Do Sorbothane Insoles Deteriorate?

The message <[email hidden]>
from John Dawson <[email hidden]> contains these words:

Quoted message said:

I've been out today doing Scafell Pike from the ODG with Great End,
Esk Pike and Bowfell on the way back roughly 12 miles and 4750 feet of
ascent. The soles of my feet and bottom of my toes hurt like hell at
the end to the extent that I'm considering writing a book,
"In the Name of Pleasure - DIY Bastinado as a Hobby".

I don't know but FWIW the final descent on my rather shorter walk left
me with the feeling that my feet (particularly the front halves) were on
fire. Same length walk and the same boots as the one 11 days previously
which left me exhausted. Two differences this time. First I set a
sensible pace and second the ground was hard almost the whole way round.
I put the problem down to lack of bog but for me it may just be lack of
walking. :-)

--
Roger Chapman
Nearest Marilyn still to be visited - Great Orme.
89 miles as the crow flies,
considerably more as the walker drives.

Bitstring <[email hidden]>, from the
wonderful person John Dawson <[email hidden]> said

Quoted message said:

I've been out today doing Scafell Pike from the ODG with Great End,
Esk Pike and Bowfell on the way back roughly 12 miles and 4750 feet of
ascent. The soles of my feet and bottom of my toes hurt like hell at
the end to the extent that I'm considering writing a book,
"In the Name of Pleasure - DIY Bastinado as a Hobby".
My boots are Scarpa Mantas from 1999 with Sorbothane insoles from the
start. Could the insoles have deteriorated in this period? Sorbothane
claim millions of cycles. The boots are in amazingly good condition
considering the miles they've done. Note that I wore out my previous
boots, Brashers, in a year.

IME they do deteriorate over time (the plasticizer seems to quit so they
get stiffer and/or somewhat brittle) but you should be able to detect
that by trying being/squishing them.

What socks you wore, and what the terrain was like, have a big impact
too.

--
GSV Three Minds in a Can
8,307 Km walked. 1,561Km PROWs surveyed. 28.4% complete.

Bitstring <[email hidden]>, from the wonderful person
GSV Three Minds in a Can <[email hidden]> said
<snip

Quoted message said:

by trying being/squishing them.

beNDing. Damn keyboard. 8>.

--
GSV Three Minds in a Can
8,307 Km walked. 1,561Km PROWs surveyed. 28.4% complete.

yes the compressibility reduces as time goes on. i used to replace mine each
time i change the boots. and then i discovered superfeet - longer life and
overall a better insole.

"John Dawson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've been out today doing Scafell Pike from the ODG with Great End,
Esk Pike and Bowfell on the way back roughly 12 miles and 4750 feet of
ascent. The soles of my feet and bottom of my toes hurt like hell at
the end to the extent that I'm considering writing a book,
"In the Name of Pleasure - DIY Bastinado as a Hobby".
My boots are Scarpa Mantas from 1999 with Sorbothane insoles from the
start. Could the insoles have deteriorated in this period? Sorbothane
claim millions of cycles. The boots are in amazingly good condition
considering the miles they've done. Note that I wore out my previous
boots, Brashers, in a year.

TIA

John D.
--
John Dawson at home in Kendal, Cumbria.
Lake District Walks Web Pages http://www.lakedistrictwalks.com/
Kilimanjaro trip at http://www.lakedistrictwalks.com/kilimanjaro/
Egypt trip at http://www.lakedistrictwalks.com/egypt/

Bryan Hall said:

yes the compressibility reduces as time goes on. i used to replace mine each
time i change the boots. and then i discovered superfeet - longer life and
overall a better insole.

It depends what you want out of them. If you have a straight gait
and just want to absorb some shock then Superfeet are actually
pretty pointless, as they work by adjusting gait (turning knees and
hips out). In my case most of my pains are caused by excessive
pronation, which Superfeet help with and Sorbothane does nothing
for, so Superfeet work better for me, but I don't think it's safe
to declare them "better" in a general sense.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

Having worn both, to prevent sore feet, i'd judge supers as more durable and
better for the job
That sort of better?
;-)

"Peter Clinch" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bryan Hall said:

yes the compressibility reduces as time goes on. i used to replace mine
each time i change the boots. and then i discovered superfeet - longer
life and overall a better insole.

It depends what you want out of them. If you have a straight gait and
just want to absorb some shock then Superfeet are actually pretty
pointless, as they work by adjusting gait (turning knees and hips out).
In my case most of my pains are caused by excessive pronation, which
Superfeet help with and Sorbothane does nothing for, so Superfeet work
better for me, but I don't think it's safe to declare them "better" in a
general sense.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

Bryan Hall said:

Having worn both, to prevent sore feet, i'd judge supers as more durable and
better for the job
That sort of better?

But the reasons why your feet, my feet, and Mystery Foot X on a
notional random hiker get sore are potentially rather different.
If they're getting sore purely from impact, sorbothane is probaby
better, if it's more about reasons of gait then S-feet are probably
better. They're better for you and for me, sure, but that can't be
extended to anyone without going further into why their feet might
be getting sore. Superfeet don't do that much in the way of pure
shock absorbtion, that's pretty much all that sorbothane does do.
So it's the usual answer, "it depends".

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net [email hidden] http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

Bryan Hall said:

yes the compressibility reduces as time goes on. i used to replace mine each
time i change the boots.

Well, I've still not changed the boots (7 year old Scarpa Mantas), or
the socks (though they have been washed ;-)), but a new set of
Sorbothane insoles worked a treat when I went out today. The guy in my
local outdoor shop said some people who wear boots and march every day
(squaddies?) get through two pairs of these insoles a year.

John D.
--
John Dawson at home in Kendal, Cumbria.
Lake District Walks Web Pages http://www.lakedistrictwalks.com/
Kilimanjaro trip at http://www.lakedistrictwalks.com/kilimanjaro/
Egypt trip at http://www.lakedistrictwalks.com/egypt/