The basic eZeefit 2mm ankle bootie. What it lacks in style is soon forgotten as your heels sink into the realm of blister-free nirvana.
Say E Z Fit 10 Xs fast. This, we swear, is your gateway to promoting blister-free touring. Is it the gateway to enlightenment? Not exactly. However, a burning, searing, aching, infected blister (particularly a heel blister) can ruin the day and a trip, let alone prevent one from achieving even lower rungs of the enlightenment hierarchy.
Now, let’s get the spelling squared away (it’s eZeefit). If you are prone to heel blisters while touring, give some eZeefit 2mm ankle booties. Honestly, these little neoprene get-ups seem less bootie and more sock—thus, we referred to them as ankle socks on a recent ski traverse.
What they Are
The eZeefits are 2mm thick neoprene socks that slip on over the toes and snug up over the foot’s ankle-heel zone. Yeah, it’s an ankle bootie. See photo; eZeefits do not cover the toes or any part of the forefoot. The material protects skin from excessive rubbing, which may cause blisters. The interior side, which sits against the skin, consists of a light microfiber.
The eZeefit booties removed—time for a snow-pedicure in the Wind Rivers.
Ground Truthing
On the recommendation of a touring partner, I ordered my first pair of eZeefits about five years ago. In that time, which is a rather long time, I’ve worn eZeefits with near-perfect attendance and have had no heel blisters. In my before-eZeefit-times, in short, I routinely sparred with heel blisters.
I’ve just come off a long ski traverse. Wouldn’t you know it? My feet are dancing and my heels are feeling fine after eight days in ski boots intermixed with roughly two days of walking in sneakers. This is not to say I did not experience some painful blisters on my toes. It is to say that the skin protected by said eZeefits remained unirritated.
Upsides
We’ve sung the praise of blister prevention. Another aspect of the eZeefit magic is its ability to help reduce heel lift. 2mm isn’t a lot of volume, but, in my case, it is enough volume reduction around my entire ankle/heel to help secure my heel in place when the forefoot is snugged down comfortably with a BOA or buckle. If you have “skinny” ankles-heels or your boots run a bit wide in the heel pocket, give the eZeefits a go.
Here’s Kelly Cordes’ take, he too used the ankle booties for this recent ski traverse:
“They work great, make a huge difference for me by reducing foot slop. I’ve got the scrawniest ankles in the universe, even my scar-tissued and fused ‘cankle.’ It sucks because I can never find a boot with snug-enough ankle and heel volume, but so it goes, life is hard, buttercup. Until, behold! Seriously, the eZeefit is the best twenty bucks or whatever I’ve spent. I feel like an idiot for not realizing they’re out there until recently, but they rock. I have zero complaints. Not even the stench (see downsides below) bothers me (yeah, they hold foot odors, what doesn’t).
Not a pretty heel. But a blister free heel after days of touring/walking abuse.
From a different angle—still not a pretty heel. No blisters though!
Downsides
There’s one downside to eZeefits. If you surf in coldish to frigid water, you’ll know what I’m writing about; eZeefits stink and stank. Such is neoprene. I’ve been told that my eZeefits stank more than some. I’ve used the same pair for years. So, yes, this is likely true. However, I forgot to bring my newer pair on the traverse (sorry, Kelly and Brian), which smells better than my rank pair after a day of sweaty boot liner use.
In Closing
Yes, other methods exist to mitigate heel blisters and just blisters in general. These include maintaining good foot hygiene, stopping and taking care of hotspots with moleskin or Leukotape, and/or doing preventative moleskinning or Leukotaping before the day’s skinning and skiing. We’re sure other blister prevention/reduction methods exist.
Cordes is correct; the 2mm eZeefits will cost you ~ $20.00 before shipping. EZeefit makes an Ultrathin and slightly thicker 0.087mm ankle bootie. We’ve not used these, so we have no comments.
I too have skinny ankles and heels (and most of me, haha). I first heard of the EZ fits from Jason on WS, a while back and have been using them ever since, in touring and resort boots, depending on sock thickness, liners packing out etc.
Thanks for the tip Jason!