This is a MUST HAVE for winter climes. They do require strength and care to position on your shoes, but once in place they work extremely well. The only caveat is that if you wear them into a supermarket or any other commercial space with a smooth hard floor you might as well be walking on ice, so...don't be an idiot...wear these when you are on pavement or in the natural world (where they will give you a sense of safety and assuredness you might not have believed possible)...don't wear them when you are in a store.