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Reviews > Footwear > Trail Shoes > Merrell Waterpro Ultrasport > Chuck Carnes > Initial ReportInitial Report
MERRELL Waterpro Ultra-Sport Shoes  by Chuck Carnes Report Date: October 12, 2005
Name:
Chuck Carnes
Age: 35 Gender: Male Height: 6 ft. 0 in (1.83 m) Weight: 175 lb (79 kg) E-mail address: ctcarnes1(at)yahoo(dot)com City, State, Country: Greenville, South Carolina USA
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.
Manufacturer:
Merrell
Model:
Waterpro Ultra-sport
Year
of manufacture: 2005
Shoe
Size: 10 USA (44 Euro)
Color:
Dark Grey / Yellow
URL:
www.merrell.com
Listed
Weight: Not listed on web site
Weight
as delivered: 24 oz (680 g) pair
MSRP:
Not listed on web site
   Slip Lasted
Construction
Synthetic
Leather/Ventilated Mesh Upper
Micro
Mesh Free Flowing Drainage Ports
Injection
Molded TPU Rearfoot Stabilizer
Free
Floating Heel/Dynamic Lacing System
Hydro
Drainage/Ventilated Footbed
Injection
Molded TPU Toe Bumper/ Integrated Drainage Ports
Nylon
6.6 Injection Molded Arch Shank
In-Board™
Compression Molded EVA Footframe
Q-Form™
Alignment System (women)
Air
Cushion® Midsole
Water
Friendly Non-Marking/Razor-Cut Siped Sole
3.5mm
Sole Lug Depth
Vibram®
RinseMaster™ Sole Versa & TC1 Rubber
 The shoes are much narrower than most
trail shoes. They have a "rock
climbing shoe" feel to them. The soles feel and sound, hard when I
walk along wood floors; much like dress shoes sound but they seem to
stick and grip real well to the ground. The shoes feel very light and
airy; mostly due to more than half of the shoe being made of mesh. The
lacing system seems to be very unique in that the thin
web strapping on the sides of the shoe that the laces intertwine
through
are able to slide and adjust to the tightness that the user wants the
laces to be. I will try different lacing techniques and adjusting these
straps throughout the testing period to see what suits me best. With
the narrowness of the shoes, I am somewhat concerned about rolling my
foot to the outside causing a possible injury to my ankle. I will
certainly be aware of where and how I step to keep this from happening.The material of the shoes seem very durable and with a Vibram sole, they should be able to take on a lot of abuse. The laces are a bit long for my liking but I will tie them up for now until the test is over. The mesh material seems to be very strong to keep sharp pointy objects from protruding into the foot around this area. I certainly like the rubber toe guard on these shoes to keep me from stubbing my toe on roots or rocks. The heel area seems to be reinforced in some way because of the stiff feel. Hopefully this will keep my heels and arches from getting fatigued when descending on hard surfaces.
I
plan to test
the Merrell Waterpro Ultra-Sport shoes on trails, in creeks and maybe a
small amount of canyoneering. I will be looking for performance and
durability of the shoe and well they hold to certain conditions. I have
a few planned trips and hopefully have a few spur of the moment trips.
These are the locations and conditions I hope to encounter.
Smokey
Mountains
Jones Gap Conditions: The temperatures don’t get too bad until November and December but coming off the summer months the rain and humidity makes up for it in September and October. Elevation: 4500 to 5500 ft (1372 to 1676 m) Temperatures and precipitation average for this testing period:
Most of the trails that I will be on are fairly nice trails although I do encounter roots, rocks, and other pointy objects that peer from the surface of the ground and I usually step on it or kick it. I do cross creeks occasionally and sometimes after a big rain, the trail is basically a creek. During this testing period there are always occasional thunder showers so I think these shoes will be exposed to plenty of water and warm conditions as well as a variety of terrain. Here are some features that I look for in a shoe and will be paying close attention to for the next four months. I like to be able to slip my foot into a pair of shoes and immediately feel the comfort. Can I immediately do lengthy miles on the trail without much breaking in? Will the shoe fit nicely around my foot with or without socks? Will I have the custom fit feel? Will I get any hot spots or blisters from tight areas or can I fix those easily? Will my toes jamb up into the toe area on steep descents? Will my heels constantly come out of the heel cup on ascents? How comfortable is the footbed that is provided with the shoe? Will I need or want to replace them? I like having the option of wearing different thicknesses of socks, sometimes one pair and sometimes two pairs with different thicknesses. Will I be able to wear a variety of different thicknesses of socks and still feel comfortable and not too tight? I like to know that my shoes are dependable and durable. Will these shoes show any sign of wear at a four month period? How well does water evacuate from the shoe? Does the mesh material continue to let the water out as my foot squeezes water from my sock? When water does get in and drain, how quickly will my feet dry? Is it a noticeable difference with the mesh material versus taking a wet shoe off, changing socks and continuing on while the shoe dries? Does the Vibram sole protect my feet from sharp boulders or objects? At the area where the sole meets the mesh, will the sole start separating from the shoe in this area at any time during the testing? What kind of grip do the soles of the shoe give on wet, slick terrain; or dry terrain for that matter? Do the web straps give good lateral stability for my foot personally? Does the outside material of the shoe clean easily? Will the material tear easily? Will my foot fill up the volume of the shoe without many voids? Some of my testing period will be during the warmer months. That means stinky feet syndrome. How well do the shoes handle odor? Do they dry well enough so that the shoes do not have an odor problem? How durable are the laces? It appears that the lateral webbing straps give many different tightening techniques with laces to support the foot and to keep the shoe well planted to the foot; will this prove to be true? Will I have to replace them in the four month period? If I wear gaiters, how well will they handle the lace hooks on Gaiters? How long into the colder months can I wear the shoes and my feet still stay warm? I hope to answer most if not all of these questions in my Field and Long Term Report. Thank you Merrell and BGT for giving me this opportunity to test these awesome shoes. Read more reviews of Merrell gear Read more gear reviews by Chuck Carnes Reviews > Footwear > Trail Shoes > Merrell Waterpro Ultrasport > Chuck Carnes > Initial Report | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||