toe wandering around the office or warehouse in your great big stompy boots, you won’t even notice. Can you say that about loafers?

And, hey, it feels great stomping around town and the office in black boots that are just this side of respectable. Even better if you can get away with wearing truly righteous boots suitable for raiding bartertown.

Verdict? Great Big Stompy Boots: Required.

What boots do you guys like?

8 comments:

TM said...

hi friends .. I like this article very helpful for me,,,,

Mr. Motorcycle said...

I've got HD boots very similar to the ones you posted a picture of. Good post. I agree completely. I Love to wear my boots. Yeah, at work too.

Canajun said...

Depends what I'm riding. For trials or dual-purpose/off-road it'll be workboots (big stompy ones). For cruising/travelling - cowboy boots. I can wear them all day and my feet never get tired. And they also provide great ankle and lower leg protection. Only one caveat - make sure you get ones with rubber soles, or get them resoled. Leather soles on a bit of loose gravel is a recipe for disaster - or at least major embarrassment.

Danny said...

My job requires the wearing of big stompy boots. They even pitch in $100 for the purchasing of new big stompy boots every year. This year I bought some made by Thoughgood. I didn't like them as much as the Wolverines I had been wearing. I have actually gone back to an old pair of the Wolverines. I always get some that are waterproof and insulated too.

Learning to Golf said...

HD lace up, 10 eyelets, with a zipper on the inside to allow my fat foot inside. I wear them every day, even though I wear slacks to school, so it's a good thing black goes with every color. Three years old and polish up to look just like new. Just can't beat a good boot when riding or walking.

gael_cee said...

I wear a nice pair of black Red Wing over the ankle work boots. These are at least three years old and made here in the good old USA.

GPtuners said...

Do power ranger boots count as big stompy boots?

http://www.setupaustralia.com/images/boots/VisionBlack_600.jpg

Two Buck said...

I'm a Great Big Stompy Boots supporter, but in my personal experience the ankle protection ain't what I thought it would be.

I went through three pairs of Caterpillar lace-ups, replacing each worn pair with another set of lace-ups because of the ankle support that would save me in a crash. Then I crashed in them and dislocated my ankle and my foot got turned around 180 degrees so my toes were waving hello to my ass. So much for ankle support... Six months later and I still can't walk right.

On the other hand, if the boots had provided the kind of support I was expecting then I probably would have broken my tibia and/or fibula instead and I still wouldn't be walking right, which just goes to show that there's no pleasing some people.

So now I'm wearing an old pair of pull-on HD boots that provide absolutely no ankle support because "why bother?" -- but they are Great and Big and Stompy.