I've been wearing Ryka for 15 or so years. I hike 3 miles each morning up a mountain. I used to be able to put on a pair of Rykas, out of the box, and go. This is the 4th pair of Rykas that I've had to send back recently. I don't know why they would change the way they make their shoes, but they have! Actually, this pair came the closest to fitting like they used to, but it has this funky straight piece on the bottom of the shoe (over the arch) that makes it feel differently when you walk. I found it very annoying, so back they went. After all these years, I'm in search of a new brand of walking shoe, which is very sad. I absolutely LOVED my Rykas before they started messing around with the way they make their sport shoe!