I knew it would be difficult to replace my favorite boots. My experience with Teva's Riva Peaks proved the validity of my fears: there were blisters on top of blisters. Even after several shorter trips to break them in, and multiple blister busting efforts, the puss persisted. I soon found the source of all my pain in a ginormous protruding seam aimed squarely at mid heel. Yikes! I have owned these for less than 1 year, the toe seams and rubber are wearing quickly. That

September, 2015 I hiked the Oregon Coast Trail. Before this trip, my experience with trekking poles was with cumbersome, unreliable, heavy and seemingly unnecessary poles. However, the BD Distance Z poles were the poles that I relied on to drag my ass through hundreds of miles of coastal sand and over steep coastal heads. Simply put, these were my favorite piece of gear for that trip and completely necessary. Lightweight, compact, comfortable, a reliable design, a blessin