[pct-l] Ankles

[greg mushial]

> Message: 1
> Date: Sat, 26 Feb 2011 21:22:15 -0800
> From: Eric Lee <saintgimp at hotmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [pct-l] Ankles
> To: "'CHUCK CHELIN'" <steeleye at wildblue.net>, "'PCT listserve'"
> <pct-l at backcountry.net>
> Message-ID: <BAY145-ds58A75378F235D5E51F142BDDF0 at phx.gbl>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>
> Steel-Eye wrote:
>>
> Diane is correct in her assessment that typical hiking boots contribute
> little, or nothing, to resist ankle-turning.  The low style boots are 
> about
> 6" in height.  Medium heights are maybe 8" high.  Neither is much higher
> than the distance from the ground to the center of the ankle joint and 
> they
> won't contribute significantly to absorbing torque about the ankle
> regardless of how tightly they are laced.  They may feel nice and snug and
> firm - a physiological advantage - but they will not significantly resist
> even a mild turn, let alone a 2g - 3g turn possible with a misstep on the
> trail.
>>

Eric - I believe there is an additional factor which has gone unmentioned: 
that is the leverarm effect. The force exerted against one's ankle in the 
rolling under process, is applied via a leverarm, namely that part of the 
foot below the ankle. This leverarm effect is offset by the width of the 
foot, ie, a broad base resisting any  rolling laterally. It seems as the 
boots get heavier, the thickness of the soles increases, or more 
importantly, that leverarm distance, from the ground to the ankle is 
increased...  making it easier to twist an ankle, or said differently, 
making it more difficult for the connective tissue of the ankle to resist 
being turned under. This is way I've gone with two types of walking shoes: 
one with micro thin soles, which do not contribute to this leverarm length; 
and boots with incredibly stiff sides (typically mountineering boots), which 
because of the increased leverarm length, would be more inclined to twist 
ankles, but because of the stiffness, that tendency is more than offset. In 
my book, the worst ankle twisters are the boots with very thick soles (ie, 
lengthened leverarm distance), but with thin soft almost glove leather 
(offering no additional resistance to rolling under)...  in my book they're 
an accident waiting to happen. I've noticed this same effect in running 
shoes with exaggerated soles - equally deadly.
TheDuck