No Matter What Boots...get gel insoles!

[Schph Gochi]

I am here to give testimony to "gellin"..... ;D

This past Saturday I was out in Jedi garb....since I knew in advance that it was gonna be a VERY long day...with a lot of standing and walking, I purchased some of those gel insoles for my Jedi boots. My Jedi boots are pretty comfy...but...let's face it...those hard soles...and 10 hours of standing and walking can play havoc with your feet...

I gotta admit...those gel insoles really kept my feet feeling pretty good.....almost right up to the end of a nearly 11 hour day...

just thought you would want to know...
CIII will be LOTS of walking and LOTS of standing...anything to make things a little more comfortable is a good thing!

[Jedimom/Cor-Al Gelkar]

"I'm gellin' and ...."

What? What Jedi-ish rhymes with gellin'? Smellin' (hope not!)

Hmm. Have to think on it

[Nova Darklighter]

I found some great insoles last year just before halloween, they were from Dr Scholl's but they were extra support, w/ cushions pricey at about $18 a pair but were really worth it, after the 1st day (at about 19 hours that time, I still could stand) Reminds me, I have to go get a pair tommorow when I get paid. My boots were pretty comfy for DCon, but I kept thinking i should have got a pair of them.

[Schph Gochi]

I felt kinda silly about posting this thread....
something so common....
but I didn't think of some kind of support/cushioning for years....

My Imperial Officer boots will be getting a pair too....they are less comfy than my Jedi boots....
I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner.....

[Leda EmBorr]

This is a great idea... I never thought to do this! I just may scout around for a bit of softee for my boots. A long day on my feet makes my heels ache, especially since the insoles of my boots are rather unforgiving!

[Jen-Ru Balon]

I tried an old set of inserts in my boot a while back and they made the boots too tight. However I know I need something. I worked in my costume at Toys R Us for Halloween. After my 5+ hour shift my feet hurt terribly (although I worked 8 hours the day before and my feet haven't gotten used to the punishment) even a little blistered.

I may see about some new boots soon anyway. I noticed a pair onsale at Dillards and at JCPennys. Next chance I get I will have to go check them out. I will make sure they are big enough for good inserts for added comfort.

[Nova Darklighter]

I tried the inserts in my Jedi short boots for Halloween at work & after 12 hours there we went to a club for another 4, my feet felt good, the boots felt way better than they did at D Con, they're now really comfortable & really feel lived in, next project is to find taller boots for the shorter robes.

[Kyrel-Dak]

I bought the Birken Stock half gel soles for mine with arch support, they work great for all my flips and force jumps........mine were comfy too but like you said........after a full weekend....wooo

[Schph Gochi]

I am glad that folks are trying it with good results...

It is definitely one of those "duh...why didn't I think of this sooner" things for me.....

And I can't stress this enough....
for those who have newer boots....put them on, keep them on, wear them as much as you can......
at CII one of our members completely destroyed his feet the first day because his boots were new...and he was unable to wear his complete costume the rest of the weekend......

[Ani-Chay Pinn]

Oh, I have felt the pain! I took my Jedi boots out for a mile walk. The right was fine, but the left made a blister. Bad boot! They've shaped up fine since then (with a little help from a pumice stone and a rubber mallet), but that's just one of the breaking in risks of new boots.

A band-aid was at least handy for keeping the blister from rubbing against any other shoes I wore until it was more healed.

[JediKai]

At ComicCon, inserts made the toes too tight and hurt far worse than without them.

Since then, I've been doing my walks in the boots and they are breaking in more. Definitely wear them a lot between now and CIII if they are new or new-ish.

Beyond bandaids, bring blister pads, like second skin. This will protect your skin if you do develop a blister. Carry it with you in a pocket so you don't have to go back to the hotel if you develop a hot spot from the boots.

[Schph Gochi]

hmmmm...not a bad idea....put a few band-aids in the pouches in case some of the members are having "boot issues".....

[Mon-Jas Charan]

[shadow=red,left,300]

With 3 boys ... one of my pouches is dedicated to a First-Aid kit ... They seem always to find something sharp ... especially at Ren Fares LOL

[/shadow]

[Jaren Valnor]

Mon-Jas, in the AOTC Visual Dictionary (or maybe TPM) it was said that one of the pouches is actually dedicated to medical supplies for the field. I'm going to keep things in my pouch like Band-Aids, because when I get around a lightsaber, heads come off. I swing it everywhere, and usually I get hurt.

[Nova Darklighter]

I think we need to get you some sparring lessons, you should not get hurt & neither should your sparring partners, perhaps you need more practice w/ the remote.