Salomon S-Lab Gaiters

Product Review.

I bought a pair of these the day before I flew out for my race since I could only find one of the gaiters that I usually use. The Salomon are around $25 and are sized in S/M/L. They are a stylish black Lycra with a no nonsense type Velcro Closer. They fit with a strap that wraps under the foot and ideally, this straps sits in place in the bridge found between the heel and forefoot of most shoes. You then cup the heel of the gaiter around the bottom of the shoe, stretch the two sides over the lacing (make sure that your laces are tucked down, or in the lace garage if you are wearing Salomons) and finally do up the velcro--Simple! The S-Labs logo should be on the outside of the foot, since they are L/R specific.

I was wearing a pair of Brooks Cascadia 4's and this shoe does not have a bridge way between the fore and heel of the shoe. Therefore I needed to wedge the foot strap between two of the lugs of the soles tread. Luckily the tread's lugs are quite chunky and I was able to fit the strap well in there. I did worry that this will contribute to premature wear of the gaiter's foot strap, but it is fairly beefy so I'm sure that it will last. The problem that I had during the race was that gravel did tend to get stuck under the strap and one gaiter did come off at one point.

Overall during the race, the gaiters served their purpose and kept harmful dirt and debris out of the shoe. As we know, it is this type of material that can contribute to blisters and hot spots. The material of the gaiters is very stretchy and forms a tight and secure fit around the top of the foot, protecting not only the foot, but the shoe and laces as well. A bonus of wearing them is that you dont get burrs stuck in your laces.

Pros:

• Easy to put on and take off
• Small, all in one Stylish package
• Quality materials
  

Cons:

• May not fit every type of shoe.
• Velcro sticks to other things like socks, grass, small animals.