I have loved Salomon boots for many years. My feet always feel comfortable in these boots. But since purchasing this last boot, I have two areas of dissatisfaction. After about 6 months of regular use, my feet get very wet when I walk on a wet field. In short, they are no longer waterproof. I have a pair of old Salomon boots that are over 10 years old and are drier than these new ones in the same wet field. Also, the laces appear to contain something akin to nylon and untie easily even when I double or triple knot them. I even tried lacing them differently and they still came undone. I would definitely replace these laces if I was going to be serious about climbing or cross country otherwise you might be stopping every 15 minutes to re-tie one of your boots. My feet are very comfortable in these boots and they offer great support, but the laces have to go and they don't work in wet terrain.