Merrell Men's Moab Ventilator Hiking Shoes - Breathable & Durable Trail Shoes for Outdoor Adventures, Hiking, and Backpacking

I have very flat feet with moderate pronation and outward deviating great toes. Because of this I have problems with painful callouses on the great toes that rub up against any shoe. Merrell Moab Ventilator was my fourth purchase in the pursuit of a shoe that I could use for hiking on the rugged trails around Lake Mead near Las Vegas, Nevada. All of the others failed to give me any relief and even on short walks with my dogs, my great toe callous was sore and the balls of the feet hurt. A guy in a sporting goods store suggested that I try Merrell, and I said "why not," I have tried everything else. To compensate for my toe problem, I ordered a size 1/2 larger than usual and the widest offered. Much to my surprise and relief, the Merrell fit much better than the others. The key factor was the heal cushion that supported the heel strike and had a slight angulation that helped to compensate for the pronation issue and took the pressure off the great toe callous. I went back to my other shoes and each time my feet hurt after only a short walk, I tried the Merrell on 3 to 8 mile desert hikes and found that I ended the hike with "happy feet." Similar hikes in the other shoes that I had tried had left me with bruising and bleeding under the callous. Not so with the Merrell. The Merrell has Vibram soles and the mesh tops allow for real ventilation and cooling of the feet on hot desert hikes. The shoes allowed good traction when scrambling over rocks. The tongue padding was just right, not too thick to cause irritation and not too thin as to cause a band sensation across the top of the foot. The shoe sizes appear to be standard, but as noted above, I needed extra room and size to accommodate my foot abnormality. I have had the present shoes for four months and they are still performing. Once, in the dark I mistakenly put on a pair of the other shoes that I have and almost immediately I knew that I had chosen the wrong shoes. Quickly went back and got my Merrells.The only issue I do have with the shoe is that the Vibram sole is a bit thin for hiking in the rocky desert and I wished that the sole was a little thicker to protect the bottom of my feet. No problem, I inserted a pair of Dr. Scholl's Active Series inserts (that I had previously purchased to compensate for the faults of the other shoe brands; but did not help) and I have never looked back. Completed a 10 mile hike without problems.I have also tried Hi-tec and Keen, all good shoes, but they did not work for my particular problems. Those with normal feet will likely find these shoes meet their needs.This shoe meets my special needs. I am sure that people with "normal feet" will like this shoe as well. For regular walking on smooth surfaces, no inserts needed. I will be ordering two more pair of these shoes to have on hand in case the model is discontinued.