Chaco Men's Z1 Classic Sport Sandal

These are my 7th pair of Chacos. I go back 30 yrs with the Z1. When they were made in Colorado they were the absolute best with outstanding customer service too. Then success brought Chinese Chacos and things went south. Soles fell off, footbeds cracked, straps frayed, more soles fell off. I looked elsewhere and asked hikers and watersports people for recommendations. I looked on Amazon and they ( of course) followed up with an email. Basic black Z1s for $50. And I ordered them. So far I'm very pleased. I wore them for a week in the Mojave. I noticed they were made in the Dominican and the build looks good. No break in required and the straps were easily adjusted. The straps are ridiculously long, as they've been in recent years and I sew the excess back onto the strap. As everyone says, time will tell, but these seem to be an improvement over the products I've been buying the last 10 years.

TL;DR - these things are too heavy for light beach use, and if you're looking for minimalist soles, these are not. Maybe good for hiking on sharp rocks, when puncture resistance is important. I was looking for new beach sandals, and I've been working to make my shoes more foot friendly. I searched 'zero drop sandal men', and these came up in the search result. The straps are okay (a bit more fiddly to adjust than the velcro straps on my last pair of sandals), but the sole is a giant, dense chunk of rubber. These are so incredibly heavy, it feels like when your shoes get caked in mud. It's minimalist on the top, overengineered on the bottom. My toes don't feel constricted, which is a plus, and there is a lot of arch support, though I'm increasingly convinced that's not healthy, long term. The sole seems like it would be good for puncture resistance and hiking, if you want the weight of a hiking boot without the top part. Ultimately, not what I'm looking for.

The first pair of chacos I owned didn’t end up getting worn very much, and were perhaps a different model. After seeing these on sale in a strategist article, I pulled the trigger. Hands down the best sandals (and some of the best shoes overall) that I own. Excellent for floating the river, walking dogs, running errands, and apparently hiking. They feel great on my feet and the black is neutral enough they “go” with lots of things. Excellent overall sandals, can’t recommend them enough.

This seems to be the ultimate in a long-lasting sandal. Although I've done some long hikes in these sandals, they seem to look just like brand new after I wash them. I experienced some minor discomfort on my pinky toe from one of the straps. On a long hike, I will just put a Band-Aid or piece of tape over it. They feel as solid and as comfortable as a light duty pair of hiking boots.

I love Chaco sandals. They super comfortable with arch support, and the straps adjust everywhere so that they don't dig in or rub. Essentially hiking boots on sandal format. My last pair outlived every other piece of footwear I own. This is definitely one of those "you get what you pay for" type products!