Monthly Archives: December 2011

Not All Harness Boots Are the Same

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A new pair of Double H Harness boots came into my life recently. These boots are pictured here on the right, next to a pair of favorite Chippewa Harness boots.

While both manufacturers make the boots in the USA, that is about the end of what they have in common (besides general design).

What are the differences that would affect a purchase choice?

First, the overall height. The Double H boots are stated at 10 inches while the Chips are 12″.

Next, the Double H boot shafts are really narrow. I mean “squeeze-on/pull-hard” narrow. You really must have excellent flexibility in the ankle to point the toes and foot into the boot and you have to pull real hard to get them on. Once the boots are on, they fit fine, although you can feel the Double H boot shafts rubbing the lower legs. They are that tight.

Next, Double H boots are unlined, while the Chippewa Harness boots have a leather lining. That lining makes the boots much more comfortable, durable, and solid.

Finally, the soles are different. The Double H boots have a solid rubber sole, but they are not Vibram soles — the best in the industry — which Chippewa boots have applied at the factory.

While Double H harness boots are less expensive, the old adage, “you get what you pay for” clearly applies. Double H takes shortcuts in manufacture. The shorter height and the narrower shaft means less leather. The lack of a leather lining and narrow circumference of the boot shaft makes them much less comfortable.

In my opinion, Double H boots are not what they used to be. Chippewa has maintained much better standards in boot manufacture.

I’m not a paid spokes-bootman. I just relate what I feel and observe. I still feel that boots made in the USA are far superior to similar-style boots made in China, such as those under the Harley-Davidson license. H-D does not make those boots, but contracts with a company that engages cheap labor and uses low-quality materials.

Here is a video that I made where I describe the differences of three brands of harness boots — Chippewa, Boulet, and Double H. You can see what I am talking about in the vid. Enjoy!

Life is short: wear quality boots, and know what you’re getting.

Stretching Before Riding

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Man, it’s hell getting old.

Saturday was bright and sunny, though rather cold. It was in the low 40s (F — 5.5C) on Saturday afternoon when I decided to leather up and ride my Harley to run some errands. I want to ride when I can, before the crap is spread on the roads when they may get icy.

Anyway, I checked the bike over for safety issues as I always do, mounted and took off.

Each time I mount and dismount my Harley, I have to lift my leg rather high to get on the bike and off of it. Honestly, the height of my motorcycle’s seat has always been difficult for me to get over, especially since I cannot swing my leg over the back of the seat since the Tourpak and back rest is in the way.

During my day’s errands, I stopped at various places along the way — a senior pal’s to check on her recovery from surgery, another senior friend who needed a light repair job done in her kitchen, and my Harley dealership to pick up a part.

Unfortunately, I must have swung my leg in the wrong direction and strained a muscle in my lower back at one of the times that I mounted or dismounted the bike. I woke yesterday morning barely able to move. I managed to get up, get dressed, and go with my partner to do our weekly grocery shopping. That was not much fun, as I was in pain and his temper was brittle.

We made it home and I took the rest of the day off. Well, I cooked a batch of soup and pasta sauce, but for me, that’s essentially doing nothing.

I will not take drugs except over-the-counter pain relievers. My partner gave me a massage and we sat in our hot tub for a while. Went to bed early… I sure hope this resolves by itself. I hate going to doctors, especially for something for which they can’t do much.

I learned a lesson: I need to stretch before I get on my bike each time I prepare to ride it. Stretching perhaps could have prevented the strain that occurred.

Life is short: relent to aging; I ain’t gettin’ any younger.

Who May Legally Ride a Police Motorcycle

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I read an interesting internet search that landed a visitor to this blog (but on a page unrelated to this question…). The question was, “is it legal to ride a police motorcycle if your not a cop?”

Good question! And the answer is….

Yes! It IS legal to ride a police motorcycle if you are not a sworn peace officer provided the motorcycle is not equipped with working lights, sirens, or has official markings on it such as the name of a law enforcement agency or the words “police” or “sheriff.” (I guess I should add: don’t wear a law enforcement replica uniform while riding it, either.)

I have several friends who are not sworn law enforcement officers and who have purchased used police Harleys and ride them. When the motorcycle was sold or surplussed by the owning police agency, all markings were removed, along with the equipment (flashing lights, siren, radio, and so forth.) The running lights on the front of the bike were changed to clear lenses (instead of one having a blue lens and one having a red lens). The electronics were changed to make those lights stay on, rather than alternate to appear as if they were flashing. All LED lights along the sides and back of the bike that would flash when activated by a cop were also removed. Essentially, they returned the bike to look like its civilian cousins.

Funny, a while back someone in my motorcycle club who is part of a close clique who talk about me behind my back found an ad on an internet auction site that was offering a used Police Kawasaki that was the same make and model used in the TV show, “CHiPs.” He sent me the link with the implied suggestion that since I own a CHP replica uniform, that perhaps I would like the bike to go with it. Nope; I have one motorcycle, and I’m not into maintaining an old bike. Plus, I don’t have anywhere to keep it. This incident shows, in a way, what straight guys think about gay guys who like to wear replica uniforms from time to time. They just can’t figure us out.

Anyway, back to the topic. My Harley Road King is almost exactly the same as some police motorcycles, but it does not have the equipment that cops have on theirs. My buddys’ police Road King motorcycles look similar.

What makes a police motorcycle different is the equipment added on to it (lights, siren, radio), its markings, and (for a few model years), the engine size. Police Harleys had a 103cu engine (1688cc) since 2007, while other Harleys of that class didn’t get the 103cu engine as standard until the 2012 model year. There are also a few adjustments made to how the engine and transmission operates and the size of the tires, but those changes are not a big deal.

To summarize, it is legal to ride a police motorcycle if you are not a cop provided you do not try to impersonate one by wearing a replica uniform that looks like a police uniform while riding the bike (i.e., implying you are a cop), and that the official markings and police equipment are removed from the bike. Just like it is legal for a guy who is not a cop to wear police motorboots.

Good question! Too bad you landed on my blog post about the legality of wearing a replica cop uniform on Halloween! LOL!

Life is short: ride!

Cowboy Boots In Style for Men?

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This kind of stuff makes me nuts sometimes, but when someone uses a search engine to look for an answer to, “are cowboy boots in style 2011 for men?” and lands visitors to this blog… I just have to comment.

Cowboy boots are timeless. They are in style all the time, year after year, summer, fall, winter, spring… any time of year in any year. If you have to wonder if boots are in style for men in any particular year, then in my opinion — you obsess too much.

Just put your boots on, stand tall, walk confidently, and smile.

If you cannot do that, or if you have to wonder and worry if what you are wearing on your feet is in style or not, then just put on a pair of sneakers and sell any boots your own on eBay. By thinking that is a serious question and worrying about whether cowboy boots are in style or not, then in my opinion, you have lost any authorization to wear boots. Turn ’em in, mister. Men who wear boots are confident, relaxed, and secure. They could give a shit about what’s in style.

End-of-story; end-of-rant.

Life is short: wear boots and tell the style-worriers to take a hike (in sneakers).

Not Going to the Wedding Reception

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One of my nieces is getting married to a sweet guy. I am delighted for them. They have been dating since high school and throughout their college years. After college, they went their separate ways, but reunited a couple years ago when their respective jobs placed them back in the same town, and realized that their love for each other was meant to be. Now they plan to take the next step and get married.

The wedding invitation arrived the other day. I looked at it, sighed, and told my partner….

Yep, another family wedding. It will be good to have a positive reason for all of us to get together. But I don’t want to go to the reception.

My partner understands. He knows that I just can’t stand dressing up and going to wedding receptions. I can’t dance and hate to be in a situation to turn down requests to dance. I also don’t drink alcohol, which flows freely at these events. Plus, the wedding is in one town, and the reception is 30 miles away in another, and will run late into the night. Nope, I just don’t want to go.

This is a difficult conundrum for me. Most people look forward to weddings as a reason to dress up and call it fun to drink, dance, and socialize like that. I never got those genes. Blecchhh…

Not that I don’t love my family. I do, very much. I just don’t like wedding receptions.

So as I have done before, I will show up for the church service and say hello to the family before the service. Then after the service is over, I will go home while the others take off for the reception.

Fortunately, some of my out-of-town family will arrive a few days early, so I will visit with them casually in the days ahead. I will bring my gift to my niece beforehand, as well. I will let them know that I will not attend the reception. They would prefer that I suck it up and go, but I know in my heart that I’ll be miserable and do not want to be in that situation. I’m no fun when I feel that way.

This is a bit of a bust of another gay stereotype. Many think that all gay men love weddings. I’m not one of them.

Life is short: draw your bounds and stick to ’em.

Comfort Rating of Boots

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Those who have studied my cowboy boot collection or my motorcycle boot collection have noticed that I rate each pair of boots for their comfort (C), look/appearance (L), and for cowboy boots, how they sound (S).

Recently, I received an email about my “C” — comfort — rating. The question was:

I wanted to know about the C rating you have. When a boot has a low C rating, what makes them hard to wear for long periods? What gets uncomfortable about the boot? Is it they are too stiff? Too hard on the bottom of your feet? The insides are too rough (unfinished leather)? Just curious about your rating system as I am looking for comfortable boots that can be worn for a while without the torture!

My response:

Thanks for your message! I appreciate the inquiry.

When I give a pair of boots a lower comfort rating, I am expressing an opinion about the overall comfort of the boots when I have worn them after they are well broken in.

Some boots are my size, but still do not fit well. Some of the more uncomfortable boots that I own are used boots that I bought on eBay. Even though the boots were my size, they still did not fit right.

One would think that used boots would be comfortable, because they are broken in. However, I have learned that boots conform to the original wearer’s feet and legs, and do not change when someone else puts them on. So if the first guy who broke them in made the footbed conform in a particular way to his foot, it could cause my foot to ache because the dimensions of my foot are different from his. If that happens, then I give the boots a lower comfort rating. Or, some old boots have narrower boot shafts than I require, so the boots hurt my legs by squeezing them.

New boots generally have a higher comfort rating. Particularly, boot makers are learning to install comfortable insoles and more flexible outsoles, which add to the overall comfort when the boots are worn for a long time. Also, some of my boots are custom made, and therefore they should be more comfortable because they are made to my size requirements. This is especially true for tall boots that I own, like those made by Wesco and Dehner.

Overall, the predominant reason that I may rate a pair of boots lower on my comfort scale is that the footbed is hard, inflexible, and there is not enough room inside the boot to install a gel insole. A good gel insole will make the bottom of my feet comfortable, but pushes the tops of my feet against the inside of the boot foot — and thus makes the boots uncomfortable again. This happens mostly with some low-end commercial boot labels like Cowtown, for example. (But it also happens to me with
higher-end commercial boots made by Sendra, which makes a smaller-than-average area for the foot to fit into.)

Again, the comfort ratings are my personal opinions about boots that I own. I know guys who swear by the comfort of some brands of boots that have been uncomfortable to me, and vice-versa. It is a personal thing, and quite dependent on your own feet (arches, metatarsals, bunions, etc.)

So that’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.

Life is short: wear comfortable boots!