Running shoe durability & quality-upper materials

I'm not a runner when I'm off the bike. But I do walk alot and do wear a decent pair of quality running shoes. I need them because I've been wearing customized orthotics for over last 10 years. I have no need to wear trail/hiking shoes when just walking in the city which would be too hard on my feet.

It takes me a long time to find a running shoe that will accommodate my orthotics since my orthotics raise my feet and cause them to slip out of many different shoe models.

Now I need a new pair of running shoes. Only recently started to look at running shoe lines and was amazed how many of the shoe lines (approx. $80.00-$130.00CAN) had recently released new model lines where the upper materials of the running shoe had alot more mesh and porous materials.

Looks like this wears down the durability of the shoe overall and especially less water resistant if upper shoe materials are more porous.

Maybe I'm not seeing things right about running shoe design trends. Any thoughts?

Brooks Addictions come in full leather (white or black). They generally fit orthotics very well, in fact I send my patients out to try them when they get orthotics. It's nice to have the full leather option, because we do get a little rain here in Seattle.

Dry feet are happy feet! :D

Edit: ooh, I was wrong, there are more shoes than just the Addiction offered in full leather. Anyway, here's a link to get you started in what Brooks has to offer: http://www.brooksrunning.com/dyn_pro...23712&n=0&va=t

About the trend: When I run, I want my shoes to be as vented as possible. Hence the mesh. I really love the new shoes compared to those I had about five years ago. For running purposes, the durability issues are usually with the sole, not with the upper parts of the shoe. Shoes will break down for running LONG before they would break down for walking...

Water resistance is not an issue for me. If I run in the light rain, I don't care. I just wear wool socks that won't stay cold if they're wet. (Like this past Sunday in Vancouver.) If I run in the POURING COLD rain (infrequent here) I will consider putting my feet in plastic bags before putting on my running shoes. For some magic reason my feet don't sweat that badly.

Now that doesn't solve your problem.

I think you could easily find shoes that are made for walking instead of shoes made for running. They will not wear out so quickly. There are some at the now-called "Running/Walking Room" (the chain).

Besides, I have a pair of Merrell Continuum light trail shoes with Vibram soles that are just fabulous. They are not stiff like my real hiking shoes and boots. I've had them for over four years now, walked thousands and thousands of kilometers in them (compared to about 500 km per pair of running shoes), taken them on treks in both urban and jungle environments, walked in rivers with them, but mostly on pavement and sidewalks, and they're still really good. Shoes like that sell for the same price or cheaper than running shoes, look better for the street (in my opinion) and will last you A LOT longer than running shoes if your purpose is to walk with them. You can find more than a few options at MEC...

Mine look a bit like this:
http://www.mec.ca/Products/product_d...=1199745794109
http://images.mec.ca/media/Images/Pr...9830633487.jpg