Reviews > Footwear > Boots > Merrell Passage Ventilator Mid > Thomas Vickers > Field Report

Merrell Passage Ventilator Mid Field Test Report

July 4, 2006

Tester Background:
I grew up in the piney woods of southeast Texas. Camping was a quick trip into the mosquito-infested woods behind the house. My style has evolved and over the last 4 or 5 years, I have begun to take a lighter weight approach to hiking gear (I still use sleeping bags and tents, just lighter versions). While I have flirted with lightweight hiking, I feel that I am more of a mid-weight hiker now. My philosophy is one of comfort, while carrying the lightest load possible.

Insoles:
I need to start at the beginning. I use after market insoles in all my shoes and hiking boots. My feet are flat and without the proper support, they hurt.  In the spirit of testing, I decided to leave the stock insoles in the Merrell Passage Ventilator Mids for one day so that I could see where I stood with them.  After I spent some time dayhiking and then working in the yard (8 hours total), I had severely sore feet.  I would loved to have gone on, but I knew at that point I had to pull the Merrell insoles out and put in a pair that provided better support for my feet (Shock Doctor Ultra Custom Footbeds). 

I was happy to discover that the Merrell insoles were not glued in (as I have often encountered) and came out very easily.  Upon a closer examination I found out that there just wasn't much to the Merrell insoles, but this is not something I considered a bad thing. From their thinness and the ease with which I removed them, I came away with the idea that Merrell focused on the boots and the insoles were something the consumer could take or leave with ease.  For me, it was a no brainer to use different insoles, but not everyone may wind up feeling this way.

Testing:
The month of June was a busy time for me and the Ventilator Mids.  There was not a day that went by that I didn't wear these boots for at least part of the day, if not all day.  My activities were pretty low impact, but they allowed me to put a lot of miles on these boots.  My usual week started off with an 8 mile ( 13 km) round trip hike on the Lonestar Trail.  I would hike four miles (6 km) to my fishing spot wearing the Ventilator Mids and carrying around 15 lb (7 kg) in my daypack.  After the hike to my fishing spot I would fish for an hour or two and then hike back to the car.  When I got home it was time to fast walk with my wife. This took the Ventilator Mid's off of the dirt trails of Southeast Texas and onto the pavement.  Four days a week I walked 2.5 miles (4 km) with my wife on the asphalt streets.  This is a lot tougher than it sounds since we kept up an average speed of 3.5 mph (6 kph) during the walking.   

The rest of the week was about the same. I would get up on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and hit the trail in the nearby W.G. Jones State Forest and hike for about 2 miles (3 km) and then come home to walk with my wife.  My trips to the state forest were sometimes with a pack (15 lb/7 kg) and sometimes without. 

On the other mornings I was either geocaching or fishing, both of which caused me to spend a lot of time in these boots. 

Best of all, I have been able to wear these boots in all sorts of weather. It has been dry and 100 F (38 C) and wet with temperatures near 70 F (21 C) during this phase of the test.   I feel that I have put these boots through their paces a lot more than I had originally expected to, but so far I have not been disappointed.

Soles:
One thing that became very apparent early on was that the Vibram soles on the Merrell Ventilator Mids were very stiff.  No matter how long I wore them, the soles never seemed to soften up or become less stiff.  This was most apparent during the four days that I spent training to be a facilitator on the high elements of a ropes course.   I spent 8 hours a day climbing up telephone poles, standing on 3/8 in (10 mm) steel cable, and then jumping off.  I have done things like this before in other boots and I was very happy with the stiffness of the soles on the Ventilator Mid's.  They kept my feet from getting tired and cramping during the climbs and while standing on the steel cable. 

The only issue that I have encountered with the Vibram soles is that they are not only stiff, but very hard.  They don't seem to wear or abrade very much and while this seems like a good thing, on slick surfaces (wet asphalt, cement and rock) the lack of abrasion makes it very easy for me to lose my footing and slip.  In fact, this has happened several times with these boots and now I am very careful when walking on any of these surfaces when they are wet.  On the other hand, I have not been seen hardly any wear on the heel area of the sole despite heavy usage.  I drag my heels and this is the area where the soles on all my other shoes and boots  wear out the quickest.   So far I am very happy about this lack of wear on the Merrell Ventilator's soles.

What socks to wear?
I received a size 11.5 boot for this test. My normal shoe/boot size is a 10.5, but I wear a size larger when hiking so that I can fit an insole, heavy sock and liner in the boot.   This usually means that I have trouble wearing my hiking boots with normal socks.   I have really been impressed that the lacing system on the Ventilator Mid's have allowed me to wear a variety of sock types and weights without the boots sliding around. I have worn a regular cotton sock, a midweight hiking sock, and a heavyweight hiking sock and a sock liner and all of them have been comfortable in the Ventilator Mid's.  All I have to do is adjust the way I lace the boots up in order to achieve a comfortable fit with the socks that I have chosen for that day.

Inside the boot:
I have discovered a couple of things about these boots as I subjected them to different conditions.  In hot, dry weather, I really love them. My feet  have never overheated in them, despite spending several days in 100 + F (38 + C) heat all day.   I won't say that my feet didn't sweat, but the Ventilator Mid's breathed well and kept my feet comfortable all day.  I never felt like I had to take a break and air my feet out so they could cool off no matter how warm the temperature got.

I did find that keeping dry in these boots was a challenge. After wearing them in rainy conditions and through many puddles, I discovered that my socks and feet got wet quickly.   I did notice that the boots got wet easily in heavy dew or light rain, but this never seemed to soak through to my socks. It was only a complete soaking that reached through the boot to my socks and feet. Considering the amount of rain that I have had to deal with, I have been less than happy so far, but I can say that when the rain stopped, the boots seemed to breath quickly and easily and my feet and socks didn't stay wet all day.  In fact, even if the boots themselves were soaked, they dried overnight and were always ready to go the next morning. 

Also, despite being soaked and dried on a regular basis, the boots have not developed any lingering internal odors. I am rather surprised at this considering how bad my feet can smell and the amount of time I have worn these boots with wet socks, but it is a good surprise.

Comfort:
After changing the insoles in these boots, there has never been a question of comfort for me.  They fit more like athletic shoes than boots and no matter what kind of sock I wear, these boots feel great on my feet.  Even after wearing them for 8+ hours, my feet still feel good in the Merrell Ventilator Mid's.  I was worried that wearing them in wet conditions so often might alter the fit of these boots, but so far, the repeated wetting and drying cycles have had no effect. 

Best of all, my feet do not over heat in these boots.  That is very important here in Texas and it is nice to have a pair of boots that vent/breathe well no matter how hot or humid the conditions are. 

Wear and tear:

I have really put a lot of miles on these boots.  The terrain and conditions have varied a great deal and I feel like I have really put these boots through their paces.  The soles, laces, and all other parts of the boots have held up rather well to the amount of wear that I have put them through.  They might not be as clean and neat as when they first arrived, but other than some dirt and other debris, the Merrell Ventilator Mid's are not showing any signs of wear or age. I really expected to see much more wear on the toe area and on the heel of the sole, since these are typically high wear areas for my boots, but no extra wear is present.  The lack of odors inside the boots is also a pleasant surprise.  As many times as the boots, socks, and feet have been wet, I would have expected some permanent and less than pleasing odor to have developed, but none has. 

Final thoughts:
I have a lot of testing left to do on these boots.  The summer is just kicking into high gear here in Texas so that means lots of high temperatures and lots more trail use. I am going to be paying a lot of attention to the soles on  these boots.   So far I have considered the stiffness of the soles to be a great benefit, but I have also discovered that the stiffness of the sole means that they don't flex much, which means that mud tends to stick in the Vibram soles.  Even on hard surfaces, it is difficult to clean out or at least "walk out" any mud or dirt that sticks in the soles.  I think that if the soles were a bit more flexible, then they would self clean just a bit better.

Reviews > Footwear > Boots > Merrell Passage Ventilator Mid > Thomas Vickers > Field Report