Originally Posted by
elcruxio
Do you hike? Ever been hiking while in a rainstorm? Wet feet are fun and all but I'd rather keep my feet dry and warm. Also heavy boots at least to me aren't there to prevent sprains (you'd need proper high hunting boots for that) but simply to reduce foot fatigue in demanding conditions. I've hiked in trail runners, minimalist shoes, practically barefoot, but I always come back to the trusty heavy hiking boots since there's just no comparison to them. I suppose it's preference.
As a reference in ordinary life I prefer minimalist footwear with zero drop and ~5mm thick soles.
Also, properly worn in good fitting leather shoes don't cause blisters. They mold to your foot like a leather saddle does to a butt. Synthetic shoes like trail runners etc need to be perfect from the get go or they are going to cause issues to the foot or they are going to break. A leather shoe will have some give over time.
As to leather saddles, they work for some people and I can see why. They are a good system for a certain pelvic orientation, plumbing and bone structure. There have not been many good ways to imitate that other than the Brooks Cambium but a lot of people don't seem like those as much as the genuine leather saddle. Perhaps it is the lack of molding and it could be replicated by some sort of thermal molding (like skiing boots) but there does not seem to be evidence of custom saddles made that way. Using a fabric like ripstop nylon instead of leather could work but haven't seen that in action either.
I've been hiking and backpacking for 45 years in the PNW. Switching to trail runners was the single greatest improvement in my equipment which I've made. Leather boots never kept my feet dry, in fact they kept them wet for the duration and I had the best Swiss and Italian boots money could buy. I still use them for glacier travel, though this year I climbed a minor glacier in my trail runners. BTW, never buy GoreTex trail runners. Trail runners are supposed to be very breathable and thus dry quickly. GoreTex shoes do not. They stay wet and stink.
Similarly with saddles, which I was a child, I rode leather. As an adult, I ride plastic which is vastly more comfortable for me, plus it doesn't care about getting wet. My longest day ride has been 400k, no particular saddle discomfort.
My advice to the OP is to go through all the trial saddles he can. My practice is to always ride a century on a trial saddle. That way I know for sure if it'll work, plus it only takes one day. Of course I never trial a saddle that feels uncomfortable to sit on. And BTW, my sitbones don't touch my saddles. I ride a road bike with my back straight and ride only slotted saddles.