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you can thank snowshoeing for the continued boom in development of winter performance shoes. Snowshoeing is fast becoming the winter alternative to aerobic walking, pulling participants from the 70 million Americans who walk for exercise and don't want to stop simply because a little snow dusts the trail. There are plenty of skeptics in the outdoor industry who don't quite buy that snowshoeing is booming, although that product segment has been growing for the past three years. But some, such as Bill Dodge of Salomon, believe that sales in the snowshoe category could eclipse those of the entire Nordic world in 1998.

Of course, a vast majority of outdoor winter recreationists aren't satisfied with mere walking. They need to run and chase things, build and create things, shovel and hurl things, and, gratefully, shoe designers realize this, too.

So, you may ask yourself, what makes a shoe versatile and comfortable enough for winter romping, off-piste snowshoeing, urban shoveling, slush-slopping, casual winter wandering and aggressive trail pounding? Think of a light hiking boot on steroids and you're thinking along the right track: comfortable fit, good ankle support, waterproof/breathable uppers, some insulation for warmth and lugged soles with a good flex pattern for traction and mobility. Keeping the weight down is essential, too.

Thick insulation is not deemed highly important in winter performance footwear because, if your customers are moving, they're generating enough heat to keep their feet warm. If shoes have too much insulation, feet will not only overheat, they'll begin pruning in their own sweat. Look for "smart" insulations, such as Comfortemp, to begin making inroads into a world previously dominated by Thinsulate.

While the vast majority of the traditional winter footwear companies are delving into performance winter footwear, one company is noticeably absent from the melee—Montrail, formerly known as One Sport. Last year, Cindy Hazard reported that the company introduced the Kootenay GTX to "target what we perceive to be a growth category—snowshoeing and winter recreation." In fact, One Sport expected sales of the Kootenay to represent approximately 5 percent of its business. However, for reasons Hazard declined to comment on, the shoe was killed, even after winning accolades from the folks at Backpacker magazine.

"We're still getting requests for that boot," says Hazard, though she won't offer any predictions as to whether or not Montrail will get back into the winter footwear category, except to say that it's something the company is looking at seriously.

Operating from what they refer to as the "lone outpost in winter footwear," Neos finds itself in a unique position, "convincing consumers to adopt the same principles for their feet as they have for their outer garments," says Woody Nash, co-founder of Neos.

"We have to teach our retailers that if they tell their customers to wear a warm sock with any footwear, and then top it off with a waterproof overboot by Neos, their customers are going to be happier than ever," says Nash.

Asked whether or not Neos was mulling over the idea of adding a layer of insulation to a line of overboots, Nash says the company might put "something warm and fuzzy on the inside for 1999, but that will be in response to retailer demand and not from consumers who have tried the product."

The following is a sampling from the many companies that will be debuting new performance winter footwear at Outdoor Retailer Winter Market:

Jay Steere of Timberland reports that the company is introducing two new styles of waterproof, insulated winter boots in the performance category. The Winter Rec CIII is an 8-inch boot with a protective sidewall and rubber outsole, and the Winter Extreme is a 10-inch boot with Polartec lining for insulation and comfort.

Bill Dodge says that Salomon is "continuing the rapid pace of footwear innovation" with the launch of four new product lines, including a waterproof X-Hiking range, and expanded Raid Running series using proven Xcr race boot technology for cold-weather fit and protection. Three new X-Winter models will include an insulated Snowclog and a new category for snowboarders dubbed Gravity for boarders to wear when not riding.

Tecnica's Snow Paw TCY, the first boot targeted specifically at the snowshoe market, has been updated to make it more functional and easier to put on. In the Northern Latitude series, Tecnica introduces one new boot, the Snow Trek TCY, designed for winter hiking.

"The biggest and most noticeable trend among footwear manufacturers is the move to more and more insulation," says Dave Smith, vice president of marketing for Danner. With that in mind, Danner is introducing four new boots with 800 grams of insulation, one boot with 1,000 grams of insulation and two boots with 400 grams of insulation—all featuring Thinsulate.

For the first time, Sorel is going overseas to have footwear produced for it in Italy, because the company didn't have the manufacturing capability to create the type of performance boots for winter running it thought was necessary, according to Gary Adam, product manager for leisure footgear. Still under final tweaking as we went to press, the shoes are targeted at aggressive winter hikers who might also like to do a bit of speed work in the snow. For want of a better image, Adam likens the boot to a winter version of Nike's venerable Air Mada.

Speaking of trail running and Nike, the company is coming out with its own line of winter performance footwear targeted at winter athletes who run in Nike shoes when it's warm, but don't want to stop training just because there is snow on the ground. The Air Mavsa is a high-tech sneaker for the snow designed to be worn in conjunction with snowshoes or on its own for trail running. The Air Minot is the result of a partnership between Nike and W.L. Gore & Associates to create a waterproof/breathable shoe for winter runners.

Neos is launching a new deluxe galosh targeted at adventure travelers who need a waterproof solution when they're traveling. Appropriately enough, the new product will be called the Adventurer.

Cheryl Dutton says that LaCrosse is unveiling the "most extensive and innovative group of products we have ever put together." Indeed, LaCrosse is introducing 57 new shoes, including a new line of cold weather performance boots: Evolution, Epic, Switchback, Summit, Terrain King and Trailtreader. Each boot uses either Thermolite or Thinsulate insulation and employs an Asystec outsole to reduce weight and ensure maximum flexibility, even in extreme cold conditions.