To let my son wear trainers for his Silver Duke of Edinburgh expedition?

[Sparrow7]

I just mentioned to a friend who's son is also doing the expedition this weekend that my son will be wearing strong comfortable trainers and she was shocked and appalled! As a family we do a lot of walking and we all wear trainers as I have always hated walking boots. On the bronze trip all the kids with walking boots ended up with horrendous blisters and tired feet, whereas my son's feet were fine. The weather is going to be dry but I am now second guessing my decision as it does say walking boots are essential on the kit list (as it did on the bronze one).

Op I actually agree. I absolutely hate walking boots (I own a couple of pairs) I find I'm far more clumsy in them, even when they are well broken in. I can't really read the terrain through my boot unlike a trainer so I can't get as good of a foot hold or proper feedback from the ground. I own hundreds of pairs of trainers (I run, trail etc) and any one of them I'd prefer to the boots for any kind of distence or travelling at anything more than an amble. I only have the boots for when it's snowing and I want to take the dog out.

I used to do ballet and have particularly sturdy ankles though, so I'm yet to roll one.

For ours they insisted on walking boots as walking shoes are not supportive enough on the ankle & risks of sprained ankle on tougher terrain.

You can get walking boots now that are more like a trainer just that they are the same style as boots. Ie ankle support. I think adidas do them if that helps. Sorry not sure of the “name” just know that my husband had some previously. Think they might have been “terrain” or something. They looked more comfortable too.

If boots are mandatory then consider the Inov8 Roclite pro mid GTX. Google for bargains. My girlfriend can't bring herself to wear shoes but loves these.

We were told kids without walking boots (not shoes - had to be ankle support high) wouldn’t be allowed to take part at our school.

I’ve got some goretex Merryls (not sure of spelling) that were super comfortable from day one - not rigid at all.

The thick sole doesn't matter - they won't have any grip because they are road trainers, not trail trainers. If the expedition was on the roads, he'd be fine, but it's not.

So your options are - trail runners, which are lighter but mean your feet can get wet, or boots, which are waterproof but slightly heavier, although as people have said, much, much better than the ones you were forced into as a child.

But either way you are going to need to get him fitted for some sort of appropriate footwear.

DD’s school wouldn’t have allowed a child to do it in trainers - they were very strict about kit. Without boots I’d worry about a lack of ankle support on mountainous/rough terrain

Cancel the cheque, OP.

Socks make a big difference too. If you’re buying walking boots/shoes you should buy or bring a pair of hiking socks to wear with them when he tries on shoes. They are thick so he might need a bigger size shoe/boot than he normally wears. Wool is good but more expensive. Wool/synthetic blends can be good too. Totally synthetic is much cheaper but likely to feel sweatier and will stink. Cotton is not suitable for a multi-day hike.

try barefoot shoes as these tend to be wider and often don't need to be broken in

Our school insist on proper walking boots (trail/walking shoes not allowed). They were made to have ankle support and had a boot check the previous day to check they had suitable footwear. They wouldn’t have been allowed to do it otherwise. My teen was confident that trainers/walking shoes would have been fine before they went, but said how pleased they were that they’d been made to wear proper boots when they returned. It’s not just walking; they’re walking with heavy backpacks on. Despite my suggestion of proper decent boots from the likes of Merrell, and wearing them in, we ended up getting them from Mountain Warehouse which I was very sceptical about (admittedly they were the more expensive ones they sell), and they hadn’t worn them at all before the DofE weekend (definitely a daft idea!). To be fair, they returned with no blisters whatsoever and their feet didn’t hurt. They did wear 2 pairs of decent walking socks though.

Boots now are nothing like the 1980s. You can get some really lightweight Goretex (or equivalent) ones which are comfy pretty much straight away (if properly fitted).

I don’t know if all Mountain Warehouse stores are the same, but ours couldn’t have been more helpful. They knew exactly the boots which were suitable for DofE (and said that many of their boots wouldn’t be).

Nike air max aren't even trainers in my view - they're fashion shoes. Inappropriate on a practical level, and he'll look like a tw*t as well. Plenty of trail shoes available which offer more grip but still have a trainer feel. Adidas terrex are good. But I'd contact the leader before you buy something like that and waste your money if they insist on boots.

I walk a lot and use either boots or trail shoes. If he hasn't got time to break in a pair of boots / trail shoes I'd let him wear trainers.
Duke of Edinburgh isn't really very hard. Might be worth talking to whoever is running the DE so thry understand the situation.

Impress on him to change his socks and buy "compeed" or similar.
(Carrying s heavy back pack will cause him to walk differently and blisters are possible in familiar shoes).

At our school they were told it would be an automatic fail if they didn’t have boots. I assume it’s probably because if they go over on their ankle then there is probably something in the insurance that doesn’t cover the organisers if they have incorrect footwear (sorry if someone’s already said that as I haven’t gone through the whole thread)

@Sparrow7 For breaking the psychological horror of blisters past, Compeed blister plasters are brilliant. They form a protective seal which cushions and absorbs fluid and protects while the new skin forms. There's a magical numbing or pain relief effect too, almost instantaneous! Just leave in place until they come off naturally after a few days.

I've been using them a lot recently - years of illness destroyed my previously active life, and even the gentlest stroll in well-worn footwear rips my heels to shreds, the skin is just so sensitive now. As soon as I've regrown the skin in one pair of shoes, the season changes, I switch footwear, and shred my heels again. The blister plasters are helping me persevere as I regain strength and fitness.

The medium size is great for heels, there are smaller ones if toes/sides of feet are more affected, and a mixed pack if you want to try a variety. There are also pharmacy and supermarket own brand versions, though I've not tried them yet.

Karrimor summit boots are excellent for my fat feet. Didn't have to wear them in at all. And the best part is they aren't expensive at all.

If he’s going to keep doing it, ideally well fitted, well worn in walking boots with correct socks. If all of this is ticked there should be no issues.

I don’t know if me and my kids have super tough feet but we’ve never needed to break our walking boots in, they’ve always been fine from the start. No blisters, although I always pack plasters just in case.

As a scout leader there’s nothing more infuriating than going on a hike with Scouts who moan about wet feet or getting their precious white trainers muddy because they didn’t wear walking boots/shoes.

I wear inov8 trailfly trainers for yourkshire three peaks and they were great. Used wayerprooof socks. Deffo check with coordinator though.

The difference is that you and your muscles are used to the terrain and routes, and aren't carrying 3 days of kit on your back, with a school potentially being held accountable for any incidents.

I go running in that kind of terrain too. It's very different travelling light for a 1-2 hour trail run to spending half a day walking it at group pace, compared to DoE style 3x10mi hikes with full on packs so the kit/ clothing has to adapt accordingly, An inexperienced DoEer needs different footwear to a local dog walker and trail runner. A casual trainer is very different to a trainer/ shoe designed for rough terrain, and the thick, smooth soles are a high risk for sliding and twisting ankles.

Earlier this year, my son's bronze group was delayed for an hour because a group member twisted an ankle on an urban navigation walk in his fashion trainers. The school does this walk in a lower risk setting before they even get as far as the practice, partly for the skills, and partly for a lower risk learning experience about the realities of going on a long walk before they even get to countryside. DS is an outlier for having hiking experience at his school. School don't want to put barriers up to participation, but they do also need to ensure that partipants have safe kit.

What happens when feet inside waterproof boots get wet? Like when your feet sweat? The water cannot escape. A grippy pair of Inov-8 will dry really quickly. I really cannot abide walking boots, and I go for days in the hills with nothing but a back pack.

Big mistake made by D of E instructors is insisting on boots. They’re clumpy and massively reduce agility. The other big mistake is insisting kids take the wrong sort of kit. My child did one where they had to take all of their water for the whole trip. No one does this!!! Just fill from a fast flowing stream. And my son was made to take cans of soup! All that weight, all of the rubbish to carry out. Why would you do this? Such nonsense!

Definitely talk to the leader and find out what they're willing to accept.

To everyone who insists that walking boots provide more support. For most they might buy one size does not fit all. Different people fit shoes/boots differently. If I spent a lot of money on boots I'd probably find some that improved my support and weren't uncomfortable but all the entry or mid level boots I have found caused me more ankle discomfort and made me trip more often.

I have narrow feet and so my ankle rolls inside the boot. At least in a (decent walking) trainer my body is able to correct/adapt for foot and ankle movement and so I feel a lot safer and stronger. I will personally choose walking trainers without concern. However, my body is conditioned to using them.

(From a confident walker, mostly countryside dog walking across mixed terrains with a toddler on my back but I have multi day camped over a boggy Dartmoor in Spring and carried kayaks up and down riverbanks.)

proper boots: meindl
more trainery ones: adidas

Both DC completed hikes wearing these with zero breaking in time.

My son wears Nike Air Max to school, we do a lot of walking, but they're not suitable for the kind of hill-walking we do. If not walking boots he needs walking shoes.

I’m a DoE leader and we would not allow a silver candidate to trek in Nike air max