Brill
SOF Support
Not a SF guy but I do have a pair of the Zephyr GTX. Wore them on FOBs all over AF and elsewhere. Very comfortable, lightweight, and very well made. I've heard tale that there is a unit out there that gets 'em issued.
$500 for a pair of boots? Wow. I hope that was an exaggeration.
My unit used to issue Oakley boots. I hated them. I guess enough people in my unit hated them too because now they're issuing BlackHawk boots. With the Oakely model we had, there was not enough lower leg/ankle support and the top of the boots were too low; everytime I sat down my pants popped out of the tops of the boots. I felt that the only reason people liked them is because they were Oakley and came in a box that said "Special Forces Issue." I wore them a couple of times and put them in the closet. Tell you what- bargain price for you, send me $300 and I'll send them to you
On a serious note, when I was doing my footmarch training, I used a pair of plain, black leather "leg" boots. If you get them broken in correctly they will fit your feet like a glove. Leg boots and two pairs of green wool socks. I never liked the idea of carrying bricks or other heavy objects in your rucksack if you could avoid it. I recommend you carry water- it's cheap, useful, form-fitting (if you use flexible containers) and if you get smoked and need to dump it, no drama. I had a couple of five-quart canteens I used to use.
I was told by a co-worker/SF guy that the Garmont T8 NFS worked well, he said he did something with the soles before SFAS, not sure what it was. Also, I do some rucks on my own and have done a GORUCK Challenge and I used the Bates 922's. They are pretty good but I have to replace the insoles with superfeet copper insoles. Those things are great.
I love the Garmont T8's. I use em for hiking, hunting, and ruck runs. They've held up pretty good so far.
Have you done any rucks over 10 miles in them? If so, how did your feet feel after, as opposed to other boots? My danner boots that we're issued with the multicam are awesome but I don't think I can wear them with the ACU's.
Danke Herr Troll