This article is the first part of a five article series designed to educate the new members in our Greek system. To suggest topics, please shoot me an email. This week’s topic is boat shoes.Boat shoes are a staple among fraternity men for a number of obvious reasons.
Boat shoes are a staple among
fraternity men for a number of obvious reasons. Our fathers wore them in the 80s, boats are super dope and the shoes are
the perfect combination of wealthy- but-I-don’t-care-what-I-look-like and I-want-to-look-good-but-not-too-good. This
must be why I own seven pairs. One for
each day of the week, I guess.
When you buy a new pair of boat
shoes, regardless if it is your first pair or 15th pair, you
are going to go through a phase of hazing, where they will rub the skin right
off of your feet in a few places. My
advice to deal with this is very simple. Do nothing. It is inevitable and you need to let your feet toughen up. Some brands are worse
than others. Sebago is, easily, the worst, but after the initial break in
period, they are the most comfortable pair I own.
I have heard all types of schemes to soften
up your new boat shoes to fit easier and after trying a few, I have to debunk
them all. Wearing your shoes in the rain
the first time really only makes them stiffer, heating them up in the oven is
going to burn your house down and oiling them will only discolor them. They are truly just like your old baseball
glove, the more you play with them, the softer they get.
Maintaining boat shoes is really
easy, and I judge everyone with really dirty boat shoes. Magic erase the sole and wipe down the
leather with a damp paper towel. I have
polished pairs with shoe polish before, but any of the generic leather care
products that are next to the register at shoe stores will do just fine. Changing laces on these bad boys is very
difficult. I’ve done it before. Use a
paper clip and I have found that Paracord works best for replacement
laces.
The outside of the shoes are easy to deal
with, but every true frat star refrains from wearing socks (rawdogging) any
time the weather is acceptably warm enough. This can lead to a terrible stench. Once again, I would like to offer some advice. The best way to fight the smell is to keep
them as dry as possible and Lysol the crap out of them when you take them off
for bed. It would help to wear those
goofy loafer socks or to switch out for another pair half way through the
day. Realistically, they are going to
smell a little so don’t take your shoes off in confined public spaces.
As soon as you break in your first
pair, it becomes really obvious why they are so popular among the bros. They are super comfortable and they reduce
the need to wear socks (less socks means less laundry). You can even play golf in these bad
boys. PGA tour pro, Freddy Couples, was
famous for wearing boat shoes on the course. They dress up with some khakis and they dress down to sweat pants. They are a timeless classic and I guarantee
that they are worth the $60.
