Written by: XEONIQ [ Instagram | Tumblr ]
Contents
1. Introduction
The Under Armour Infil Hike GORE-TEX is a water-resistant boot that was released a few years ago, having gone through two iterations. With so many footwear products in the urban techwear market lacking in performance (despite sometimes being priced much higher than your typical outdoors shoe), I thought it would be useful to highlight an actual high-performance option. The Infil is a product you can buy brand new today that utilizes high end materials and construction methods to create a lightweight and heavily water-resistant boot. The newest generation boot is still available in limited sizes from Under Armour directly, which is where I purchased my pair for $AUD120 on sale, or from third party outdoors and tactical retailers.
1.1 Preface on Urban Techwear Footwear Offerings in the Market
The main idea of techwear is to style casual, urban-appropriate outfits that provide more performance in terms of weather-resistance, stretch, durability, and other qualities than your standard t-shirt and jeans would. While one could go to their nearest outdoor and camping store and leave in a full outfit that both out-performs a high end techwear brand outfit by a large margin for a fraction of the cost, it would most likely look extremely out of place in an urban setting. Further it would probably be quite noisy as most outdoors gear prioritizes weather-resistance above social utility factors such as quietness. As such, most urban techwear enthusiasts balance their priorities based on their use case, the demands of a typically urban environment and their casual fashion preferences.
While a number of designer fashion, streetwear and techwear-marketed brands have been providing an ample supply of membrane shells and DWR-coated stretch pants for urban use, footwear in the market has had a relatively poor offering of performance, casual products made available. In fact, popular “techwear” shoe collaborations such as NikeLab x ACRNM and Salomon x BBS11 often perform far worse than your typical sports sneaker: where one would not being able to run or train in them, and even when they are offered in water-resistant fabrics the design is so compromised that it will leak through in heavy rain. The market is unfortunately riddled with gaudy, low-performance and artificially high priced sneakers touting themselves as futuristic while being less robust or athletically versatile than a pair of Nike Huaraches (which were designed in 1991) from Footlocker. This hype model leads to a lack of innovation for actual urban performance, an over abundance of here one day, gone the next hype shoes, and poor value for customers that wanted the best performance they could buy.
For consumers who want a technical footwear option that can keep up with the rest of their gear, offerings like the Under Armour Infil Hike GORE-TEX are a good alternative. Their all-black, modern aesthetic combined with their high-performance qualities makes them a rare breed in the techwear footwear market space, and also more attractive as an option to pair with minimal urban technical outfits where loud, hype sneakers look decidedly out of place. Sharing information among enthusiasts while supporting the manufacturers who produce high-performance, urban sneakers and boots in this niche market is important to ensure further supply of new models.
2. Performance Specifications
Under Armour offers the following performance specifications and quality claims:
- Mixed material leather and synthetic upper
- GORE-TEXĀ® membrane for water-resistance
- Anafoamā¢ base – a molded foam upper with mesh interfacing to provide a close fit
- Rubber toe caps and heels for durability and scratch resistance
- TPU chassis and internal wishbone plate for increased support and rigidity
- CupronĀ® Anti-Fungal Pro insoles – these insoles contain fibers that kill 99.9% of fungus and bacteria to reduce odor and possible infections such as Tinea Pedis (Athlete’s Foot)
- VibramĀ® outsole using MegaGrip rubber compound for increased traction
- Speed lace hook system
- Weight: 544 grams / 19.2 oz.
- Height: 17.5 cm / 6.89″Ā
3. Design Features and Usage Impressions
Under Armour is a brand few would look to for urban techwear, myself included. While many of their products utilise technical fabrics, both third party and their own proprietary blends, the designs themselves are often heavily branded and patterned in a way that most would consider for “gym-use” only. However, a couple years ago, the brand released a line of black urban footwear for a variety of use cases which included the Speedfit, the Verge 2.0 GTX, a range of military use boots such as the Jungle Rat, and the Infil GTX, which was also available in 10″ Ops version.
First impressions on handling the boot were positive. The construction and mixed materials feel extremely well built. If you have been a long term Nike fan like I have, you would have noticed the steady decline in the quality of their footwear products, even the more premium priced models. Handling these gives an impression of quality, heft and craftsmanship. You won’t find glue marks, cheap laces, flimsy uppers or any of the other hallmarks of mainstream sneakers that we have come to expect lately. There is nothing more disappointing than paying several hundred dollars for shoes that feel worth less than $50 in hand. I can say with confidence that this is not the case with the Infil Hike GORE-TEX. Under Armour has not skimped out on materials or construction quality with this boot and it feels like a premium, high performance product in hand.
The leather used is matte and rugged and pairs well with the textured Anafoam outer. When sized right, Anafoam grips your foot satisfyingly and with little to no gaps with the boot. While the Infil is a bulky 7″ boot, it does not present anywhere near as big as a typical modern tactical boot such as the Under Armour Stellar. Large tactical boots are often so bulky that they will stand out in casual outfits to the point where I’d consider them unwearable in urban environments. The Infil GTX is small enough on foot that this isn’t an issue, but one does need to ensure they are wearing wider pants as skinny fit or ultra-tapered will most likely not pair well with this boot.
The supplied laces work well in the speed lacing system and have enough friction to keep tied up tight for the entire day. Laces that are too smooth can easily come undone over time and this was a problem I had with the Under Armour Speedfit, needing to double knot them to keep the laces secure. Asymmetrical back straps assist with pulling the boot on and together with the speed lacing system, this makes putting the boot on very fast and convenient.
The VibramĀ® MegaGrip rubber used in combination with an aggressive sole design provides substantial traction for wet cement and asphalt. This is the opposite of my Nike NSW SFB 6″ which uses very hard, low grip rubber and is notoriously treacherous in the wet. I never have had grip issues once with the Infil GTX while commuting and I was pleasantly surprised that despite the high traction rubber, which typically means soft with a short lifespan, the sole has not worn down significantly in five months.
The reason most people will be interested in this boot is its wet weather performance. Water-resistance is so high on the Infil GTX you can consider it to be effectively waterproof. Submerging it up to the tongue in water will not result in leaks and by now GORE-TEXĀ® has cemented its membrane technology as a proven performer in the wet. One does need to exercise common sense however and ensure coverage over your ankle with an appropriate wet-weather trouser to ensure you stay dry while commuting long stretches in the rain.
4. Issues and Concerns
4.1 The coating on the speed lace lugs is not anodized and may strip off
The quick lace system on the Infils comes in black, but rather than being anodized it is coated with a rubberized paint. After just a few wears, abrasion on several of the lugs had stripped some of that coating off. This is the one quality defect I have found on these boots thus far and is something to be aware of. As the Infil is almost entirely black, the polished metal lugs stand out as high contrast. Note: A friend with same model of boots who has worn his pair for even longer than I have has not had this issue. So it could be a quality control problem only affecting some pairs.
4.2 Water can leak in through the top of shoe if you don’t wear appropriate trousers
While these boots are effectively waterproof from the bottom up, you will need appropriate weather-resistant pants that are wide enough to cover the shaft and tongue of the boot. Otherwise, water may seep in from the top and fill the boot. Without a sock-like upper this is going to occur in any waterproof boot with a conventional design; so I would not consider this a defect if you are looking for this style of boot but more something to consider if you wear heavily tapered or cropped pants and want to maintain high level water-resistant for the entire outfit.
4.3 Prominent branding may be an issue for some
While the Infil is almost completely black aside from a small grey GORE-TEX logo on the ankle, a molded embossed text logo “UNDER ARMOUR” wraps around half of the boot. This is quite large and may be off-putting for some. As the boot’s design includes multiple panels and textures, I personally don’t find the embossed text to be too ostentatious.
4.4 Becoming difficult to find in all sizes
I had to purchase these boots from Under Armour’s online store where limited sizes were still available. In some markets you will have to check third party retailers. These are an older model now and their numbers appear to be dwindling. I always prefer to support products that are accessible and not under artificially limited “hype” business models. They provide more value and if the product works well for you, after you’ve used it to the point where it has fallen apart, you can easily just replace the item. Unfortunately most of Under Armour’s all black hiking, military and urban footwear offerings seem to be getting phased out with no new models being introduced. If these boots have an attractive design and value proposition for you, get them while you can.
4.5 Insulating enough to not be viable in the summer
Despite their breathable GORE-TEX membrane and Anafoam uppers, the Infil as a boot is still substantial enough to be insulating. I personally would not wear these shoes in the summer because of heat retention and further I find water-resistance in footwear to be unnecessary when it is 30C / 86F+ out. Instead, I value breathability and quick dry performance in the summer. I found Danner Dry’s membrane system to be more comfortable in the heat and would choose one of their boot if I had to wear a leather-based waterproof boot in the heat.
Each person’s heat tolerance is subjective, so if you are fine with wearing a conventional leather boot in the summer, these will be an even lighter and more breathable alternative.
5. Personal Use Case and Styling
The personal use case for the Under Armour Infil Hike GORE-TEX I have is as a wet-weather boot to be paired with wider fit pants on cooler or cold days. In Shanghai last winter on rainy days these rotated with my Danner 503 Combats. Neither ever soaked through in 2.5+ hours of commuting on foot in the rain. The Infil Hike would also make a great travel boot for colder destinations, providing a light weight, water-resistant and durable all black footwear option that can fulfill multiple roles to save space in your luggage. These would not be my first choice if you were going to be spending most of your day indoors, sedentary or when you are wearing slim fit garments.
Outfit summary:
- ROSEN-X Minerva Overshirt in MZ-1NS
- Custom Holster Bag
- Nike ACG Karst Backpack
- Stone Island Poplin Cotton Cargo Trousers
- Under Armour Infil Hike GORE-TEX
6. Summary
6.1 Pros
- Waterproof when worn with appropriate pants
- All black with a modern technical design
- Extremely robust
- Lightweight for their size
- Less bulky than your typical modern tactical boot (helps with wearing these casually)
- Anafoam base is very comfortable and form fitted
- Included CupronĀ® insoles reduce odors and tinea
6.2 Cons
- Aesthetically, not the most versatile boot for all outfits, so if you like changing your silhouette and style daily and want one boot that will suit most looks, this is most likely not going to work for you
- Slightly insulating and thus not the best summer boot alternative out there
- Prominent Under Armour branding may be a turn off for some
- Becoming harder and harder to find as Under Armour appears to have abandoned their urban technical footwear line
6.3 Verdict
If you are looking for a tough urban technical boot that is practically waterproof, these are great value and utilise high-end textiles and construction methods. The quality and performance of the Under Armour Infil GTX frankly embarrasses more hyped sneaker and boot offerings from techwear brand collaborations. You can still find them brand new in many stores and if you prefer wider fit pants and silhouettes, these will complement many techwear outfits easily.
Ethical Statement: This product was purchased by myself with my own funds and is in no way endorsed or otherwise sponsored by the manufacturer (Under Armour).