Professional Tool Reviews for Pros
Keen Utility is back with another slick work boot moving into the spring season. The Keen Utility Red Hook is a waterproof work boot featuring a carbon fiber safety toe. Of course, there’s much more to it than that.
If you’ve been around Keen Utility long, you know their boots are named for cities and towns around the United States. I have to admit, Red Hook stumped me and I had to look it up. Living in the Southeast most of my life, I had to consult the great Googly Moogly to learn about the peninsula in Brooklyn.
Editor’s Note: Check out our best work boots review article for our favorite products for all applications.
As for the boot itself, the Keen Utility Red Hook is another fusion boot, following in the lines of the Cincinnati and others. This time, we’re looking at a blend of work boot durability with a sneaker’s lighter weight and athletic feel. In fact, if you look at just the bottom of the shoe, it looks very much like a sneaker with its tread design and overall shape.
With a wedge design, it spreads your weight out over a wider area and helps with the comfort level. However, that sneaker-style tread pattern isn’t for everyone even though it’s oil and slip-resistant. It doesn’t have the grip of more aggressive tread that you need in wetter, muddier environments.
Building up from there, you get a soft KEEN.ReGEN midsole, composed of lightweight, compression-resistant material that claims to return 50% more energy than standard EVA foam. No joke, this is a soft feel compared to traditional work boots. If you’re a bigger guy or on hard surfaces all day, it’ll save your legs and knees a lot of fatigue and soreness.
The upper is a full-grain leather with a protective cover that Keen calls TecTuff over areas that usually see more abrasion.
Inside, Keen’s asymmetrical carbon fiber safety toes offer toe protection with less weight than steel. Of course, Keen’s typical removable polyurethane insert is present as always.
You can get these from your favorite Keen retailer or online for $160. That’s in the middle ground between Keen’s light-duty shoes and more expensive heavy-duty models. Considering its design, that price is right where we expect it to be.
Keen Utility Red Hook work boots have a design that’s best for working on hard surfaces. Its sneaker feel and tread design isn’t a great fit for loose or muddy soil where more aggressive traction is required. However, its cushy feel should bring significant relief to your feet and knees without sacrificing traditional work boot durability.
On the clock, Kenny dives deep to discover the practical limits and comparative differences for all kinds of tools. Off the clock, his faith and love for his family are his top priorities, and you'll typically find him in the kitchen, on his bike (he's an Ironman), or taking folks out for a day of fishing on Tampa Bay.
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Professional Tool Reviews for Pros
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