Interesting tale of boots. I used to fight wildland fires, and it was an existential need for us to have damn good boots. We literally walked on red hot coals much of the day. However, we were paid ridiculously low wages working for a gyppo logging contractor, so I copped a used pair of excellent boots for $2 at a thrift store that didn't fit well, but checked all the other boxes and protected me from the hazards of wildfire.

However, after a weekend fighting a raging conflagration, I had bleeding wounds on my heels the width of a soda can and could barely walk. Took more than a month to recover, quit that shitty job (before it killed me like it did several others I worked with that summer), and threw those boots in the trash.

Don't cheap out on boots is the takeaway.

Thanks!