Oswego
The XERO Oswego is a minimalistic casual knit sneaker with a grippy rubber sole and a sure-footed tread pattern. The lightweight Oswego is ultra-comfy, and its barefoot-inspired design lets your feet and body feel connected to the world. They have an ultra-wide toe box that allows your toes spread, and your foot relaxes along with their “XERO-drop” sole, which has a non-elevated heel and a low-to-the-ground design that provides improved posture, balance, and stability. The shoe is highly flexible so your foot can bend, move, and flex like its barefooted.
It features a water-repellent knit poly upper, a knit cuff, their standard 2mm EVA insole, and a 4.5mm FeelTrue rubber outsole. The lightweight shoe weighs a hair under seven ounces, has a smooth lining that is perfect for that barefoot feel, and it’s highly breathable. And it’s 100% vegan friendly!
The toe box and mid sides feature added fabric protection bumpers for durability and strength. The shoe doesn’t have a tongue, and it’s secured with a mid-top lacing system tied into their traditional cinch strap system. The Huarache-inspired design heel cinch strap is highly functional, providing a secure and stable fit, and the “inverted V” adjustable instep straps allow you to lock down your instep while still letting your toes move freely.
The highly flexible soles have a 5,000-mile warranty and utilize their 4.5 FeelTrue rubber compound and feature a removable 2mm insole so you can get an even a more barefoot feel. The sole had just a tad of rocker and featured a wraparound design, all of which provide additional comfort without any edges to trip over. The soles sticky rubber and chevron tread pattern offers excellent grip around the house, on the town, and the outdoors.
First Impressions => The Oswego is one of the most comfortable shoes I have ever worn, and the soft lining, breathable upper, and the flexible grippy sole are just ideal. They feature a snug knit cup and a secure and snug heel cup, which can make them tough to slip your foot into, but once they’re on your feet, the magic happens. The heel cinch and adjustable mid-foot webbing give you a secure and stable fit while the wide toe box lets your toes splay and flex to invigorate your stride and provide comfort and relaxation. Sock or sockless, the Oswego is just darn comfortable.
Aptos
The Apos is a minimalistic hemp-canvas slip-on shoe that’s lightweight, simple, and comfortable. It has the Vans like skater shoe look but features all the technical XERO barefoot technology. It features elastic slots on the upper sides that stretch to make sliding your foot into the shoes effortless, and the grippy rubber sole has a functional tread pattern for walking and wearing. It has their typical characteristics, the wide toe box, “XERO-drop” sole with a non-elevated heel, and a low-to-the-ground design that provides improved posture, balance, and stability. The light shoe weighs in at 9 ounces and is highly flexible so your foot can bend, move, and flex like its barefooted. And it’s 100% vegan friendly!
The soft lining feels gentle against the skin, and there is some soft padding around the inside of the ankle cuff. The simple Huarache-inspired design heel cinch strap provides a secure and stable fit to hold the heel cup in place while walking. The wide toe box wide is comfortable and lets your toe splay out for maximum comfort and stability, and the hemp-canvas upper is breathable and durable. The insole is removable if you want nothing between your feet and the liner and sole.
The flexible 5.5mm FeelTrue rubber sole is decently grippy, and the tread pattern makes it perfect for almost any activity. The sole has a wraparound design that offers comfort and protection and has soft rounded edges to prevent any tripping. The sole wedges up at the instep to add stability and strength to their heel cinch strap system.
First Impressions => The Aptos is a super comfortable slip-on shoe that is part skater shoe and bedroom slipper, but it’s tough enough for most any light use activity. The soft lining with a padded ankle cuff, breathable canvas upper, and the flexible grippy sole is ideal. The elastic upper side slots offer lots of stretch to make it easy to slide your foot into the shoe. The heel cinch system, heel cup, and the soles instep wedge keep the shoes securely in place, without any heel lift issues. Sock or sockless, the slip-on Aptos is a comfortable, durable hybrid, part slipper, and part shoe.
Alpine
The Alpine is a waterproof winter lace-up snow boot, which I didn’t get to do much testing on since it’s the brunt of summer. The Huarache-inspired design heel cinch strap is highly functional, providing a secure and stable fit, and the “inverted V” adjustable instep straps allow you to lock down your instep while still letting your toes move freely.
The Alpine features a fully seam-sealed inner bootie and a water-resistant membrane in the boot’s upper to keep your feet dry. It has a fleece cuff and tongue and is fully insulation with a heat-reflective insole, all of which offer improved winter comfort and warmth. And it’s 100% vegan friendly!
Each boot weighed in at 15.5 ounces each. They have a flexible non-elevated (zero-drop) grippy sole, with a chevron lugged tread that gives you sure-footed traction.
First Impressions => The mid-height Alpine boot is defiantly a beef meister compared to their more minimalistic shoes, but for a severe winter boot, it’s surprisingly lightweight. The polyester fleece lining around the cuff and tongue is soft and comfortable, and the insulated padding provides even more comfort. The insulation around the ankle is articulated, which provides some flex and give, allowing your foot to move with the ground and stay firmly planted. The sole is somewhat stiff compared to most of their shoe lineup, but it’s still flexible and offers excellent walking and movement characteristics. The wraparound sole is grippy, but the compound is a bit stiffer for improved durability and winter compliance, and the deep chevron tread pattern grabs the terrain and ground with aplomb. It has rugged fully wraparound bumpers above the sole for durability, and the sole has rounded edges. The Alpine is a comfortable waterproof winter lace-up snow boot with a barefoot inspired design, and I am looking forward to tossing this into the crud this winter and seeing how it functions.
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