Any recommendations on footwear for kayayking, I left my stinky sandles outside last night, and they were jacked. What is a good brand or type of shoe that won’t stink and is also easy to clean. Cause I can’t handle the stank no more and neither can my girlfriend.
Polypro liner socks
– Last Updated: Jun-11-05 7:34 AM EST –
cheap neoprene socks from mec.ca and water shoes. Throw both pairs of socks in the washer after every paddle, rinse the shoes and leave them on the back porch. Works for me.
theft
Who steals stinky sandels? I have Tevas and they seem to work well for me.
I Use Chaco Sandals
If they start to stink, I rinse them off thoroughly and put them in the sun to dry. I’ve been known to wash them with dish or laundry detergent also.
Be conscious of the risk of entrapment
Of course, we all choose our own level of acceptable risk, so choice is up to each and every person,
That said, any shoes wtih straps, including sandals, tevas, chacos have a risk of entrapment that is significant, i.e., people have died being stuck on their foot pedals. If you have a foam bulkhead foot stop, not a problem. Also, a lower volume boot is easier to get in and out of your boat as well if you have bigger feet and small volume foot compartment.
For all of you who love sandals and manage the risk, totally cool, just rasing the issue not saying what is best for all!
I have…
NRS neo-boots. I wear them without liners or anything else and have been doing so for a few months now and they don’t stink at all. Not because I have magical smell-free feet or anything, I just cut both ends off two plastic water bottles, stick them in to keep the ankles of the boots open, and then I dump in some baking soda.
And the only thing that I can see stealing stinky shoes would be a dog. Or your girlfriend; things that some of my old girlfriends couldn’t take anymore had a way of all the sudden not being around anymore. Myself included. 
I Tried Several
pairs of sandles and one pair of expensive boat shoes and did not like any of them. I wound up with an eight dollar pair of mesh and neoprene shoes from Walmart. They work great and so far done stink.
Mark
Entrapment
I don’t paddle with sandals on. The sandals are for walking only, and they come off before I start paddling. Chota mukluk lights for winter. Barefoot in summer.
I take the same approach
$8 water shoes at Walmart or another large volume store. I generally purchase two pairs each year.
After a month or so, the shoes must stay in the boat on the way home. After 2-3 months, they’re ready for some cleaner smelling replacements.
During the winter months, I use a pair of MEC Swellies.
Dan
http://www.westcoastpaddler.com
run the old shoes through
a wash with detergent and a soak in diluted peroxide and they are as good as new.
Less $ out, less junk in the landfill,
Depends on the footroom
In my plastic America I have all the footroom in the world and Keens or Tevas were my choice…Then came the artic tern and now I’m looking at something that won’t be much larger than my foot…those 9.95 watersocks.
Check the footroom before plunking down a ton of cash.
Can’t stand to paddle without something
on my feet. Its like driving bare foot…the balls of my feet start hurting. Maybe the problem with your stinky shoes has to do with your feet, do you have foot rot? Keep the feet clean, air out the foot wear, and clean as mentioned above.
Two suggestions
I wear Tevas or lately, Keens. When you get home and shower up, just leave them on. The soap and shampoo will run down your legs and onto your shoes. Towards the end of your shower, take them off and soap them up a little more and rinse them off. I leave them standing up in the shower to dry or put them on the deck to dry.
Alternatively, Yakpads sells gel footpeg covers. I bought a pair but have yet to install them. They look and feel gret though!
paddling shoes
sandals are only for sit on tops in my book. the outprint is usually bigger than your foot and you can’t feel diddly and I saw a guy capsize and rip his footbrace right out as the sandal strap was caught on it! Yikes. When my Teva mesh water slip on gave up i started buying the mesh slip on from Bean for half the price. Rinse after EVERY use and they won’t build up the stink near as fast. The stink is from the water with proteans and non-harmful bacteria that get in the pores. If it gets bad I use Order B Gone really diluted from a pet store instead of bleach which ain’t too friendly to nylon and plastics. Make sure the mesh slip ons are not sloppy and wrap up around the heel to protect it.
Mirasol and Neo
Neo shoes, like Kickers and the like from NRS or Chota, will stay relatively stink-free if you religiously rinse them out with this stuff and dry them in sun/dry warm air. The latter part tends to be the problem - at some point at the end of a paddle you may just be too beat to do the whole drill right, or be in Maine on a day with 24 hour fog…
I’ve been wearing the same pair
of 8" neoprene side zip boots for 4 years. They sit in the garage, get rinsed out with hot water just prior to getting thrown in the back of my truck, and back in the garage again. I understand that some folks find this type of footwear a bit hot for summer use, but I never think about them once I get paddling.
I posted about a month ago …
on this.
All you have to do is leave those stinky shoes in the hot sun for the afternoon and the smell dissipates.
Cheers,
JackL
Avia
I have an old pair of Avia water shoes. They are basically tennis shoes that have water proof liners built in. They also have holes in them so that they drain. I think they were made for water aerobics or something like that. I don’t know if they are still made, but I am about to need another pair, so I will find out soon enough
Too easy to cut your feet in sandals
where we usually launch. Presently use a pair of Extreme Guide water shoes(on sale). Wash, dry, stuff some Bounce sheets in them. No stink. If I am in an SOT and will be wade fishing also-pair of Heavyweight Predator Reef Boots for sting ray and oyster bed protection. The boots will make it harder to reenter, if I dump in deep water-but, they can be zipped off and thrown in the cockpit well, if necessary.
Pert Plus
I’m dumbfounded why otherwise knowledgeable posters on this board insist that exotic neoprene shampoos, and/or regular replacement is the only cure for funky booties. Where them in the shower, as the poster above suggests, and make sure to use a liberal amount of soap/shampoo on your body. That will take care of the problem 90% of the time. For those times you forget to take your wetsuit or booties out of the trunk for a week, use the shampoo (cheaper brands work great)directly on the neo. I’ve got booties that are litteraly falling apart, but they still smell fine.