Chaco

Mark Paigen's love affair with functional footwear and biomechanics started in the late 1980s. Living in western Colorado and working as a whitewater/fly fishing guide, his running shoes quickly got wet during the day. The grit in his shoes wore holes in his soggy skin.

A few other guides wore Teva sandals while one had Alps. While the synthetic materials were good, neither supported feet well. This brought him to focus on taking sport sandals to a higher level with 5 key points:

  • Synthetic materials
  • Anatomical strap placement
  • A continuous pull-through strap
  • Top shelf components – especially outsoles from Vibram
  • No Velcro

 

Chaco