Upgrade Your Feet Next Month

We've just got back from Friedrichshafen, which is a German town with a rather nice lake and - more importantly - a massive outdoor trade show where all of next year's geary secrets are revealed.

It gave us the chance to catch up with more outdoor clothing manufacturers than we can count and to find out how they're planning to keep OMers warmer, drier and lighter on the hills in the not-too-far future. We wouldn't want to give away any of their secrets because we're honest like that, but, erm, here's a sneak preview of what's coming up anyway. Starting with Superfeet ...

The insole gurus released their first gender-specific insole about six months ago and it's obviously gone down as well as an umbrella in a rain shower, as they've decided to launch another one next month. The berry insole was a women's specific model and that's been in the shops for a while. It's now joined by the orange sole for men, which helps to make the range even more colourful...

Why introduce a men's-specific model? Well, it's not just because men don't always want to wear pink - or berry - insoles. In fact, men's and women's feet are usually slightly different shapes - women's tend to be slightly narrower around the heel, and women also tend to pronate more when they walk, which means they roll over to the inside of the foot each time they take a step.

The men's specific Superfeet are shaped to take these differences into account, and they're also slightly thicker than the women's berry version, but they use the same shock-absorbing heel, high-density foam materials, and antimicrobial top cover. Like the rest of the range, they retail for £40 and there's a 60 day money back guarantee in case you don't get on with them too well after a munro or two. Look out for something very bright and very orange in the shops next month.

And if £40 sounds a bit stiff for an insole, Superfeet are also planning to release their first budget insole in September. It's called the Energizer and it cuts the damage to your pocket by half, retailing at £20.

The difference in price comes courtesy of an injection-moulding construction process, which is cheaper than pressing each individual sole into shape. The Energizers also contain air holes, to provide a venting system so that the sweat can escape, rather than coming with an anti-bacterial coating. The other downside is that you only get to try them out for 30 days before you have to either add them permanently to your kit list or ask for your money back, but that's still plenty of time to go for a ramble or three in the mud. Oh yes, and did we mention that they're also energising:-)

They aren't as thick as the full on hiking Superfeet and might not sit as happily in hiking boots as in trail shoes, or even dress shoes, for your next mountaineering club party:-) Superfeet look at them as an introductory-level insole, before you go on to buy one of the higher quality versions, or even a custom-made sole if you're feeling injured (or indulgent). There's nothing to stop you sticking with the Energizers though.

All sounds good. Keep your eyes carefully peeled for the Energizers in September as, for once, they don't need to be viewed through sunglasses - they're rather brown and harmless-looking in fact, unlike the nice orange men's specific soles hitting the shops a month before.

Full details of the Superfeet range at www.superfeet.com.