Review: Tredstep Medici Field Boots

I have been looking for a new pair of tall boots for some time now. In 2011, when I last needed to buy a pair, I tried on over a dozen pairs in my budget range, and somehow ended up with Saxon Equileather Field Boots, which – well, they’re made out of plastic. But for all that, they held up stunningly well, and only started to fail last fall when the zipper started to slip. That’s a better track record than many high-quality leather boots!

Still, it was time to retire them. I had my eye on the Mountain Horse Sovereigns, in that beautiful two-tone brown, but every time I got close to buying them, something else intervened financially.

About six weeks ago, I took my birthday off from work, and it happened to coincide with Strafford Saddlery’s huge tent sale. I dragged my husband down, and really only had the intention of buying some Sore No More, maybe a shirt or two, and maybe a belt. I was mostly just looking to spend a fun day looking around the clearance items.

They had out a small pile of tall boots in various sizes and brands. Maybe 8-10 boxes total, and truly random – a men’s pair of polo boots, kids’ dressage boots, a bunch of “lifestyle” boots from Ariat and Dublin. I sorted through the pile more out of idle curiosity than anything.

There was a pair of Tredstep Medicis in what was probably my size. 50% off. I hesitated only briefly, pulled them out, and tried them on. I was wearing fairly form-fitting skinny jeans, so I figured they would come close to mimicking breeches, and if not, there were plenty on the sales rack I could grab briefly.

Well, they fit perfectly. So perfectly that as I zipped up I made some kind of small weird noise that caused the sales clerk to ask if I was okay. I was simultaneously delighted and angry. I walked around in them for a while, chewed my lip, and finally threw caution to the wind and bought them for $200. It was way less than I’d planned on spending, they were beautiful, and they fit me like a glove. The only nitpicky quibble I could make is that perhaps – maybe – in some far-off perfect world – they could be an inch taller.

Since then, I’ve been riding in them, and apart from the problem I’m having where they show up one of my position flaws (rolling my ankle/foot to the outside of the stirrup), I adore them. They’re beautiful. They are simultaneously supportive but comfortable. They make me feel happy and put-together every time I zip into them.

I’m still taking them in and out of their box to wear every time, because I haven’t had a chance to make a boot bag & boot trees for them yet. I have the fabric and just need to make this a priority.

I love the light detail on the top – slightly Spanish-y, but not over the top. That little lozenge is the only branding on them.

Here you can see two things that I particularly love: the lower zipper protector and the elastic in the calf. You can barely tell it’s elastic. It’s really smooth, and it matches the look and color of the books really well. It means a nice snug fit without looking awful.

There’s also a zipper protector at the top.

They have gel-like inserts in the footbed, which makes them legitimately comfortable to stand in.

You can see what I mean here by being maybe an inch lower. When I’m standing they’re close to spot on, but when I really drop my heel they’re maybe a tiny bit low. I’ve filed that on “things I’m not going to worry about for gorgeous clearance boots.”

I’ve put maybe 20 rides on them so far, and they’re holding up just fine, but I’ll try to update when I beat on them more thoroughly.