The Biggest Boot in the World

Welch, Minnesota
Treasure Island Casino RV Park

A boot bigger than Bill's feet is not an easy task to find, but we found it today.  

According to the Guinness World Records the boot we found today was the biggest in the world.  Not only was it the biggest but handmade like all the Red Wing shoes.  This wasn't a big molded piece of plastic but the real thing.

 Here's Bill and I in front of the world's largest boot at the Red Wing Shoe Company.

Sherry and Dave are posing by this 877 Red Wing Boot.  This boot was made in 2005 in honor of its 100th  anniversary.

Here's some facts about this boot.

Boot size is 638 1/2 US

The lace is 2.25 " diameter and 104 ' long

Each eyelet  weighs 4 pounds with openings of 3.5" diameter

Sole is 20" thick at the heel, 11" at the toe and is capable of bending similar to a real sole.

Weight is 2,300 lbs. 

At  20' long, 7' wide and 16' high a person fitting this boot would stand 12 stories tall. 

When we went to the top of the stairs you could look down inside the boot.  The boot took 80 leather hides to make and 80 pounds of brass for the eyelets.  

This boot took 13 months to complete and 4,000 hours of labor.  They actually used the same thread and sewing machines that they use in the production process.  Can you image the final stitching required lowering a person into the boot via a pulley? 

We were so impressed we went downstairs to the outlet room to buy some.  Unfortunately, they didn't have Bill's size. 

They had a small museum on the second floor, while it was small, it was very informative.

  
Bill said when he was a very young tyke (which was a very very long time ago) he always wanted a Billy Boot with a built in knife case.

Dave is checking out some of the style of boots.

We learned a lot about the history of Red Wing Boots.  I forgot to mention that the museum is free and open every day.   Unfortunately, we were too late to take the factory tour which is on Mondays and Fridays at 10 am.

Red Wing is a pretty town and on most corners they have boots.  

It was an enjoyable visit and Red Wing is someplace we could visit again.

Here's a photograph's of all the different street corner boots.

This is the St. James Hotel which overlooks the Mississippi River.  

Bill is standing on the west side of the Mississippi.  We all know how he hates the east.  I've got to find a way to get him to Goshen, Indiana for the National Montana Rally without crossing that river.


Turtle Safely..........