I had mistakenly purchased this boot in a wide back in October after reading some reviews about width problems. I also got the same size as my running shoe, a sometimes 1/2 size larger than my usual shoe size depending on the shoe. Thanks Zappos for putting up with numerous returns of many different boots after that. I had wondered if Zappos was taking bets on whether I would ever keep a pair! And my UPS guy was shaking his head with all of the back & forth! I eventually wound up with this boot again in black, in the same size but in a regular width. Thank goodness I did. I have worn it all winter long with a gel insert for additional arch support and slightly better comfort as I am a real city walker. This is a fantastic boot! I wore it almost every day this past winter, dressed down and up. Although initially I really hated to spend this kind of money on a boot, I'm extremely glad that I did. This boot got me through some rough winter weather: navigating through salt, snow mounds, icy sidewalks, driving rain, deep puddles, you name it. The tread is fantastic - it really is skid proof. Best part, after the no-falling down part, is the way they feel. And they are really warm and waterproof. I just wish that the style had a little more pizazz, but I cannot complain at all about the overall total comfort. I cleaned them after they got muddy and polished them to try to erase a sadly earned gougy kind of scuff mark across the toe. It pretty much disappeared (you would have to look really hard to see it!) and I have to say that the boots look like new again. Even better because they are not stiff looking. I will eventually have to get the heels replaced, a minor thing considering how many miles I put on them, and I just saw another review that mentioned getting the boots waterproofed after a winter season (hmm, no one mentioned that before!). Glad to see that I am not the only one who meticulously reads all of the reviews before investing in a pair of boots with this kind of price tag! Bottom line, I would highly recommend this boot. It is as versatile as everyone says and it is a classic looking boot that is not going to go out of style tomorrow. With regard to the price, I doubt that I will be purchasing another pair of winter boots for a long while, so the purchase will likely turn out to be a very cost effective one. Also, I did not mind the slight bagginess to the calf area as I generally wore them with
pants. When I did wear them with black tights and a shortish skirt, I thought that they looked pretty great too. I see that the brown is on sale now and am actually considering a second pair in brown.
