Skechers Oak Canyon Walking Trainers – Review
Summer quickly turned to Autumn, didn’t it? But that doesn’t stop us ardent walkers from getting into the fresh air and enjoying the change of season. There’s a certain thing I like about Autumn too. The leaves have browned and dropped, you get a few more wet, cooler days, and you begin to think about wrapping up, as opposed to making sure you won’t get too hot.
For us who enjoy heading out for a walk and getting a number of miles in every week, taking care of your feet is essential business. I do woodland walking, coastal walks, country parks and, often, more urban town and city paths. And constantly wearing walking boots can be a bit overbearing on your tootsies.
So, something new is required down there at this time of year.
Step up a brand-spanking new pair of Skechers… their Oak Canyon Walking Trainers.
What Skechers say:
Mens Skechers Oak Canyon lace-up athletic walking trainers with suede and mesh fabric upper featuring mesh front and side panels allowing a cooling effect to the feet, tough man-made overlays at the heel and toe, memory foam cushioned comfort insole, pull-on heel tab, flexible shock absorbing midsole and a high traction rubber flexible outsole.
“Spring in my step”
After grabbing them out of the box I slipped them on, tied them, and stood up. I’ve never owned a pair of Skechers before, but people speak positively about their fit and their comfort. And my first impression certainly matched their descriptions. I did that little wander round the room, tilted my foot out to the side and looked and them…nodding at them in approval in the process. You know, the way you always do in a new pair of kicks that you like. They felt good.
But the proof was always going to be in my first proper walk in them outside. And, as it happened, I had a 2-mile walk to the local train station that afternoon. What better way to try them out?
My walk to Sowerby Bridge train station consists of me setting off from the house and wandering along a normal, everyday and unremarkable pavement. But there’s a nice, comfortable spring in my step for five minutes, and my feet are feeling great in the new Skechers. The pavement soon changes to over a mile of canal-side pathway. Right on the Rochdale Canal, with pathways that are smooth in places, broken up in others. And I must say, the feet handled that stretch of the walk nicely. No slips, no mini-stumbles and, more importantly, no tired feet.
“Energetic comfort”
Those of us who like walking a lot rely on quality socks and footwear to avoid tired feet. Something that you take for granted until your feet begin falling asleep, or aching. And when that happens, you yearn for the moment you can kick off your shoes and have a break.
Not a problem in these shoes though. And I’m firmly blaming the memory foam insole on this energetic comfort factor that I was getting. And I wasn’t even close to wearing the shoes in yet.
But it wasn’t just the feel of the Skechers Oak Canyon Walking Trainers that I liked. They’re dark brown, flashed with black and bits of orange – and they look nice. They’re subtle, and sit well at the bottom of a pair of jeans (as I was wearing), but would work with walking trousers, waterproofs, or shorts.
With a small, soily slope to contend with to get off the canalside, and a longer cobbled hill to walk down before my final leg of this short walk – these shoes were put through a little bit of everything in such a short space of time, but they did a great job.
It’s also worth noting that I walked for over 45 minutes after I got off the train at the other end, and stood for a couple of hours watching a football match in the Skechers Oak Canyon’s. And, by the time I got home late that evening, my feet felt good. I do this same journey regularly in either sports trainers or fashion trainers (depending on the weather) and at the end of the day, I’m usually looking forward to taking my shoes off.
There’s something good about these walking trainers.
The verdict
I think it’s safe to say that I really liked my first outing in the Skechers Oak Canyon. The comfort and the allowance of letting my feet breathe over a fair distance were apparent from the start, and in every mile I covered. Further to that, they’re strong and will survive lots of miles.
I’ve worn them a fair few times since, and they’ll be a much-welcomed option to my walking footwear attire on anything that doesn’t involve mud. Despite being waterproof, I don’t think they’d be the most suitable pair of shoes for boggy underfoot walking. But that’s the only time I wouldn’t want to put them on.
I’ve taken to them, and I’ll be getting my full usage quota out of them. A very nice, good-looking pair of comfortable walking trainers. My only question…WHY haven’t I switched on to Skechers much sooner?
Skechers Oak Canyon are £49, and are available to buy from Wynsors.
