Here is a handy glossary of the technology behind everything from Sperry’s iconic Authentic Original boat shoes to their latest technical footwear designed for go-fast racers. Becoming familiar with these terms and their benefits will help you determine the shoes that will work best for you.
360° Lacing System™
Unlike lesser boat shoes, Sperry provides for a secure fit all the way around your feet, not just across your insteps. Why does that matter? Once your shoes get wet they will have a tendency to separate themselves from you if they aren't snugged down tight around the outside of your feet. The lacing also improves overall stability since it will keep your shoes from slipping around on your feet. Rustproof eyelets are included for obvious reasons.
Adaptive Wave-Siping™
Tiny, wavy slits in the rubber outsoles, in combination with larger and deeper wavy grooves, disperse water away from the soles and give you incredible grip. Whether your footing is wet or dry, these outsoles will help prevent you from becoming separated from the deck of your boat.
AEGIS® Odor Control
The AEGIS fabric treatment provides a microbe shield on the footbeds that gives the surface active antibacterial action. This micro polymer coating mechanically destroys odor-causing bacteria, mold, fungus and their allergens on contact. AEGIS remains effective for the life of the footbeds.
Anti Shock and Vibration (ASV) Technology™
Sperry designed this technology to reduce the effects of shock encountered during extreme boating conditions by up to 30% in the heel. A great way to stop foot, leg and back pain caused by the stress of constant wave pounding and engine vibration before it starts. This technology dampens and disperses shock and vibration, thereby lessening fatigue and discomfort. Unlike the cushioning on a running shoe, which provides high, but unstable energy return, ASV Technology offers low energy return to help keep you anchored on the deck.
Dri-Lex® Lining
This moisture-wicking, breathable technology provides greater comfort since your feet will stay drier and cooler, whether you wear socks or not. Moisture is moved away from your skin through a four-step process. First, perspiration vapor from your skin’s surface is pushed away into the first hydrophobic (water-repelling) fabric zone. Next, that perspiration vapor is pulled into the second hydrophilic (water-absorbing) fabric zone. Then, moisture is stored away from your skin. Finally, the moisture evaporates into open air leaving your feet dry and cool.
Genuine Handsewn Tru-Moc Construction
Why is this important? In a word, comfort. By hand fitting the leather to a last (a shoe form) and then hand stitching it with needles and waxed thread, you get a timeless moccasin upper that fits true to size and width. Moccasin construction also provides more flexibility so it conforms to your feet, not the other way around.
GripX3 Technology™
A patent pending innovation that provides competitive sailors ultimate grab and grip through a unique and lab-tested combination of Adaptive Wave-Siping™, Hydro Grip™ rubber outsoles and Top-Deck 360™ upper design.
Hydro Grip™ Rubber
This stickiest of outsoles gives you maximum on-deck traction, agility and stability.
Intense Vent Construction
This system features flow-through, non-absorbing, hydrophobic (water-repelling) mesh uppers with HydroPel technology that simply doesn't hold water, so they dry off quickly and always feel light and breezy.
Non-Marking Rubber Outsoles
In addition to their nonslip properties, these soles won't make ugly black marks on the deck of the boat like ordinary shoes.
OmniVent Construction
This system ensures that water that gets inside your shoes makes its way immediately out. Strategically placed vents in the insoles at the heels and balls of your feet channel water through vents in the midsoles away from your shoes. The mere act of walking or moving around on your boat forces the water out and lets your feet breathe.
OrthoLite® Foam Insoles
Removable insoles and heel cups made of OrthoLite foam enhance shock absorption for all-day comfort. Featuring open-cell polyurethane foam that is highly breathable, these cushioned insoles keep your feet cooler inside your shoes. Plus, an antimicrobial has been added to inhibit odor-causing bacteria. The lightweight insoles are machine washable and maintain their performance benefits even after repeated washing.
Razor-Cut Wave-Siping™
Razor thin, wavy slits in the rubber outsoles provide ultimate traction whether your footing is wet or dry. In fact, they grip even better when coming in contact with wet gelcoat (what boat decks are typically covered in). You'll appreciate how they keep you firmly stuck to the surface when you're scrambling across a heeling deck in a sudden squall.
SeaBound Cushioning
Sperry’s integrated energy return system provides cushioning that doesn't sap your energy. It gives it back. So a day on the water is like a walk in the park or vice versa.
SON-R Technology™
This patented system features a unique outsole design that works in combination with an interactive footbed to provide natural sensory feedback and awareness for greater stability and agility on multiple surfaces. This design enhances proprioception (the unconscious perception of movement and spacial orientation), effectively giving you the ability to See With Your Feet. Articulating outsole pods transfer sensitive information from say the deck of a boat or the ground to corresponding pods in the removable, interactive footbeds and then to your feet.
Terrain Traction Pods
Oval-shaped lugs on the outsoles provide extra grip on land, whether the conditions are wet or dry. Plus, the lugs also feature Razor-Cut Wave-Siping™—tiny, wavy slits cut into each of the pods. These slits are almost guaranteed to keep you securely attached to the gelcoat most boat decks are covered with.
Top-Deck 360™
Competitive dinghy sailors and big boat racers demand full-surface grab and grip. Resembling an exoskeleton, the Top-Deck 360 design adds additional rubber to the shoe’s upper for all-around grip when using hiking straps and extends 360 degrees for extra protection.
Vulcanized Construction
This is where the rubber meets the canvas. Using high temperatures, the upper is securely bonded to the outsoles for a classic look that's also strong and durable.
Wave Comfort Foot System™
This polyurethane footbed provides long-lasting, enhanced comfort and is removable so you can let your shoes dry completely in between wearings.