Winner: Crispi Wyoming Rubber GTX Brown EE , $339, BlackOvis.com (online).I'd have done well to wear a condom when I tried these on. Yes, they were comfortable. Wildly so. About like my Dad shoes - New Balance wide running shoes.
There wasn’t any noticeable extra arch support, but the entire insole conformed very well to my foot. The toebox is by far the widest of the five boots I tried. According to Crispi, the Wyoming’s is the widest toebox in all of the boots they make.
The sole exhibits the same kind of “roll-through” as did the Zamberlan Guide, and walking around was effortless. The sole also gave a great blend of stiffness and flexibility. In fact, these boots felt even lighter than the Asolo’s, though they weighed nearly half a pound more.
I was able to find complete comfort in all three levels of sock thickness. With the liner and heavy wool sock, this boot was even more comfortable versus all the others.
The toe and mid-foot areas were completely comfortable, even though they had only four eyelets in that area. None of the eyelets would swivel with different lacing combinations, but it was never an issue with this boot.
This boot didn’t seem to “hug“ my heel the way some of the others had, but there was still zero slippage back there.
I spent quite a bit of time on the Crispi website trying to decide which boot might work best for me. I wanted a thicker sole, versus a foam sole, given that I might be carrying a decent amount of weight in a backpack (and on account of that I’m Horizontally Blessed). I wanted a rubber rand, based on how badly the sides of my old boots had been torn up by rocks. I wanted lots of breathability, but still good support. I think this model checks off just about all of my boxes.
I have to say that I was shocked at how quickly BlackOvis got the boots to me. From Friday at noon Eastern time, to Monday at 2:45 PM, and being shipped all the way from Salt Lake City? I’m awfully happy with that. It goes without saying that I’m happy that they actually had the size, and width, that I wanted, in stock.
This exercise showed me that my feet are flatter, and wider than they used to be. It showed me that I was more comfortable in all boots with a midweight sock, than with just a liner. And it showed me that it’s probably a good idea to revisit my preferences in gear every now and again.
FC