So... I had a pair of these when I was in high school. In 1995. So... 17 years ago. These shoes lasted forever. I actually eventually LOST them during our last move. It's ok, I got my moneys worth! Plus I was tired of the color, the pair I had were a dark brown.

I just got these in the redwood color with the soft footbed. I went for the soft footbed specifically because I recall, even after so many years, the rough break in period. These are comfy out of the box with the soft foot bed! Like a slipper. However I believe, I have no proof but I believe, that the soft foot bed will negatively impact the longevity of the shoe. I know the rubber on the bottom is replaceable and to some degree the cork is too from what I understand(I never had to replace the cork on my old pair though, if you replace the rubber before you hit the cork AND keep the cork sealed, you shouldn't need to) but I have no idea how the soft foot bed will affect repair or replaceability. My general guess is that it will wear out and need repair sooner. The redwood is a lovely color. I like it a lot because it's colorful enough to be interesting, but not so bright that it will clash or stick out.

Sizing. I'll be honest, they are full of *you know what* on sizing. Back in 1995, prior to having two kids, the smallest size I could find in the store (this was pretty much pre-internet, I could buy it at the store or not buy it at all, ordering was difficult as the shoes were made in germany) was a 36. Back then, I was told a 36 was about equivalent to a 6-6.5. I was a 5. I purchased them anyway and they were very big on me. I didn't care, I just wore big fat socks with them. Ok, well time went on, I had two kids and my feet got larger.  I am now actually a size 6-6.5. Well when I went to order these I looked at the Birk size chart on the Birk website and it says that a 36 is equivalent to a 5-5.5 and a 37 was a 6-6.5. So based on that, I should have ordered a 37. And in fact every other pair of shoes I now own is a 6-6.5 or a 37 in euro sizing. I thought to myself that maybe over the years they had changed a little, maybe they ran smaller or something. Then I remembered they were a German company, not a US company, so I went ahead and ordered a 36. Bingo, they fit perfect. They are DEFINATELY a 6, someone who is a size 5 would be swimming in these shoes. I have wide feet so I did not get the narrow.

Another really important note is that certain colors come with the soft footbed and other colors come with the classic footbed. They don't come in both options. So if you order redwood, it will have the soft footbed (at least as of right now in May 2012). The best way to know if it's classic or soft since you can't necessarily tell from amazon, is to hop on the Birkenstock website and see which color comes with which footbed.