BOOTS!

Well there is a pare of boots that I have been wearing since I was 15. They are Redwing 1178's which from the factory look like this:


Yes yes, I know, Cowboy boots. They are also ace for motorcycling, which granted I wasn't doing at 15, but they are the same exact style boot that my father wore when he was living with and racing motorcycles, and thus he owned exactly 3 pair from when he was 20 till he died at 59, his last set lasted him 23 years, and they are still in a closet downstairs.

These boots are hand made in the USA, this specific type has a cork inner and outer sole. Single layer leather boots.

Mine have been through a great deal through the years. Countless theater productions (tech side), a slew of road trips including the trip I took to Mexico with dad when I was 17. They saw California when Steve and I drove cross country together fairly fresh out of high school. They went cross the country again with me on motorcycle, a motorcycle that poured a quart of oil a day out on the left one. They then saw 6 months in Phoenix, all on motorcycles - often with a foot down sliding around corners to combat sand. They have seen 9 New England winters, and probably 10 Summers, often running full duty for my feet's survival.

The nifty thing about buying a single pair of Redwing boots for $250 is the quality you get. They can take one hell of a beating and the only regular work is to get them re-soled every year or two for about $40, as well as saddle soaping and oiling them yourself every few months to keep them soft and water proof.

I am afraid over the last few years I have neglected them poorly. The neglect started on my ride to Phoenix when the oil caused two holes to develop in that left boot that was getting drenched in hot oil. One by the ball of the foot, and the other up in fron by the toe. I knew I needed to get them fixed, and yet somehow I let 2 years slide by without tending to these issues. The same went for the soles of the boots, which due to my sliding around corners on my 73 Triumph had a much shortened life span.

So a couple of weeks ago when my left boot was looking pretty gnarly with its 2 holes and a sole that was practically falling off, and my right boot which not only looked quite rough but also had the sole held on with electrical tape...


I was ordered by my mother to go and buy a new pair of boots. Same boots, but the stipulation was they had to be new. I insisted mine were fixable, but she demanded new ones! Now mind you, I am grateful, but I also tend to hate new things. I grow accustomed to wearing the same old battered clothes, and develop an affection for them. I have shirts that date back over 13 years that I still wear regularly.

I went to the local Redwing shop dead set on buying exactly what I already had, but discovered that they no longer make the exact model I have always worn. Sure its still the same number, but they don't make the inner pad out of cork any longer, AND the price has gone up. But fear not, Matt of Matt's Shoes suggested a compromise. I could get the same style boot made by H&H (another American company) which he had in stock for about $150, and then send my old battered Redwings off to be rebuilt for $90. So that's what I did.

My H&H boots are quite comfortable, supple leather - though far lighter than I am used to. They are excellent boots, and I will wear them quite often for motorcycling and when I have to look decent. But today my Redwings came back freshly saddle soaped, with new boot oil, new double toes stitched in on both boots (to match) which repairs the damage done before, as well as an oval on either boot repairing the one hole, and the other where it was wearing thin - which you can see in the rough picture of my boot. They have new cork soles, and some damage done to the cork lining on the right boot was repaired.

So by all spec they are like new, they don't look it to most people, but they look pretty damned sharp all things considered. These I will wear in weather, in the winter, and while working on my bike.


So now I quite comfortably have a pair of dress boots and work boots, both from long standing companies, both made in the USA, both the same style I am used to. I am quite pleased.


In other news tomorrow should prove to be a solid day. I will be filling the motorcycle with fuel, going to a doctor's apt, then meeting Ian to give him some books to give to his older brother. From there where it goes, nobody knows.