Today I was given a pair of Under Armour Speed Freak Boots. To give a slight bit of background, I'm a Danner snob. I've worn Danner Boots (mostly Acadia) for the better part of the past 15 years. I've never owned Under Armor footwear. The only other type of footwear I use at work is black basketball-type shoes when its nice. By the way, I live in Michigan, so I wear my boots a lot!

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I know several other officers who have worn these boots for about 10 months and really like them. The only criticism I've heard is that out of the box they aren't very shiny. In the picture below I shined the boot on the left with Kiwi Parade Wax. Nothing extravagant and it took me literally 1 minute. This wasn't some long drawn out polishing session. I simply included this view so you could see that you can easily throw a higher gloss on if that's your thing....I'm all about looking professional and squared away but I truly have better things to do than buff boots for an extended period.

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When I first put them on I was impressed by how light they are. One thing to know is that I have a relatively flat foot with a non-existent arch. The boots do have generous arch support and I'm not sure how I feel about that yet. I put a Danner Acadia on my left foot and a Speed Freak on my right and I couldn't believe the difference in weight. The one thing I'm not hip on is that on the top of the boot there are a few uneven pressure points. I realize its not fair to judge them yet, and we will see how they feel in a couple of weeks. Overall they are very comfortable, and light. One other point, they seem to run quite true to size. I wear between a 10 1/2 and 11 in pretty much everything. I got an 11 in these and they fit nicely even with thicker winter-type socks.

The boots retail for $175.

I have a pair in multicam, theyre really nice, lots of ankle support, very comfortable, good tread so you dont slip and of course super lightweight. Only bad part is the light weight  tennis shoe like tread/sole does wear out quickly when compared to a durable army combat boot, but then again you could run a marathon or play basketball, soccer, etc... in these and forget youre wearing boots.

I would definitely like a pair of those in Multicam. Sweet.

I think I was there when you got those!  I was the one that commented on your box of gear you were picking up!

The UPS man delivered them.

They're OK.  You won't hate them, you won't overly love them.  Not a bad boot.  

So far, I really can appreciate that it is a good crossover for me. I'm so used to wearing incredibly light tennis shoes at work that when I throw boots on due to in climate weather I tend to feel like I'm wearing anchors. With these, they are light enough its no big deal. The one thing I have noticed is that A) They have to be laced sorta loose, and B) the bottom doesn't flex that much so far. It feels my foot doesn't roll naturally when I walk. Hard to explain. Again, its not a deal breaker, however I want to include everything as to guide others in future purchases.

I think you meant to say " inclement" not "in climate", not being a jerk just being helpful

They do break in over time, after a few hikes and a little yard work around my house my boots feel great, feels like youre wearing sneakers but they have so much more ankle support, very important when youre wearing 50+ lbs of gear, would suck to roll an ankle.

I was issued them one 1/2  years  ago, have worn  everything, from 5.11, bates, Oakley , and was wearing danner acadias for forever , these easily beat  crap out of anyball all competitors. Stay away from the Underarour velsetz they broke after 1 month or patrolling and 1 day at the range.

The one problem I have with them is the lack of proper support under heavy loads.

Generally speaking, the lighter the boot, the lighter the duty it is suitable for. I have destroyed some of the best stuff you can buy in 6 months in Afghanistan. The converse, nike, bates stuff wont even go a full 6 months for me. The old garmonts were great, the new garmonts not so much. In 8 years overseas I have destroyed a lot of shoes and boots but never a pair of danners. Hell I've got a pair of belleville temperate USMC boots with 2 deployments on them. They are some bad mofo's but not very comfortable.

If you're destroying them in less than 6 months your doing it wrong.

I myself am a Danner snob, I prefer Stryker GTXs though, and I love the Speed Freaks. They fit like an athletic shoe and require hardly any break in. I don't use them much though because they aren't very good in cold climates

Yikes! cdjudge was at your house?

How do they wear with jeans?  Ive been looking for a light pair of boots to knock around in jeans with.

i bought a pair of these and wear them with standard BDU's and they fit fine under the pant leg, if thats what you mean. they dont stick out as a combat boot. comfy for 8 hours of work, on and off my feet all day.

i only wish they would have used different lacing eyelets. i like the kind that allow the string to come loose, as opposed to the tennis shoe type that lace up all the way with holes. hope that makes sense.

snip...
How do they wear with jeans?  Ive been looking for a light pair of boots to knock around in jeans with.


The UA speed freeks are fine with straight cut jeans. I just bought a pair for $80+tax from marshall's.
I signed up for the Bataan memorial march next year and I'll be training with these.
So far, the very light freeks have the best uphill traction on dirt trails vs. my old rocky, danner and merrell boots.
The freeks' soft rubber sole provide good protection against sharp rocks too.
Time will tell if the outer toe box can stay intact against rocks.

12/10/13: 4 mile hike, 49lbs, 1100 ft gain
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12/13/13: 4 mile hike, 74lbs, 1100 ft gain
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