Gotta say I LOVE REI! One of the reasons I originally went with the Merrill Moab shoes was the price, they were $50 less than the Solomon's. REI is having a sale this weekend - so when I took the Merrills back (my foot is recovering from them, thankfully), they were having a very good sale on most of their hiking shoe brands - including Solomon. I only had to pay $5.50 to exchange them - saved almost $50! And, some lucky woman will get a very good price on the barely broken in Merrills at the next REI yard sale. Good all around and the Soloman's feel downright yummy on my feet! They combine features of trail runner and light hiker - and will be just fine on pavement for me.