Vasque sent a pair of the new Inhaler GTX mid height boots over for a review. I’ve been wearing these boots nearly every day for the past two months and I‘m pretty impressed. I have owned three or four pairs of Vasque boots over the past fifteen or so years and have never been disappointed with how tough and comfortable Vasque footwear is.
The Inhalers are a lightweight boot and work great for hiking or backpacking. My pair weighs in at just less than 34 ounces. Dropping weight on footwear offers a big advantage. Numerous sources on the internet state that losing 1 pound of weight on footwear is equal to dropping 5 to 8 pounds from your pack. This may not seem realistic but if you have ever run with ankle weights or trudged through sticky mud, I‘m sure you will agree.
The Inhalers use a Vibram Pneumatic outsole that provides good traction. An athletic EVA mid sole provides good cushion and gives the boots a soft feel on hard surfaces. Their insole is pretty unique. It’s perforated with square holes, which I assume both lightens it up a bit and provides some airflow under the feet. I wore the Inhalers with the provided insole quite a bit and had no problems. I‘m used to more arch support and chose to swap out the standard insoles for that reason. This isn‘t really a problem with the Inhalers but is more of a personal preference on my part.
I wear size 10.5 to 11 shoes, and the 10.5 Inhalers fit me great. The width is good and I have plenty of room for my toes. The only issue regarding fit was created by yours truly. I tend to lace my boots very tight. My wife has even made comment about it to me. The material of the Inhalers is supple enough that by lacing the boots so tightly, too much pressure was placed on the top of my foot. To solve the issue, I just wrapped the laces around themselves once just below the hooks on the upper part of the boot. This twist allowed me to tighten the upper part of the boot while leaving the foot box looser.
Gore-Tex is used in the Inhaler GTX to keep moisture out of the boots. Moisture is your enemy while hiking and moisture in your footwear is a quick way to get blisters. Behaving just like a kid, I splashed around in plenty of mud holes, walked through wet grass, and waded through shallow creeks. My feet stayed completely dry while I had a good time.
The Vasque Inhaler is available for men and women and comes in a couple colors. A low version with and without Gore-Tex is available while the mid version is offered only with Gore-Tex. MSRP on the Inhalers ranges from $119.99 to $159.99, depending on the model you choose. For more information on the Vasque Inhaler collection, check out www.vasque.com.
– Mark