Top of Boot Rubbing the Calf

[AgnesNitt]

So I have new boots. the top of the boot is finished nicely, but apparently I'm a 'delicate flower' and the boot rubs the skin raw. Raw to the point of bleeding.

I've tried gel tubes and bandaids over the raw spot, but for some reason those just made more pain. What I ended up working with was a gel bandaid over the raw area, with a load of lambswool over that held in place by my knee highs. And I can't fix the lambswool with tape or anything. It has to be allowed to 'flow' under the knee high, otherwise it rubs the skin.

The only problem is that it's a tedious couple of minutes stuffing and adjusting the lambswool, but once it's properly stuffed it's a pain free skate. 

Anyone else have a solution other than 'get a gel tube'? I'm always willing to learn.

[icedancer]

Can you stuff the lamb's wool into the gel tube?

[AgnesNitt]

Can you stuff the lamb's wool into the gel tube?

I didn't try that. It might work, but I think that it might take up too much room. It's worth a try though.

[Neverdull44]

Agnes, when I broke in my super tough Riedells in about 1994 (the toughest skate ever made, I swear it), I blistered, bled, and tore open my skin on my feet & legs.  The worst spots were the sides of the tongue and top of the boot.  I went to Tandy Leather, bought lambs wool, and redid the tongue inside. I ripped out the foam and liquid cemented/glued in the lambswool.   For my wounds & blisters, I did antibiotic cream, covered in bandaid, and then covered in duct tape (back then it was only the silver type that was available.  I swear by duct tape over bandaids for any foot/leg injury caused by skating.  The duct tape takes the friction, instead of your skin.   To get the duct tape off, do foot baths with baby oil and gently pull it up.   It will come up.   

(I learned about duct tape from my dad.  He hiked, and used it for many hiking blisters).

[AgnesNitt]

Interesting tip. I'll have to get some varieties of duct tape (some is better than others) and give it a try.

[Neverdull44]

Duct tape doesn't take up any room in your boot, either.   So, it doesn't throw off your foot's alignment.   And, the duct tape over the bandaid, will hold the bandaid in place.   Anything else I tried, the bandaid moved.    The plain old silver duct tape is probably going to be the best.  It is the slippery.  I think it's made out of vinyl.  The printed rolls that my kids buy are not as slippery on the outside.  But, I've not tried the fancy printed tape rolls, since they were not around back then.

[irenar5]

Have you tried wearing the gel sleeve right on the skin as opposed to over the knee high?
I get the rubbing even with my 2 year old boots if I don't wear them on bare skin.

[AgnesNitt]

Have you tried wearing the gel sleeve right on the skin as opposed to over the knee high?
I get the rubbing even with my 2 year old boots if I don't wear them on bare skin.

I have the opposite problem. At the top of the boot, the gel tube slides around twisting the knee high if it's on top, and it rubs my skin raw if it's underneath.

[DressmakingMomma]

My daughter was having trouble with the back collar (think that's what it is called) with her new boots, so I bought some sheets of moleskin from the drug store in the foot care section. I wrapped a rectangular piece at the center back then cut a larger oval shaped piece to go over that and it has done the trick - no sore spots since then.

[sarahspins]

Moleskin sounds like a great solution to that "hard" edge rubbing the skin.

I got the BB Backstay on my harlicks and I highly recommend it - I have had no rubbing and no sore spots along the top of the boot because the inner lining actually extends over the inner padding creating a very nice padded collar around the top of the boot.  It's hard to explain but there is no stitching anywhere along the top edge.

[DressmakingMomma]

We'll be ordering the BB backstay next time  Everything else on her harlicks are perfect.

[fsk8r]

Have you tried compeed (blister plasters) on the skin while it's healing?
Could it be that because the skin is already irritated that all the old fail safe tricks aren't working?
(Although I do like the idea of changing the tongue to lambswool if that's causing the problem).

Where abouts is the raw spot? Possibly it's working out which bit of boot is causing the problem and then tackling that.

Sorry to hear you're suffering and hope you get a solution which works for you.

[Loops]

I've used the compeed blister pads before with good success.  Near as I can tell, Compeed is the same as Band-Aid, and the Band-Aid blister pads look pretty much the same.  These would be like the duct tape- you stick them on, but you don't take them off until either they fall off or the  blister has healed.  They take the friction for your skin.  I used them under my gel sleeves with my flesh eating Riedells.....

[jlspink22]

Kind of pointless for the gel being soothing, but my daughter would put the gel on inside out and fold over the top of the boot. The fabric against her skin and then the gel kind of stuck to the leather so it wouldn't move.

[Loops]

Kind of pointless for the gel being soothing, but my daughter would put the gel on inside out and fold over the top of the boot. The fabric against her skin and then the gel kind of stuck to the leather so it wouldn't move.

The gel is supposed to be soothing?  This, I missed.  But I swear by my gel sleeves.  I don't need them persay, but I guess because I broke my skates in/skates broke my feet in with them, I swear I can't get my skates tight enough when there are no sleeves in there.  I now have two pairs so that I'll never be without.  Hopefully.  Knock on wood.

[jlspink22]

The gel is supposed to be soothing?  This, I missed.  But I swear by my gel sleeves.  I don't need them persay, but I guess because I broke my skates in/skates broke my feet in with them, I swear I can't get my skates tight enough when there are no sleeves in there.  I now have two pairs so that I'll never be without.  Hopefully.  Knock on wood.

Well when I was a dancer anything gel was supposed to stay cool and squishy so that it felt good as you put 100lbs of pressure on the tips of your toes, lol.  Soothing = not mind blowing pain?

[Query]

Do you lace the top hook? A lot of us don't.