[pct-l] re: black toes

[chelin at teleport.com (Sharon & Chuck Chelin)]

Good afternoon, Tom,

Only part of the reason for black toes is insufficient shoe or boot width.
Most often the reason is insufficient shoe length, where toes pressure the
inside front of the shoe.  Other people I know have low arches and if they
hike without supports there is a tendency for the foot to slide forward on
downgrades.  Tighter lacing can help, but tight lacing is not the best
practice for the feet, and it becomes uncomfortable long before the
foot-slipping can be controlled.  In my case the cause is none of those
things.  My shoes are sufficient in both width and length, but I have this
disagreeable tendency to grip down with my center toes when hiking fast or
going up hills.  The effect of this is end-loading of the toe similar to
pressuring the inside front of the shoe.  The usual result is at least one
black toe nail.

Steel-Eye

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tom Magee" <luv2hike@earthlink.net>
To: <pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net>
Sent: Saturday, June 12, 2004 1:49 PM
Subject: [pct-l] re: black toes


> The reason for black toes, it that your shoes/boots are not wide enough.
Brian Robbinson told me this two years ago at the ALDHA-West gathering.  I
went and had my feet measured, and what I thought was a "D" size, was
acutally a "EE".
>
> Simply Tom
> luv2hike@earthlink.net
> _______________________________________________
> pct-l mailing list
> pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
> unsubscribe or change options:
> http://mailman.hack.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l