As a man of some girth (alright, fine: a wild Australian with whom I worked at another paper routinely referred to me as “Fat Bastard” in his column) with an active daughter and two dogs that need walking and hiking, I go through shoes quickly.
Lately I’ve been alternating between buying hiking and running shoes, the former because I’m often on trails and the latter because, once a month or so, I jog after becoming disgusted with my indolence.
I don’t think I’ll go back to running shoes, unless I see a high-end pair for a bargain, as hiking footwear seems to hold up much better given my gargantuanism.
After kicking my Nike kicks to the curb, I recently bought a pair of black (it’s supposed to be a slimming color) Merrell Depart hikers that are working well.
At 1.8 pounds, the light weight is appreciated, as is the air cushioning in the heel and the high-abrasion outsole.
The shoes have an antimicrobial solution and a breathable mesh lining, meaning, hopefully, that my stink foot will be kept to a minimum, something my wife appreciates.
On the trail, they’ve helped cushion a bruised heel and generally performed well (no need for Mountain Rescue Aspen on the Ditch trail, for instance).
Out of curiosity I Googled “shoes for fat people,” and the first result was an article on livestrong.com. It was titled more politely, “The Best Running Shoes for Overweight People,” and listed as suggestions Nike, Asics, Saucony and New Balance.
No Merrell, but no matter: For this fat bastard, the new shoes suit me just fine.
Get Your Own
Merrell Depart hiking shoes
$79.99
at Sports Authority
Glenwood Springs
