After several months of civil and professional use we offer you a general review of the boots which have become the equipment of our team in arid terrains or terrains with low probability of rain: The Lowa Desert Elite boots, a product we already had the chance to take a look at on the IWA 2010 and which one year later has not let down our expectations. The boots used by our team are from an English distributor of Lowa, Intelligent Armour Limited where you can buy them with a full guaranty.

The German company Lowa is specialized in footwear designed for military and police use. They also offer a wide range of civil products. The boot is designed for activities of the British Army in arid terrains, an experience helping to improve the product to unexpected limits as you can see later on. They have designed a product of just 680 grams per boot (size 42) that is very safe in all aspects.

Designed by following British standards for such a purpose, the shank is shorter than the one of a regular military boot (8 holes instead of 10). Its design and manufacturing are based on combining the characteristics of boots for arid terrain with the ones of trekking boots so that it can be used as well in sandy or earthy terrains as in alpine terrains (granite, stone, etc.)

Its coloring is similar to other products for arid terrain of the competitors (Haix, Magnum, Bates, etc.). The boot is made of rough cowhide with breathable mesh applications on the sides (1) and in the upper part of the shank (2) which are increasing comfort and ventilation. Another feature of the boot is the additional leather layer on the front (3) with a lighter color avoiding damages of skin and tongue caused by the friction of lacing them up.

Let´s continue with the description of the boots: The tongue is made of the same leather used for the whole boot, except for the part in the center which is made of the same breathable mesh mentioned before and the whole tongue is padded. It is incredibly adaptable to the foot and is sewn by a zig-zag seam to the rest of the boot and by the thin leather layer that the boot also protects from damages caused by the rubbing of the laces. It is true that in boots like those from Magnum this type of tongue could cause damage if the leather that connects the tongue on both sides with the boots´ shank is not folded the right way because in that case it would be on the boots’ inside. But in the case of Lowa Desert Elite boots the leather folds towards the outside so that you don´t even notice that it´s actually there. Fact is that once you lace up those boots, they fit like a second skin. Usually the tongue doesn´t have much importance to the manufacturers, but it´s one of the most important parts of every boot, even more important than the actual sole. Interesting is that the manufacturing date of the boot is perforated on the upper part of the tongue (4).

The boot has eight metallic eyelets (the upper ones are opened and the lower ones are closed) to adjust the laces that have a dark earthy color. The fourth eyelet (5), if we start to count from the upper part of the shank, is used for blocking the laces. The mountain enthusiasts will know, that this allows that the laces offer certain tightness or clamping in the upper and lower part of the boot. That is a function that doesn´t find a lot of use in the everyday life but which can make a huge difference between complete comfort and never ending suffering in every kind of work or game.

On the back of the boot (6), just above the heel where the Achilles tendon is located, you will find another part of breathable mash that allows flexion in this zone. This way, the boot allows the foot to move in a natural way reducing muscle fatigue. That is a small detail that shows the difference between this boot and others that are still having the traditional structure with stiff shank.

On the front, which corresponds to what we commonly call the cap of the boot, we find a durable rubber toe cap (7) covering the boot for its higher protection. In the original version this cap was made out of a material that absorbs certain oils from military vehicles which led to constant blacking and that is why they changed it into the actual easy to clean and highly shock and rub-off resistant model.

We have reached the point in which Lowa puts a lot of emphasis in the promotion of this product: the insole. As a part of a new generation of products, the new insoles are made of flexible EVA material. They adapt themselves completely to every foot and we can observe their twofold structure:
- The upper side is made in a way that prevents the abrasion of thin as well as thick socks. It is micro-perforated to let the foot’s sweat escape to the lower part of the insole.
- The lower part consists of little quadrilateral holes forming an air chamber which improves the absorption of impacts, falls and irregularities of the terrain and which prevents the accumulation of lots of sweat in contact with the foot´s sole.
Its construction, called SPS (Supination Pronation System), consists in integrating harder zones into it in order to make the foot tread firmly and correctly (we can confirm this…).

The functionality of the sole can’t be understood without knowing the structure of the insole, because, as we have already seen, their functionality is mutual. The sole Vibram MVS Trekking is exclusively produced for Lowa and has got various hard sections. Though it is higher to offer more protection, the profundity and disposition of its heel is as it is usual for boots used to carry heavy loads (we can ensure you, that it is suited perfectly for that), but it has the advantage of also without baggage possessing ideal traction and braking properties thanks to the design of its heels. Its tread is an ideally mixed compromise for long marches through earthy and stony terrain, because of the rounded heel cushions for a more natural step. Though the sides of the heel do not extend to the outside, as it occurs on shoes specialized for the mountains, the stability is good. Because there are no metal filaments in its structure, we are able to pass the security checks on airports without problems.

In conclusion, after having tried several models and brands on our journey in the countryside, we are able to say that they are the most resistant and comfortable boots which have fallen in our hands. Much more than the Amazon 4 or 5, or the Spider of Magnum, Bates or the new boots of the Spanish Army’s equipment. All of these are much weaker in every manner of speaking, because of their lightness. They are not suitable for people who care about their feet.

English Review
Lowa´s Factory