Driving shoes and boat shoes

[Sdig14]

Hi gentlemen (and ladies),

I have 2 questions, but does not seem to be lots of info I could find using the search function and since they are both somewhat similar, thought I would put them both in the same thread.

1. I live in Canada and typically where suits to work Monday to Friday, or some version of this level of dress code. However, with the varying seasons here, I am having a bit of trouble finding shoes that I can wear just to get to work without having to wear my dress shoes. We have snow, rain, lots of gravel in the spring which can be annoying with leather soles and further trying to avoid scuffs and such from driving with them on, as I have to travel to client offices quite a bit as well.

Does anyone have shoes they use specifically for driving and are there certain brands people like they wouldn't mind sharing? Or are they all pretty standard? I figure less diversity out there with this type of shoe.

2. This one is more simple. Looking for a boat shoe, likely in navy, grey or brown. With Allen Edmonds now making a lot of their boat shoes in DR, I am looking for something either made in North America or overseas. Do you guys have specific brands you like?

Is there anything I should look out for with the leather or build on boat shoes?

My other comment/question would be, are boat shoes really all that comfortable? They seem to fit my style well, but with such a thin sole, are they all that comfortable after about a year of owning them? Or should they be used more for casual wear and not lots of walking on summer days?

Budget: Trying to spend a bit less on these types of casual shoes compared to dress shoes, but would probably be willing to go as high 300USD per pair if I found something I really liked.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Cheers,

Eric

 

[SmoothLefty]

For #2: Quoddy or Rancourt.

Yes, boat shoes (and camp mocs) are extremely comfortable. I stay true to my New England roots and wear camp mocs or boat shoes about 90% of my casual/non-work time. If I'm walking 3-4 miles in a given day in NYC I wouldn't wear them but I can do quite a bit of walking and my feet feel fine.

 

[Sdig14]

For #2: Quoddy or Rancourt.

Yes, boat shoes (and camp mocs) are extremely comfortable. I stay true to my New England roots and wear camp mocs or boat shoes about 90% of my casual/non-work time. If I'm walking 3-4 miles in a given day in NYC I wouldn't wear them but I can do quite a bit of walking and my feet feel fine.

When I was doing some reading last night both those brands came up, but wanted some first hand reviews from trusted folks.

I also read a lot of them made from Horween CXL have much less work in time vs. some others take longer to break in? Have you found this? Or are most of the 200-300 USD versions pretty good?

EDIT: The other option I have seen from Horween is the Essex, which seems to be natural colour vegetable tanned. Similar to CXL for durability and comfortability?

 

[palk]

I don't wear them very often, but I've enjoyed my pair of Cheaney's take on the boat shoe. If you have a hole in your pocket, John Lobb also has a version.

 

[Sdig14]

I don't wear them very often, but I've enjoyed my pair of Cheaney's take on the boat shoe. If you have a hole in your pocket, John Lobb also has a version.

Ya, no pockets burning yet, but I will check the other one out!

 

[Sdig14]

Another question for people that wear unlined boat shoes without socks, I assume a shoe tree would be a good idea? Or is it necessary?

 

[Andy57]

For boat shoes, why not consider the canonical boat shoe, Sperry Topsiders?

For my part, I've found that boat shoes are much less comfortable these days than they were when I wore them extensively in my 20s. As a generalization, they provide no arch support and very little heel cushioning. I still have a pair of Timberland boat shoes that are well worn. I wear them out in the yard and for short errands.

 

[Blake Stitched Blues]

Sperry Gold Cups. The most comfortable boat shoe I've ever come across. Lambskin lining, latex outsole, padded memory foam footbed. There's no arch support but they are the softest shoes underfoot I've ever owned. They run about a half-size smaller than regular Sperrys.

 

[Blake Stitched Blues]

I don't wear them very often, but I've enjoyed my pair of Cheaney's take on the boat shoe. If you have a hole in your pocket, John Lobb also has a version.

I surprised myself, but I really like those Cheaneys. Is the diamond sole comfortable?

 

[palk]

For boat shoes, why not consider the canonical boat shoe, Sperry Topsiders?

I had a pair of Sperry Gold Cups a few years back. Perhaps of no consequence to some, but I feel the pair from Cheaney I linked to above have much better construction.

I surprised myself, but I really like those Cheaneys. Is the diamond sole comfortable?

I'm not an expert on Cheaney shoes, but I believe "diamond sole" refers to the outsole, which doesn't affect comfort very much for me. As for their comfort, I wear loafer socks with them because they are unlined and I find that comfortable.

 

[Sdig14]

Thanks for the input everyone. As I imagined, the more research and input I got, I now need to buy 10 pairs, ha.

That's alright though, options are good. I will try one option and then post a review.

I am planning a 3 week trip to Greece later in the summer/fall time, so was planning to have something that would work well without socks, doing some walking but not crazy otherwise will wear other shoes, and also be good just relaxing around the pool or beach and still be stylish.

 

[Sdig14]

How do you guys find these tend to fit? I have read some stuff saying the leather may stretch a bit, and then some other places say to size up if stuck in between on their websites.

I would think they tend to have a lot of slip in the heel area if they are a bit big...

 

[palk]

I would think they tend to have a lot of slip in the heel area if they are a bit big...

That was the largest problem I had with the Sperry Gold Cups: after breaking them in they became larger which caused them to have too much heel slip for me.

 

[domenickb]

Going back to your first point, I found that overshoes, like Swims, are perfect in the winter or when it's especially wet.

They make a basic overshoe that covers the shoe and a longer, ankle boot style for if it's especially snowy.

 

[Sdig14]

Going back to your first point, I found that overshoes, like Swims, are perfect in the winter or when it's especially wet.

They make a basic overshoe that covers the shoe and a longer, ankle boot style for if it's especially snowy.

Do you find any discoloration on your shoes at all? I read someone saying they used the black version on same brown shoes and on the toe cap you could see black marks from where the overshoe had been.

My thought was they could have been using a pretty bad overshoe that left marks or the quality of the dress may not have been that great either...