Reviews > Clothing > Socks > Fox River Escape Crew Socks > Test Report by Chuck Carnes

Fox River

Escape
Crew Socks
Initial Report: September 19, 2008
Field Report: November 11, 2008
Long Term Report: February 15, 2009

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
Name: Chuck Carnes
Age: 38
Gender: Male
Height: 6 ft. 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight: 175 lb (79 kg)
Shoe Size: 9.5 (USA) (42.5 Euro)
E-mail address: ctcarnes1(at)yahoo(dot)com
City, State, Country: Greenville, South Carolina USA

BACKPACKING BACKGROUND
I love the outdoors – I’ve spent time camping in the outdoors since I was born, and have been actively hiking and backpacking since then. I consider myself a lightweight hiker, usually carrying 20 – 30 pounds (11-13 kg) for hikes up to a week in length. I hike at an easy pace, averaging 2 mph (3 kph). I am a one-man tent camper for now. I like to carry a single trekking pole when I hike to help relieve stress to my legs and knees. I like to get out on the trail as often as I can.

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PRODUCT INFORMATION
Manufacturer: Fox River Mills
Model: Escape
Color: 1 Pair White / 1 Pair Blue Grey
Size: SM/MD (which fits Men shoe size 7-9.5 [or Euro 36-42.5])
Style: Crew
Year of manufacture: 2008
URL: http://www.foxsox.com
Listed Weight:  Not listed
Actual Weight:  2 oz. (57 g)
MSRP: $10.00 (US)

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I N I T I A L    R E P O R T
September 19, 2008
 

Product Description
The Fox River Escape Socks are, in my opinion, a mid to light weight hiking sock. They have a seamless toe and are very well ventilated in different areas throughout the whole sock. As seen in the pictures above, there are different designs of the vents and seem to be well thought out on the placement in reference to the foot and where they are needed the most. The crew style comes up to mid calf on my leg and has a very soft top cuff. The inside of the sock is also very soft.

Initial Try-Out
The Escape socks fit my feet perfect. The soft feel of the inside instantly make my feet feel warm. The elasticity in the foot and leg area is just right. They don't seem to be too tight or too loose. The top cuff is very comfortable and seems to stay put when the socks are put on. After a few paces around in the house the socks still stayed up and did not fall any. The full vent in the rear area is a nice touch. I could actually feel air getting to this portion of my leg through the sock. I think this will be nice on long hikes to keep my calves cool.

The toe and the heel area fabric very slightly thicker than the rest of the sock. This should give long lasting comfort in those delicate areas. The vents on top of the sock seem work as I kicked my foot from front to back and could feel air coming through those vents. This will also be a nice feature.

All of the features seem to work perfect and are in the right spots of my foot. Right now they fit great and the size is just right. I am concerned that after I wash these then they may draw up and be too small; but that is part of the reason why I am testing them. With some warm months coming up, I am looking forward to testing these socks out on the trail.

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F I E L D   R E P O R T
November 11, 2008

The Fox River Escape Socks has been a great light weight hiking sock. I have worn them approximately 30 to 35 days, off and on, and put in probably over 50 miles (81 km) in them from hiking, backpacking and general everyday wear.

Hiking - I have worn both of these socks on several day hikes through Paris Mountain State Park, Jones Gap and Caesars Head. All hiking areas have been between 1,000 ft and 3,000 ft (305 m and 914 m) in elevation. Some trails were flat and some were mountainous. The temperature ranged between 55 F and 75 F (12 C and 23 C) with clear skies on all hikes. Total trail length for all three areas was around 25 to 35 miles (40 km to 56 km). I'm not pointing out any particular trip as the socks performed perfectly on all of them. On the colder hikes I put both pair on at the same time but most of the time I alternated them out at rest stops. This gave them time to dry from the minimal sweat between stops. Each time I removed the socks my feet were very slightly moist from sweat but at no time were they in danger for possible hot spots or blisters. I could immediately feel the cool air flow through the vents in the upper toe area and rear panel. I mostly wore standard hiking shoes, no boots on these trips.

Backpacking - I took one trip backpacking with these socks before it got too cold to wear them. The trip was to Shinning Rock Wilderness area. It was a two night trip where the elevation was around 5,000 ft (1,524 km) and the temperatures ranged from 30's F (10's C) at night to 60 F to 70 F (33 C to 38 C) during the day. The terrain was a bit rugged over boulders and sharp rocks. Most of the trail was in what felt like a creek bed, wet. The total trip was around 12 miles (19 km). The boots I wore were Gor-tex so my feet never got wet but I could feel the cold, wet sole of the boot from inside from constantly walking through the water. This was about at the point where I would normally use thicker socks. The Escape socks kept my feet warm as long as I kept both pair on. This took one day of hiking to realize this. During the night I slept with both pair on and my feet stayed toasty all night. Luckily I have worn the blue/grey pair under the white pair so the white pair have stayed somewhat clean looking.

Everyday Use - I can't say that I have worn these everyday but I do put them on most evenings when I come home from work or I'll wear them on the weekends when out doing yard work. Since they work in the field I knew they would feel good and perform during normal use and around town. I enjoy wearing them with sandles and tennis shoes while around the house and around town. I have certainly put quite a few miles on them during this type of use.

My overall experience with the Escape socks have been great. I have been very pleased at the way they perform and feel while wearing them. I have noticed how much they have shrunk since first putting them on. I have washed them at least 20 times or so. They used to come up and over most of my calf and now they barely reach the bottom of my calf. This does not effect the performance in any way, it's more of a nuscience than anything because I like long socks. They still have the soft feel inside them and I truly enjoy wearing them everywhere I go. 

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L O N G   T E R M   R E P O R T
February 15, 2009

Not much has changed for the Fox River Escape socks since my Field Report. I have not worn them backpacking since the Field Report because the weather has been too cold to wear them. I still continue to wear them around the house during the week and on weekends. They have been a great durable sock and I would say I have worn them a total of about 75 to 80 days and have put a total of about 60 to 70 miles (97 m to 113 m) on them. Along with all of this wearing comes washing. I have washed them a total of about 40 or 45 times. They are still durable and all of the elastic in the cuff still remains snug and has not stretched out. They have however shrunk just a bit as I mentioned in the Field Report. But they have not shrank anymore since then. I will continue to wear these socks when spring comes and on into the summer months. They do a great job at wicking the moisture from my feet and my lower leg. So when it's a little warm outside I can still feel comfortable in these socks.
 

This concludes this test series
Thank you Fox River and BackpackGearTest.org for this opportunity.

Reviews > Clothing > Socks > Fox River Escape Crew Socks > Test Report by Chuck Carnes