BORELLI CONSULTING: Recreational Equipment Reviews

HAIX Boots
17 March 2008

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HAIX has been making boots for firefighters for a long name and has earned a great reputation in that arena. Recently they’ve also started making boots for law enforcement professionals and are making great strides (no pun intended) in that community as well. What strikes me is that, like other boot manufacturers, the HAIX boots for public safety serve more than well as recreational outdoor wear. I got a pair of their Airpower Desert boots for testing and was impressed with their performance. Let’s take a better look at their structure, pros and cons.

I should start out by saying that my initial impression of these boots was not good. I received my test & evaluation pair only a day or two before SHOT Show. I had been asked to wear them for the duration of SHOT Show and to give the good folks at HAIX some feedback. My actual wear time - read "time to break them in before SHOT Show" - was eight hours. For that time frame they felt comfortable enough and I was looking forward to wearing them at SHOT. Then I got there...

First off, SHOT is never easy on the feet. With the average day consisting of five to seven miles of walking carrying anywhere from twenty to fifty pounds of materials, whatever you have on your feet had better be well broken in and damned comfortable. My HAIX Airpower P9 Desert boots simply hadn't been broken in enough. At the end of my first day I wasn't feeling great about them.

I wore different shoes the second and third days, but I wore the HAIX in the evenings for lesser periods of time. If I kept my wear time down to less than four hours they felt great... After I got home I realized that they had just needed more breaking in. Having now accomplished that, I can wear them for well over twelve hours without any issues. So, the word of caution: break your boots in properly. Make sure your socks work well with your boots. I like the Redhead padded hiking socks with these boots.

The uppers are a combination of soft leather (suede type) and nylon fabric. They are lined with Gore-Tex XCR which makes them waterproof yet breathable and the HAIX published material says it also makes them chemical resistant. The footbed is listed as "anatomically formed, quick change" and I can vouch for that. On my first day at SHOT when my feet weren't feeling terrific the good folks in the HAIX booth showed me the various footbeds that were available and helped me to find one that better suited the unique shape of my foot (high arches, thin feet, lots of weight on th heal). The sole is described as "nonslip nitrile rubber outsole; oil and fuel resistant, welf-cleaning tread, antistatic, nonmarking." I haven't had any luck getting them to slip on anything and wet tile (and concrete) is usually a pretty sure bet. I also wore them in some nice thick mud - the perfect kind to get stuck in the tread - and the boots shed the mud as I walked.

There are a couple of features about these boots that I really like - that I haven't seen on other boots I've tested...

The first is the lacing system. These metal speed laces are fast. The Army taught me how to lace my boots (meaning left always went over right) and these are easy to lace, even in such an obsessive compulsive fashion.

The second thing is the lace hook right in the middle of the tongue. Unlike those slots where you have to carefully thread the lace through the hole, this is essentially a metal hook just like the other lace rings. As you lace up the boots one side or the other will hook into that tongue ring and hold the tongue up.

The third thing is that the top edge of the boot and the tongue are slightly padded but not overly so. They are padded enough to provide comfort without having a negative impact on the perceived support just above the ankle. HAIX found a happy balance.

So... good boots. They need time to be broken in. I recommend wearing them in four to six hour increments for several days... about a week, before wearing them for a full duty shift. The boots are excellent if you need something on your feet in a hurry. The speed-lace system is high on my list of preferences. With a published height of 8.25" I consider them the perfect height. All in all, I'm giving them a thumbs up - with the caveat of break in wear time.

To find out more about them, visit HAIX Boots online.

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Don't forget to check out our Tactical Equipment Review of a Helmet suspension and padding system from Gentex.

This week's Feature Article discussing the importance of protecting your vision.

For a listing of all reviews in chronological order, GO HERE.

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