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“My experience at Merrell Foot Lab has made a world of difference in my life. I have gone in on 3 separate occasions of incredible pain. The first time I went in for pain in my hip, the 2nd time for pain in my knee and the 3rd experience was for foot pain. Every time, Randy and Preston were extremely patient as I explained the pain. They would work with the custom orthotics and tweak them multiple times until the pain would go away. Walking and exercising are very important to me. Without the help from the orthotics, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy them like I do. I hadn’t realized before I went to see them, that much of the pain caused throughout our bodies are due to our feet. If our feet are walking correctly, it can make all of the difference.” - Torrie
“I met Randy nine years ago at a men’s conference. After getting to know him and being with him for a few days, he noticed that I walked with some difficulty. I suffered from club foot from a car accident when I was 14. Kindly he asked me to walk barefoot across the room and then advised me of what was going on with my feet, even though I have sought for relief from pediatric doctors with no success. With hope, I made an appointment. Amazingly he did have answers and made orthotics that fit inside my own shoes. Immediately I found that I could do things that I have not been able to do for years. One of the most impressive things was the orthotics allowed me to stand for hours on end and not feel like I was standing on broken glass. My life changed in ways that I could not have anticipated and I will be forever grateful for his skill and ability. Recently I have been working more closely with his trained apprentice, Preston, as I ordered several extra pairs of the orthotics. I am so grateful. ” - Ron A.
“I was born in Vernal Utah, with bilateral club foot. By my thirties, basic activities like walking and hiking were becoming more and more difficult. Because of the way my feet worked, my shoes had a life span of about a month. Eight years ago my mother told me to go to Merrell FootLab. I thought she was crazy. I couldn’t imagine alterations to my footwear would make a difference because I tried everything else. By the time I was 34 my condition had deteriorated to the point that walking had become very difficult. I decided to give Merrell FootLab a try. Randy and Preston evaluates my walk, looked over the mechanics of my feet and how they interacted with my shoes I was wearing. They made orthotics and altered boots that addressed the needs of my feet and how I walked. Now I have been wearing these boots for six months now without any pain or problems. I can even run or go on long hikes which was impossible before. They are right, you should always listen to mom. ” - Manny P.
“When I visited Merrell FootLab in Aug 17, they were very concerned for the condition of my feet. I was in a rather desperate situation. After an evaluation, impressions were made and told me that the orthotics would be ready in a few days. After receiving the orthotics, they were a drastic change for my feet. Gradually, with the correct shoes and patience on my part, my feet walk comfortably and my toes have straightened out. My knees are better and I can walk further distances climbing the rocks and hills. For years I have suffered with pain in my feet and knees, I was imbalanced and clumsy. I have fallen a few times and I have great difficulty negotiating stairs. I avoided shopping or public events that required walking because it was painful and tiring for me. Thanks to Randy and Preston at Merrell FootLab. Now I can walk comfortably, free of pain.” - Maxine G.
“I started experiencing with my feet about twenty years ago when I was diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy. I spent two years in a wheel chair. For well over a year I saw a podiatrist on a weekly basis. The provider added orthotics, diabetic shoes, and finally told me I needed to have the bone of the bottom of my third toe shaved off as it was protruding down causing the ulcer. I learned of Merrell FootLab from my wife. I discussed my problem over the phone and then made an appointment. I was impressed with Prestons professionalism and knowledge immediately. He examined me, my walk and listened to my issues and assured me he could help. The following morning I returned for the custom orthotics to be put in my shoes. I immediately began to walk better. No more foot, hip or back pain. Ulcer improved significantly and eventually healed” - Glenn E.
“Ben is a active young man that comes from a family of practitioners. He has struggled with his feet and has suffered athletically because of it. The orthotics we made him have made a complete change in his living and especially in his athleticism. He no longer suffers from any pain. ” - Ben C.
“Hattie has suffered from not being able to be a kid because her feet hurt so much. Plantar Fasciitis was a big pain for her until we received the orthotics from Merrell FootLab. Look at the difference between before and after Hattie walks. Notice the knees being more straight and the feet not crashing, with the orthotics.” - Hattie B.
“What a different these orthotics have made for Milo. Aligning the feet, controls the rest of the body. Helping everything feel better. ” - Milo B.
“In the last decade, my original Merrell custom hikers have logged hundreds of remote miles with heavy packs, summitted more than 30 peaks between 10,000 and 14,000+ in the US, been used with crampons on top of the Matterhorn, done Mr. Blanc in a day, and worn out two soles day hiking. Sure they last and don't weigh me down, but what's important is their perfect fit and comfort. My Merrell custom telemark boots are the same way. Now I've also got Randy's custom Western boots, which are probably my favorites of all. They're works of art with the fit and feel I've come to count of year after year.” - M.R. Anderson
“I just wanted to let you know how amazed my family was when they saw me walk with my orthotics and the shoes that you altered for me. My dad said, "you don't have a jig anymore!" My husband, Kevin, said I stand straighter and walk with more confidence. I am so glad I met you and thankful for how much your skills have positively impacted my life!” - Kathleen
“Factory shoes never fit right, so out of desperation I started to look for custom boot makers. At great expense, all I found were people who only wanted to make me a pair of boots which replicated factory shoe results. One custom boot maker in particular, made three attempts to make a pair of boots that would fit my feet with no success. It was not until I met Randy, that I found someone who wanted to explore why factory shoes did not fit and why my feet hurt at the end of the day. Upon walking into Randy’s office in Vernal Utah, I knew my problem was solved. For 2 ½ hrs Randy listened intently to my stories about my feet, asked many questions, measured my feet from every aspect possible, and made impressions as well. He then proceeded to explain, biomechanically, why I had so much trouble with factory shoes. He then requested that my wife and I go to lunch so he could work. Upon our return a couple hours later, Randy had completed a pair of custom orthotics that he fit into the shoes that I was wearing — that now felt as though they had been designed and tailor made for my feet. At this point I made the decision to go ahead with the custom hiking boots that I had traveled to Utah for, as hiking and hunting are what I love to do (that had seriously been impared.) Randy selected a pair of lasts for my feet, which he then proceeded to modify to meet the irregularities of my feet. Within an hour he had made a pair of plastic “trial shoes” to test the fit of the lasts on my feet. (They fit perfectly.) Randy gave us the option of pulling a stool up to the bench and watching him craft the boots—or to visit the sites in the area—we chose the latter as I did not want our presence to rush or distract him. Before we left his office he extended an offer to use any of his hiking equipment and offered a few places to visit. We returned a day and a half later to find a pair of boots and orthotics that fit my feet perfectly. Thanks to Randy, I am back on the trails with SHOES THAT FIT, and WITHOUT PAIN.”” - B.J. Oliver
“I have been backpacking on and off since 1982. I have somewhat oddly shaped feet, and I have to wear orthotics. This combination has made it impossible to find off the shelf boots that fit. Even the briefest trips resulted in blisters. And on anything longer than a few days I would come back with both heels completely raw. Randy made custom, full length orthotics, then made custom boots around those. I now get blisters less often than most of my companions, and I spend a great deal more time backpacking than I could before.” - Wayne
“Got the boots today. They are BEAUTIFUL!!!!! They are wonderful and they fit nicely. The craftsmanship is impecable. Everyone in the office was real jealous and impressed. I am totally happy and can't wait to go do some "shitkickin," I mean some two-steppin' in them. Thank you so much. This has been something I've wanted to do for a long time and I'm pleased, thrilled, and tickled all at once. Thank you again!” - Lynn
“Just a quick note to let you know that I am doing a lot better. I can walk most of the time without pain, and have a lot more endurance. I went to WalMart with Susan last week and she even remarked about how much faster I was walking. Seems like my formerly frequent bouts with low back pain and subsequent trips to the chiropractor are not happening, too. My oldest daughter took me to St. Louis for a few days to visit my half-brother and eight cousins. I hadn't seen any of them for 18 years, and some of them I hadn't seen for 40 years. It was a glorious time. And you should have seen me cruise through those airports! There was a time when I didn't think that would ever be possible for me again. So, I'm saying a heartfelt Thank You-your work has transformed my life.” - D.R.
“I’m 63 years old and have experienced 40 years of foot problems. At times the pain became extreme, chronic and debilitating. One orthopedic foot doctor once told me my feet were 1 in 10,000. I experienced multiple surgeries and used various orthotics with varying degrees of success. At least 12 practitioners have worked on my feet. I quickly went from being an active backpacker and distance runner to taking up exercises that did not involve using my feet. I knew of Randy and considered the idea of seeing him more than once but never made the investment of time and money. Finally I decided to see him for a pair of custom orthotics. Four days later I took my first hike of 4 1/2 miles in 40 years over rough terrain. The selfies I sent home showed a guy with the smile so big you would think I did something illegal. My family could not believe it. This is defiantly a game changer for me.” - Kevin
“Kenny was born 3 and a half months early and spent the first three months of his life in a Neo natal unit. Due to brain trauma his left side worked better than his right. He never gained total mobility in his right side and as he grew his legs grew at different rates, about 2 1/4" differnce. We heard about Merrell FootLab and decided to go to see what they could do for our son. Randy and Preston build orthotics and shoes to accommodate the leg length discrepancy. The first time Kenny put on his shoes you could see the spark in his eyes! You could see the joy in his face. We cried when we saw how confident and comfortable a single pair of shoes had lifted my sons spirit. They built his self esteem and his confidence, he became just like all the other kids which is all he wanted to be. We have had tennis shoes, church shoes, and boots all fixed to fit his needs and have had great success with everything we have done with Merrell FootLab. We truly appreciate Randy and Preston at Merrell FootLab, they have changed my sons life for the better and we will always be indebted to them for that.” - Kenny M Sr.
Archie Turner had been seriously injured while in the service 23 years before I met him. The bones of his right lower leg, ankle and foot had been shattered in an accident. Because of the extent of the injury the bones of the ankle and mid-foot needed to be fused-his ankle would no longer flex. Additionally because of the severity of the injury he had lost about 2 inches of length in his Tibia/Fibula, so the plan was to fuse the ankle with a built in 2" heel height so that, theoretically, he would walk with his pelvis level. (His footwear would need to have a 2" heel.)
Unfortunately, something went awry in the surgery and he ended up with a 3 ½" fused heel height. This created several problems: a) Archie now carried a great deal of weight on the ball of his right foot, and over time developed a callous that was about ½" thick. b)The foot became very unstable, and he would "run the boots over" at the heel. Within four to six weeks the heels of new boots would be tipped over to the point that they were not wearable (These were custom boots provided by the VA for which, I am told, they paid about $700/pr.) c)His left leg was now functionally 1 ½" shorter than the right, creating low back pain and dysfunction in the feet, and various other pains.
When I first saw Archie, he was managing a gated mobile home community, but he had great difficulty working more than 5 hrs/day due to feet problems.
The VA was not pleased with my quote, but they had a responsibility to Archie and were out of ideas of their own.
This is what I did: I cast his right foot and leg and created an "anatomical last" with the 3 ½" heel height. Over this last I built an orthotic with the correct heel height and a very, very strong lateral flare so that he would now have heel strike (lessening the pressure on the ball) and creating stability in the foot so that the boot was no longer tipping out. Over all of this I designed, patterned, and built a special boot that would support the foot/ankle/leg to increase the stability and laced firmly so that his foot did not slide into the toe area of the boot. I finished off the boot with a rocker bottom sole to improve the fluidity of his gait and additionally decrease the force against the ball of the right foot. For the left foot we made a boot that looked as much like the right, except with a 1 ½" leg length accommodation and an orthotic to correct for excessive pronation, and to give this foot as much benefit as possible, as it was quite overworked.
Everything worked as planned. Within several weeks the callous on the right ball was gone! Where previously there had been a ½" callous, the skin looked like that of a child. His first pair of boots (the only footwear worn) was still going strong after 14 months when he ordered a second pair for dress. Eighty to ninety percent of the pain Archie had suffered in his feet, ankles, legs, hips, and back was gone. One evening Archie plopped in a chair in his kitchen and exclaimed to his wife that he was tired. Lori looked at the clock and replied "No wonder, you have been going non-stop for 13 hrs."
P.S. Let's play with $'s for a minute - Archie told me that the VA paid $700/pr for the boots they provided him (and had been for 23 years) and that the boots would only last 4-6 weeks. The first pair of boots I built him was the only thing that he wore for the first 14 months, when he ordered a dress pair (the first pair were still going strong) at that 14 month point, assuming that the figures given me were accurate and giving the benefit of 6 weeks/pr. The VA saved over $5000.00 for that 14 month period of time.
This is a young man, who at this writing is 29 years old. As a child his feet were normal, but in his teen years he developed high arches (cavus feet). As his growth continued he developed a curve in the lower part of his legs, becoming bow-legged (tibial varum).
In compensation the first ray of his feet (essentially the big toe joint) dropped (plantarflexed first). You can see this in the photo. All of this is probably related to a congenital narrowing of his spinal column.
We have not observed any change for several years—however this abnormal condition causes his foot and heel to work at a funny angle, and without orthotics creates an odd twist in his legs as he walks which is painful in his hips. Just as odd is that even though this man has broad shoulders and hips — his feet are narrow. A “B” width.
In this case orthotics alone will not solve the problem, as he tips “off-the-shelf” boots over to the outside with a few days wearing. Also stock boots do not offer sufficient depth to accommodate the aggressive orthotics needed.
So, I have been making custom boots for this fellow for years. Much of the time he works as a wildland firefighter. In the picture you see a new pair of fireboots I have made. This fellow is a hard driving individual — always going
and going hard. He will destroy a pair of factory boots in 45-60 days. A pair of my boots will last him 2 to 3 years.
A logger, Mike lives on an island a 1000 miles north of Vancouver B.C. Canada. Several years ago, he had an accident as he was falling a large tree resulting in significant injuries. His left femur was fractured and he lost a significant part of his quadricep. Although his knee was not damaged, his left tibia was fractured, and he had lost much of the calf muscle. Fortunately, his ankle and foot were not injured. The surgeons did a marvelous job reassembling his leg but as he healed, the posterior compartment of his left leg contracted: his heel could no longer reach the ground.
Prior to the accident, Mike had excessive bilateral pronation. Because he was young, active, and healthy, he got along just fine. Following the accident, with his leg being compensated, this became an issue. With the contracture on the left, he, functionally, has a short right leg by more than an inch.
All in all Mike's feet hurt, he had knee pain, and his hips hurt. Previously work had been a joy-now it was miserable.
From her home in Southern California, Mike's mother launched a telephone campaign to find someone to help him out; her search brought her to me.
When she made his appointment she told me just to "fix him up" and send her the bill. Though skeptical, Mike kept his appointment.
During his first visit he stayed three days while I made orthotics and boots that were carefully tuned to the exact heel height so that he finally had left heel strike and which resolved the leg length discrepancy.
Once again Mike had a normal gait. When he first put the boots on he was just like a kid on Christmas morning-he beamed.
Since making that first pair of packer boots, I have made a pair of calked (spiked) logging boots, slip-on mules, elastic-sided Australian stockman's boots (or high heeled Romeo's) and a couple more pairs of packers. Needless to say, Mike is no longer skeptical.
February of ’04 Brian was on a snowmobile one dark evening with friends—headed up Vail Pass for some backcountry skiing. As they passed a large snow grooming machine something went wrong and Brian ended up in the path of the groomer—and was run over. The groomer was towing an implement that is essentially a monster roto-tiller to munch the snow up, then lay it out flat again.
In this case Brian’s lower left leg got munched. You can see the photos. He had some great medical help, and 9 months later when he came to me I could see that they had done a wonderful job making the best of a tough situation.
But, Brian’s foot now had moderately serious swelling, limited range of motion, the calcaneous (the heel bone) was now peaked toward the back so it hurt in a normal shoe, the foot was turned at an odd angle in relation to the floor, and the leg was a little short compared to the other.
All in all it made walking laborious, and at times painful, and normal shoes would not work.
Previously, Brian had been a very active fellow: biking, hiking, snowboarding, climbing, kayaking, and served on a mountain search and rescue team. We started to work with Brian on a Monday morning. We spent about 3 hours for me to understand everything that was going on with his feet, carefully understanding the recommendations for orthotics and footwear from his Physical Therapist, and making a plan of action.
I then made a cast of the left foot and measured both feet.
While I was making custom lasts—I sent Brian to town shopping for a pair of below-the-ankle athletic or hiking shoes. We finished out the day fabricating an appliance that slips into the left shoe making a proper interface between his foot and the ground---and accommodates the “peakedness” of his heel bone without rubbing or pain. The sole of the left shoe was “rockered” giving the shoe more motion to accommodate the limited range of motion, and raised to accommodate the short leg. Plus, an orthotic for the right foot. Brian was estatic—he thought that he would never wear a pair of stock shoes again!
The next morning we went to work on hiking boots, starting with custom patterns. You can see from the photos that even given the differences between his feet, the boots look remarkably the same. You can see Brian trying on the new boots. By Thursday mid-day I had him on the way home. He still has a long way to go with Physical Therapy, but we were both delighted with the outcome at this point.
“What a different these orthotics have made for Milo. Aligning the feet, controls the rest of the body. Helping everything feel better. ”
- Milo B.
“Hattie has suffered from not being able to be a kid because her feet hurt so much. Plantar Fasciitis was a big pain for her until we received the orthotics from Merrell FootLab. Look at the difference between before and after Hattie walks. Notice the knees being more straight and the feet not crashing, with the orthotics.”
- Hattie B.
“I’m 63 years old and have experienced 40 years of foot problems. At times the pain became extreme, chronic and debilitating. One orthopedic foot doctor once told me my feet were 1 in 10,000. I experienced multiple surgeries and used various orthotics with varying degrees of success. At least 12 practitioners have worked on my feet. I quickly went from being an active backpacker and distance runner to taking up exercises that did not involve using my feet. I knew of Randy and considered the idea of seeing him more than once but never made the investment of time and money. Finally I decided to see him for a pair of custom orthotics. Four days later I took my first hike of 4 1/2 miles in 40 years over rough terrain. The selfies I sent home showed a guy with the smile so big you would think I did something illegal. My family could not believe it. This is defiantly a game changer for me.”
- Kevin