How many pairs of shoes have you lost to sole rot?
I had (…had, sniff) a pair of 80s vintage strappy leather Cherokee sandals with a 4" wedge heel and a classic sawtooth edged base, now they are a pile of crumbled rotted latex. I’ve also lost some sneaker insoles that were easily replaced with swapping out the old, worn and destroyed footbeds with new replacements - but those sandals were cool
I’ve also lost some snowboots to deterioration as they melted into a puddle of goo.
What footwear have you lost to time that you miss?
I have a pair of Ecco dress shoes that were terrific, but they have foamed polyurethane soles which apparently succumb over time to hydrolysis, causing them to disintegrate. One day I was wearing them and I dragged the toe part of my sole on one just a little, and it peeled back about 3 inches. I tugged on the same spot on the other, and it did the same thing.
I’ve lost two pairs of shoes due to abrupt disintegration of whatever the soles were made of. I liked both of them. I have trouble finding shoes that fit. Very annoying.
They were both fairly old; but I have shoes around that are significantly older than those and are still intact, so obviously there’s sole material that doesn’t do that.
I’ve had the same thing happen to ECCO shoes. Apparently you can send them out to be resoled (this is the vendor they use) but the last time this happened to me, I threw out the shoes. Now that I’m thinking about it, I wish I had sent them out as they don’t have the same style available now.
Had a pair of Merrell leather slip on shoes. wore them to work ever day for years.
In 2012 I was between jobs and took a few week vacation to San Francisco to visit a buddy and take in the sights.
I was pretty centrally located in the northwestern part of the mission district. For two weeks I walked the hills of SF. From the Bay to the ocean, up to the golden Gate Bridge, The wharfs and piers. Everywhere, I walked.
I literally walked these shoes off my feet. I ended up buying a new pair of shoes to wear home.
I could never find that particular style again.
I also have a 25 year old Birkenstocks that are on their third foot-bed/resole.
I do not recall my large footwear succumbing to sole-rot, even during my multi-year stints as 1) junkmail deliverer in the SF Bay Area walking 25-30 miles daily in cheap sneakers - probably Goodwill Keds because poor - and 2) bicycle courier in downtown SF with same sneakers and still miles of walking daily. I did note desert squirrels eating my sweaty hat while dry-camping in Joshua Tree National Monument when I lived near its HQ. But they left my sneakers alone. Probably too stinky.
I bought a pair of dress shoes (ladies) 100% leather uppers. $75.00. The first thing that happened was the buckle broke on the left shoe, first time wearing them. Took them back. The store did not want to refund or replace because the were on sale. I stood firm and and they agreed to have them fixed, on their dime.
Picked them up. Wore them and the other buckle completely fell off. Returned to the store. Argued and argued with the people there. I had a receipt. I only tried to wear the shoes twice. I was in the right. $160 shoes that I got at a good discount but still I should at least be able to wear them.
This was a national chain dept. Store.
I took the shoes home and wrote a letter and shipped them to the headquarters.
3 weeks go by. I recieved a check for $160.00, And an apology.
Bad shoes. Bad company policy.
Good, whoever it was that got my letter and shoes at the HQ.
That’s my shoe story. I think the glue that held the stitching on the strap must have aged poorly.
