Winter Boots

sopworth

I took advantage of an offer Evans has last summer, and purchased a pair of Specialized Defroster winter boots.
They seemed to tick the boxes of promising both warm and dry feet.
On arrival they looked pretty impressive, if not bulky, but the material and set up looked pretty water tight....aside from the large gap above my ankle when they are done up.
As it was the summer, I didn't wear the boots until recently when the rain up in Scotland has been particularly bad, and after 3 rides I've had enough. These boots have been utterly useless at keeping my feet dry - I'd go as far as saying they are far worse than my standard Lake shoes with a decent gore-tex cover on. The gap above the ankle is just so big that any water just flows down and congregates in the boot, as there is no way for it to get out. I get that there will be some water get in, but for me anyway the boots are such a poor fit around the ankle it acts more like a rain catcher.
I've emailed Evans and they have said they will take them back for a refund, but I still need a pair of winter boots that will keep my feet a bit drier than standard road shoes with covers on.
Any suggestions or recommendations?
I'll add the Spesh boots are absolutely the right size around the foot (quite snug with thick socks), but no matter how I adjust the Velcro around the top, it still lets in the rain. My winter bike has both front and rear mudguards, too.

jgsi

Were you using full mudguards and especially on the front with a proper wide flap?

Garry H

I've had two pairs of winter boots and never harboured any thoughts that they would keep my feet dry in heavy rain. The main issue I had with them was that once wet, Gore Tex boots take an absolute age to dry out. I have now discarded them in favour of un-ventilated shoes and a pair of heavy overshoes (BBB Arctic something or other). Even when soaked, they dry by next morning, or by going home time. I also live in Scotland.

I also apply the same logic to moutaineering boots, preferring non lined ones to Gore Tex. Although it's becoming increasingly difficult now to get 'good' boots that are not Gore Tex, such is the power of their marketing department.

w00dster

I use the Northwave Fahrenheit Arctic 2 GTX boots. On their own they are ok but eventually the water comes in. They pull tight and then have Velcro pulling the ankle section closed. However water still gets in, especially as we tend to tuck our bib tights into the boot, so water runs down the leg into the boot.
My solution is full guards, seal skin waterproof socks, GTX boots and if its really bad thermal overshoes (extra large size to go over the boots). These don't stop water coming down the leg but they keep my toes warm! The down side is the crank rub.
Without teaching a granny how to suck eggs, no boot is a solution on their own, you need to think about the entire kit that will keep you comfortable.

w00dster

Slightly off topic, but non Goretex Boots for mountaineering? Braver man than me! I'm a bit of a girls blouse these days and my priority is on keeping warm and dry for that moment in time.
I do agree my boots take an age to dry out - I tend to not do overnight camping in the winter, so my boots are placed in a drying room when possible.
Goretex boots and a pair of goretex gaiters for me. In fact I'm mountain biking in North Wales (Snowdon area) this weekend and will be wearing my walking boots and gaiters (weather forecast is -6 heating up to -4 with a fair bit of snow).

stumpmagnet

i use velotoze high top shoe covers with any shoes plus woolie boolie socks....the secret is to make sure the velotoze go over the socks and seal against your skin then pull the ankle of the bib tights or leg warmers over the velotoze, the water has never got in at all in torential downpours! if its particularly cold and wet then i put BBB heavy duty overshoes on first and a next size up pair of velotoze over that works perfectly and you can use the shoes you have. i cycle to work 20 miles each way in all weathers and this set up has worked best in 6 years of trying different shoes boots and covers

Garry H

w00dster wrote:

Slightly off topic, but non Goretex Boots for mountaineering? Braver man than me! I'm a bit of a girls blouse these days and my priority is on keeping warm and dry for that moment in time.
I do agree my boots take an age to dry out - I tend to not do overnight camping in the winter, so my boots are placed in a drying room when possible.
Goretex boots and a pair of goretex gaiters for me. In fact I'm mountain biking in North Wales (Snowdon area) this weekend and will be wearing my walking boots and gaiters (weather forecast is -6 heating up to -4 with a fair bit of snow).

La Sportiva Nepal Extremes for me, or plastics

kingrollo

Wollie Bollie socks and planet x overshoes - good enough for 90% of weather.

thomasmorris

I have northwave winter artic boots. And I'm not fan for road cycling. In proper rain they fill up and my feet are no warmer (I run full guards with flaps). And as said before they take ages to dry. I fair better with my summer shoes taped up and a good over shoe, but still suffer from cold toes from time to time; however the arrangement is hugely better getting dry for the next commute.

Where the winter boots have been good is on the MTB. Overshoes don't last very long on the trails as the recessed cleat means you're walking on the overshoe. I don't tend to do back to back MTB rides so the drying out isn't really an issue.

pippi_langsamer-2

Most boots/ overshoes will be prone to letting water in at the top cuff.

I've got some MTB Defrosters and my solution is to get a pair of my Velotoze and cut a) the toe section off, and b) cut a 2-3" section off the top. I didn't use the Velotoze much- make my feet sweat too much. I now have a set of toe "Toze", which I put over the toes of my shoes before putting neoprene shoes over the top. This way, my feet dont sweat, and the Toze keep a bit more wind n rain off. That's on the road.

I'm then using other bit of the massacred Velotoze to put over the top of my Defrosters to form a bit of a seal to prevent water ingress into ze boot. To be honest, I only actually get this water penetration if its tipping it down, or I put a foot down in some offroad bog.

I guess you may have joy in using a set of Marigolds in the same manner!

davesnothere

kingrollo wrote:

Wollie Bollie socks and planet x overshoes - good enough for 90% of weather.

I made the mistake of telling the Mrs how toasty my woolie boolie socks were. Next time i went to put them on they had gone! She'd decided to borrow them to go horse riding

hsiaolc

DavesNotHere wrote:

kingrollo wrote:

Wollie Bollie socks and planet x overshoes - good enough for 90% of weather.

I made the mistake of telling the Mrs how toasty my woolie boolie socks were. Next time i went to put them on they had gone! She'd decided to borrow them to go horse riding

LOL funny.

Perfect excuse to buy something else then. I have woolie boolie socks but the Rapha Deep Winter is awesome and it is really one of the best for winter.

antlaff

I'm in the same situation regarding the defrosters....when I know its going to rain consistently I wear these over light bibtights...they seal over the boots making me water tight..

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/endu ... lsrc=aw.ds

6wheels

Do a search for ankle seals, they may help.

step83

Only way I've managed to get round it with mine is longish socks that go above the over shoe level and then stretching the leg of the bib tight over the overshoe, seems to have worked so far for me.

voodooman

Never bothered with boots, instead using:
MTB shoes
heavy duty BBB overshoes
wool socks (embers)
zip tights (membrane) over the top of the overshoes

and

decathlon footwarmers - a bloody revelation.

And my feet still get wet in heavy cold drenching rain. Nothing fixes that.

luv2ride

6wheels wrote:

Do a search for ankle seals, they may help.

^this
I bought some from Edinburgh bike co-op, made by Protective, in a sale years ago. Used with my NW Celsius boots they do provide a waterproof seal, even in heavy rain. That said, the gap at the top of the ankle cuff on the boots isn't huge, but have heard this crtitiscm of the newstyle Spesh defroster boots. I've also got some of the mk1 Defrosters and the ankle cuff is much tighter than the new shape...

Garry H

Luv2ride wrote:

6wheels wrote:

Do a search for ankle seals, they may help.

^this
I bought some from Edinburgh bike co-op, made by Protective, in a sale years ago. Used with my NW Celsius boots they do provide a waterproof seal, even in heavy rain. That said, the gap at the top of the ankle cuff on the boots isn't huge, but have heard this crtitiscm of the newstyle Spesh defroster boots. I've also got some of the mk1 Defrosters and the ankle cuff is much tighter than the new shape...

Cut off marigolds also work

sopworth

But should I be going out to buy ankle seals on a pair of boots that originally retailed at £200? They advertise the boot as dry boot but I have found them to be worse than standard shoes and covers, which kind of negates buying them in the first place.
The idea behind buying some winter boots was to move away from wearing/buying special socks and layering shoes with outer covers.
I may look at the Northwave, as recommended on this thread, and see if they seal around the top is a bit tighter.

jermas

Just use the boots on drier days. They're great during cold/dry weather and don't suffer from sweat build up like shoes with neoprene covers. When properly wet just use shoes/neoprene covers. I'd estimate I use my boots 70% of the time, even in sunny Wales.

pippi_langsamer-2

sopworth wrote:

But should I be going out to buy ankle seals on a pair of boots that originally retailed at £200? They advertise the boot as dry boot but I have found them to be worse than standard shoes and covers, which kind of negates buying them in the first place.
The idea behind buying some winter boots was to move away from wearing/buying special socks and layering shoes with outer covers.
I may look at the Northwave, as recommended on this thread, and see if they seal around the top is a bit tighter.

It's a fair point, but I think for a shoe/ boot to have a 100% waterproof claim is fairly bold- same too for any outdoor "technical", garment. I love my Defrosters- I can count on two fingers (!), the number of times I've had ingress prior to my ghetto seal fix.

Garry H

You're expectations of outdoor gear are too high. Don't believe the marketing guff. Every waterproof boot will eventually fail unless you manage to seal the cuff, or wear waterproof trews over the tops.

sopworth

Garry H wrote:

You're expectations of outdoor gear are too high. Don't believe the marketing guff. Every waterproof boot will eventually fail unless you manage to seal the cuff, or wear waterproof trews over the tops.

My expectations aren't too high. I said in my original post, I expect some water to get through. My point after that was to gauge opinion on any recommendations for boots that they have had a good experience with.
The boots let so mch water in, they are at the point of being pointless in the wet. It's not about believing marketing talk, it's about expecting something a little better from a big brand and experiencing something so poor.

super_davo

I have similar experience to you with my Northwave Celsius. Problem being that in heavy rain water inevitably runs down your tights and into the boots, and in boots, there is nowhere for the water to go. Sealskinz work because the tight and thus the water goes round the outside. Seals or cut off marigolds have the same effect on the boot.

They way I look at it, you've spent £200 on the boots, and you're unlikely to get that back. They are a great solution in the cold and dry, or even drizzle, it's just prolonged intensive rain they can't cope with. So what have you got to lose from spending £20 on a set of sealskinz or £2 on a set of marigolds? And would you trade the warmth and simplicity of the boots in drier conditions in favour of solutions that still work in heavy rain e.g. Velotoze plus overshoes?

Bordersroadie

Cut off black marigolds over North Wave Arctic work well to keep out rain. I also use guards and flap, these two things make the biggest difference for dryness of feet. Main pluses of winter boots is lack of hassle and ability to walk without wrecking overshoes. But they do need a night on a radiator or in the airing cupboard quite often. In temps near freezing I add thin overshoes, somewhat negating a plus point!

To answer the OPs question, I'd say that this make and model is excellent, comfort and fit and tightness of top cuff is great and their weight is the same as carbon sworks road shoes plus neoprene bbb overshoes, I weighed them! They are also well made, mine and a mate's have lasted several winters and thousands of miles.

mrb123

Bordersroadie wrote:

Cut off black marigolds over North Wave Arctic work well to keep out rain. I also use guards and flap, these two things make the biggest difference for dryness of feet. Main pluses of winter boots is lack of hassle and ability to walk without wrecking overshoes. But they do need a night on a radiator or in the airing cupboard quite often. In temps near freezing I add thin overshoes, somewhat negating a plus point!

To answer the OPs question, I'd say that this make and model is excellent, comfort and fit and tightness of top cuff is great and their weight is the same as carbon sworks road shoes plus neoprene bbb overshoes, I weighed them! They are also well made, mine and a mate's have lasted several winters and thousands of miles.

Do you reckon the Arctic version of the Northwaves is worth the extra over the standard ones? The standard ones are quoted by Northwave as being good for minus 10, the Arctics for minus 25.

paul1000

My feet still get cold in my Fahrenheit boots with woolly boolys, I use some water sports neoprene socks with the foot cut off as a gaiter to keep the water out and always put your tights over the boots.

Bordersroadie

MrB123 wrote:

Bordersroadie wrote:

Cut off black marigolds over North Wave Arctic work well to keep out rain. I also use guards and flap, these two things make the biggest difference for dryness of feet. Main pluses of winter boots is lack of hassle and ability to walk without wrecking overshoes. But they do need a night on a radiator or in the airing cupboard quite often. In temps near freezing I add thin overshoes, somewhat negating a plus point!

To answer the OPs question, I'd say that this make and model is excellent, comfort and fit and tightness of top cuff is great and their weight is the same as carbon sworks road shoes plus neoprene bbb overshoes, I weighed them! They are also well made, mine and a mate's have lasted several winters and thousands of miles.

Do you reckon the Arctic version of the Northwaves is worth the extra over the standard ones? The standard ones are quoted by Northwave as being good for minus 10, the Arctics for minus 25.

I'm generally good in circulation in low temps but wouldn't want less insulation than the Arctic offer. Even with toe wiggle space and woolie boolies I need to add overshoes at around zero or below.


Another good feature of their design is that you can do the drawstring not too tight and use the cuff velcro straps to do them up to allow footspace and toe movement while keeping your foot secure.

ryan_w-2

MrB123 wrote:

Bordersroadie wrote:

Cut off black marigolds over North Wave Arctic work well to keep out rain. I also use guards and flap, these two things make the biggest difference for dryness of feet. Main pluses of winter boots is lack of hassle and ability to walk without wrecking overshoes. But they do need a night on a radiator or in the airing cupboard quite often. In temps near freezing I add thin overshoes, somewhat negating a plus point!

To answer the OPs question, I'd say that this make and model is excellent, comfort and fit and tightness of top cuff is great and their weight is the same as carbon sworks road shoes plus neoprene bbb overshoes, I weighed them! They are also well made, mine and a mate's have lasted several winters and thousands of miles.

Do you reckon the Arctic version of the Northwaves is worth the extra over the standard ones? The standard ones are quoted by Northwave as being good for minus 10, the Arctics for minus 25.

My mate who competes at national / elite enduro events swears by his NW Extreme Winter GTX's. Full days out in the mountains with dry / warm feet are essential.
He says when the rain is really coming down, he uses cut off scuba diving shoes.

trek_dan

Shimano MW5 are very good, I'm sure they do a road cleat equivalent. Even once they fill with water they remain warm as they keep the wind chill out.

Ilinor

I'm a bunny boot guy. Always have been. Lately, with the warm winters, I have started wearing a pair of 1000gram thinsulate Irish Setter Elk Trackers https://under-the-open-sky.com/best-ice-fishing-boots/ They are sufficiently warm down to 0. Unfortunately, their traction on ice (even with blob soles) is not that great. I even rode my snowmachine with them last year on the warmer days.

If I'm going out ALL day, have a chance of spending the night out in winter, or have the danger of getting my feet wet, I will always wear bunny boots. Last winter I broke my ribs in a flat light snowmachine crash into a small creek. I was the ONLY guy with bunny boots out of our group. Nobody wanted to get wet so I did all the water work to get the sled out. I completely filled both boots with water. Even though it was fairly cold at about 15F, my feet had zero issues staying toasty all the way back to the truck.