There's been some great reviews and forum commentary about these shoes/boots.

They are made out of softshell with a DWR to make them water resisant. I'm itching to try some but lack of availability means a trek into central london, so a few questions first.

1. Are they wide or narrow fitting ?
2. How water resisant is "water resistant" ? Splash proof ? Dip in a sink full for a minute ? I wonder how much the DWR is integral to the water resistance since I wouldn't have thought a DWR on a boot would last long.

Thanks.

Hi ecco, I've got the Pros and they were really difficult to find (CMM Online). I'm very pleased with them but haven't yet had an opportunity to test them properly (dog walking doesn't count and it's been very dry). I can't vouch for water resistance yet, I'll try the sink test tonight and get back to you.

I don't think they will be incredibly water resistant (wet grass/peat bogs), but they're going to be much better than Inov8s etc. They have no seams, which ought to help and I'm sure they will dry out quite quickly. IMHO they are a good compromise between mesh and "proper" boots.

Fitting: my feet are fairly average but I have narrowish heels. Zamberlans are a perfect fit for me. TNF are a bit wide. Salomons are similar to Montrail. They are a bit short. I have a 9, where normally I would have an 8.

Other obsrvations: they have decent tread, flexible fore-foot but some torsional rigidity from the mid to the heel. Nice cushioning on the heel. They are very comfortable. I might try them with Superfeet insoles as the ones supplied are a bit flat. The one thing I don't like is the thin laces (having said that the cordlock system is very secure). They've got a nice rubber toe bumper.

Itchy Feet stock the grey shoes, while Cotswold have the red shoes (not my preference!). The Pros are as rare as hen's teeth though ;)

I have just bought a pair of Fusions's (not pro) I think they are the same but without the higher ankle support. Tiso,s have the non pro version on sale for £55.00 at the moment.

My feet are fairly narrow but I think these shoes would fit wide feet well, being softshell the lacing system controls the fit.
These shoes are not waterproof, I was out running in the lovely Scottish weather the other day and my feet were soaking (to be fair, it was torrential and the paths had turned into rivers), although the shoes remained very comfortable. They are splash proof only, but could probably be improved using a treatment.
I would highly recommend these shoes though and the grips are fantastic.

Thanks Guys, much appreciated.

I understand that itchy feet have the boots so I'll trek in to london to take a look. I had a look at the red ones in cotswolds and blacks are doing the shoe for £59.

They look excellent. I just hope they are wide enough in the heel for me.

Ecco-i'm the proud owner of a pair of Fusion pro,i need a wide fitting boot and although they look very narrow,they fit me like a glove.

I've done about 300 miles in them so far and my feet have never broken sweat.

They do get wet but as you're walking you can watch them drying out so i guess the water is pumped to the outer fabric of the boot somehow.

Buy a pair and enjoy:-)

John, have you found that the thin laces wear the fabric eyelets? I'm thinking of replacing the laces with something slightly thicker. Just walked the dog in them (again), they're so comfortable!

"They're so comfortable" god i know what you mean Robin,they're so light and..


I'd better answer your question :-)



No-i've not found any wear around the eyelets yet and i yank them hard, so i don't intend to change anything about the easy lacing system.i love that one tug and they're done so to speak it's so easy.


They look fragile but i've not been careful with them and they've stood the test so far;so,fingers crossed.

Oh dear, oh dear, I've just bought the shoes as they're cheap from Blacks (£59.99 from £75.00)on the basis that I bet they will not be avalable next season. Brings my collection of shoes and boots to 10 pairs!

Blimey - you are the imelda marcos of the outdoor world !

I was supposed to be heading into london today to have a look at the fusion pro but can't make it now. Guess I'll just have to resign myself to one pair of boots !!

They will be available next season, with different colour options and also a more conventional approach shoe-type design.

I'd concur that they're splash rather than waterproof and very light and comfortable though I wouldn't personally wear them for serious hill use, because I think there are better options out there.

Jon,

Thanks for your comments.

Interesting that you say there are better options out there for serious hill use. Opinion seems polarised between non lined trail shoes and traditional boots with the fusion seeming to fall into the previously unpopulated middle ground.

What do you think are better options ?

Oh well I bet they're not available at 60 quid. I'd be interested in a definition of "serious hill use". I'm going to use mine in Scotland next year (the Pros that is). There are hardly any (no) lightweight fabric boots without the dreaded Goretex lining

I don't have a problem with the materials, I just prefer a slightly stiffer sole unit. I'd like to try a more conventional approach shoe design with a bit more lateral stiffness using the Fusion Pro construction. Or even a trail-running shoe as a sort of halfway point between mesh running shoes that let water flood in and waterproof-lined shoes, which get a bit sweaty.

By 'serious', I suppose I mean carrying a moderate sized pack pretty much any mountain terrain below the snowline. I'm not sure, for example, how well the Fusion Pro would stand up to sustained use in scree.

Also the gear tart in me doesn't really like the look of them, but that's totaly personal and nowt to do with performance :-)

Jon-i know where your coming from on the boot/shoe thing,but earlier this year i walked both Bowfell and Scafell pike from the Langdale side in them and they were fine:-)

Hopefully we'll get some serious weather this year on the tops then it'll be the turn of my Raichle Mt guide to perform,but i've found for the rest of the year it's always the Pro that end up in my boot bag.

Thanks Jon, it's all a matter of personal preference. I see them as a good half-way house between conventional boots and running shoes. I can't wait to test them in "serious" conditions ;)