Finding room to pack hiking boots on a motorcycle is much harder than most people give credit. They take up a lot of space, won’t conform well when being mashed into a corner of luggage, and must frequently get packed up while dirty, wet, and sweaty. Switchback Travel has tons of gear reviews and their hiking boot recommendations have me thinking once again that I need to find a boot that can handle the long road… on the bike or on the trail.
Dedicated motorcycle boots are usually not even good for life in the bivouac. They deliberately restrict movement of the ankle because much of an ankle’s articulation isn’t required to operate a motorcycle. For safety, they are deliberately stiff after a few degrees of deflection. They also use the sole’s material (as opposed to tread pattern) when seeking grip. Footpegs already have a grippy surface; big tread blocks are more likely to hang up on a footpeg than a flat surface. They also have venting systems made to work at 50mph.

Photo: WikiCommons
But hiking boots are woefully lacking in safety for a motorcyclist. The edges of their soles are built to find traction. If you come off the bike the last thing you want is for the edge of your boots to find traction… that is how ankles get broken. They also vent much too good at 50mph. They have no armor and the toes can be bulky when shifting gears. Not too mention that even a low speed get off will damage the hook fasteners used on the top 2-3 positions of most hiking boot lacing systems. No fault of their own of course; they are rightfully designed without such considerations

What to do then? Honestly, there is no obvious solution. Having spent seven years in the US military, Bates Footwear has my attention with their [somewhat] new line of powersports boots. They are not designed as hiking boots per se, but they know all-day comfort and abuse, because everything I’ve worn from them– from dress shoes to combat boots– has been a high quality item that delivered more performance than its features would suggest. The Adrenaline and Beltline are the most interesting because their tread– while not deep– looks like it could get the job done on any maintained trail, rough or smooth.

But in the end I’m just looking at pictures. My hope was to use their boots when I and my co-pilot Matt set a world record during the Pikes Peak Hill Climb aboard a motorcycle sidecar. Sadly, they failed to respond to my inquiries. Of course, phase two for me would have been to hit the road, taking their boots from the 160mph world of sidecar racing to the 1,000-mile days Kate and I put in together every summer and fall.
But as a college student begging friends for money to race a motorcycle like some sort of junkie, there is no way I can afford new boots. My solution has been to use a beat up set of motorcycling shoes for road trips, but the tread is long gone. I added a bargain basement pair of boots from a sporting goods store recently, but their low cost makes them a very poor choice for hiking. If you’ve every done even an afternoon hike in boots that fit improperly, you know what I mean.
We will keep sorting through lists of gear in the hopes that we can narrow it down. All of my road tripping before I met Kate was done with things pulled out of my closet, but now half of my packing space is filled with her, and half of what’s left I have to give up for her gear. We need purpose-built stuff that packs tight, lasts forever, and costs nothing. Should be easy to find, right? I expect we will become expert gear reviewers in the coming 12 months.
PS: I have a similar musing on my personal website as well, but with a bit more information on alternatives. Check it out.
This isn’t exactly a touring boot, and the inner shoe isn’t exactly a hiking shoe, but Touratech appears to be taking on the 0-60 boot problem with an integrated solution:
http://www.advpulse.com/adv-products/touratech-destino-adventure-boot-with-integrated-shoe/
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When I travel I wear a pair of Sidi Crossfires. See on soles. Not the supermoto style. Hey work for my level of hiking. I wear synthetic running socks. Synthetic drys quick. I carry a pair of Teva style sandals and wool socks for off the bike in camp. I have hiked five mikes in them. Though I’ve also worn the Crossfires and a pair of Discoveries for similar hikes. The Crossfires worked for fly fishing too. I just needed to pay attention more than with waders.
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I never understood sandals. I think I head off trail and into burrs and rocks too often. Plus I have a mental block where sandals are supposed to cost $10, so the trail-ready ones would never suit me. On top of that, the trail ready ones take up as much space as shoes. I want the magic bullet. I have always known Bates to make superior footwear from my military days. Their dress shoes could be worn for 10 hours on your feet. You could dance in them. But their riding gear did not have hiking in mind, so I worry they would not pass muster. I wish I knew someone at the company: I could be a perfect test mule. The miles I put in on the bike, combined with urban trekking in the San Francisco hills, plus the Marin/Napa trails… I could find weak points. You add to that my R&D experience and military time spent writing reports? Damnit, they should be paying me I tell ya.
Someone needs to make the magic bullet. We don’t need MotoGP/Dakar level protection on the street. Hipsters, youngsters, and old timers are all out on the trail trying to reconnect with nature. Footwear is a flagship purchase out of need and the statement. Screw showing your friends you are a burly adventurer with a Scrambler or $17,000 Adv rig; a good do-everything boot is something you can wear inside the Starbucks to make a point about how trail-ready you are 😉
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The problem of flip flop level protection in a shoe is what kept sandals out of my closet for a long time. I got a pair on a sale for less than
My usual flip flops. Narrow feet with instep issues means I never get to buy cheap stuff.
Back in the day I used to buy these Italian hiking boots. They were about $40 back then and would last about a year of work. The chemicals and oil in the shop killed
Most things. 18% saltwater solution and sulfur-based oils and other nasty chemicals would rot anything.
Those old boots were great when riding the Norton.
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