Columbia Shasta Ridge

Summary

Nice looking and durable but terribly uncomfortable seams.

Local retailer had these on sale for $28, wanted so bad to buy a pair. They look really sharp and Columbia stuff is made to last so I was psyched, but apparently there was a reason they were trying to dump these at such a low price.  But when I tried them on I discovered they have very uncomfortable protruding seams on the underside of the tongue.

I tried to adjust the tongue and tweak the fit a bunch of times, wearing them laced up with a tight fit first and then a loser fit to see if I could get rid of the irritating seams. I walked around the store in them several times hoping to achieve a comfortable fit but to no avail. Tried up-sizing a half size but that didn't help either — same exact irritation with the 2nd pair.

Every time I tried them on the rough seam section rubbed the top of my foot, and I could tell it would be really irritating over time. Both left and right shoes had the exact same problem too, so I don't think it was coincidence.

Hated to pass up such a good price, but hard to put a price on blistered feet.