Feeling lucky in Dubarry

by Helen Hopcroft on 27 Apr 2007 Dubarry sea boots have a kind of Clint Eastwood swagger. Although they’re designed purely for nautical use, being sturdily constructed from waterproof leather and Gore-Tex, the long boots look like something from the Wild West. As well as being extremely practical, it’s a great look. You can contemplate whether to put a reef in the mainsail, then turn to your 2IC and ask ‘Do you feel lucky, punk? Well, do you?’

The Dubarry tradition of making quality footwear started in Ireland about seventy years ago. In 1937 they formally established their company on the West Coast. Ireland’s Atlantic coast line has a beautiful dramatic landscape but the climate is extremely harsh. The wind howls in off the sea and it is often bitterly cold.

The company became well known for their hand made moccasins; beautifully sewn slip on shoes made from butter soft leather. Following input from a Danish company they decided that they were ideally placed to start creating marine footwear.

Since then Dubarry have carved out a niche as a specialist company dedicated to creating high quality marine footwear. Along the way they have created shoes for other outdoor pursuits such as equestrian events, hunting, shooting and fishing. The brand has become something of a must have item at the Chelsea Flower Show and a number of other international events.

The brand is distributed in Australia by Burke Marine. Sail-World spoke to Martin Burke about Dubarry’s range of products.

'Dubarry is still a leading player in sailing, it is an Irish company that was set up with part ownership from the Irish government and an English family owned the other half.'

'In Ireland they are the shoe brand, they make school shoes and everything. Then a Danish company approached them to make sailing shoes and that is how they got into the boat shoe business.’

‘They came up with the Goodyear sole grip pattern, the pattern that disperses water in multiple ways. It really made them quite famous.’

The Goodyear sole grip pattern evolved in the early stages of Dubarry’s entry into the marine footwear industry. Their engineering team was struggling to come up with a sole design that would grip onto a slippery wet deck. The solution eluded them until they thought about the problem laterally. Where else do you find a non slip rubber surface that is often in contact with wet surface?

The answer is a car tyre.

This inspired bit of problem solving resulted in Dubarry’s distinctive outsole design. The company describes the design as follows;

‘It consists of a series of interconnecting channels designed to allow water to be dispersed away from the point of impact in several different directions simultaneously, thereby preventing aquaplaning or slippage as it is more commonly know.’

‘The more the traditional razor cut sole cannot possibly offer the same level of grip as this patented design.’

Martin Burke explained that it was not just the sole pattern which makes the shoes unique.

‘…The other thing they used and still use is the English leather called Pittards leather, which is specially oiled leather that doesn’t let water through but breathes.’

'The best footwear components and technology are used to manufacture Dubarry footwear. All leathers are uniquely water resistant with quick dry properties to ensure your boots and shoes retain their shape over time.'

‘They really invented the category of boots; they certainly did change boots, I think. In the marine area they were the first. We sell a lot before major events.'

Innovations to the Dubarry range of sea boots have included the introduction of Gore-Tex lining into some of their products. Gore-Tex is often found in top of the range wet weather gear. It’s tough, waterproof and breathable construction means that it’s ideally suited to marine applications.

‘The big feature of having a breathable boot is that you don’t get the sweat build up like you do on a rubber boot. So you actually keep your feet warmer and also drier, because you’re not sweating inside it like a rubber boot. So they’re a lot warmer than traditional rubber boots.’

Gore-Tex is breathable and waterproof because of a special membrane laminated onto the fabric. The membrane has millions of tiny pores, about 9 million per square inch. The pores are small enough to allow body moisture like perspiration to pass through the membrane, but too small to let larger water molecules get through. So sweat can get out, but water can’t get in.

Dubarry’s boots have become the footwear of choice for leading yachtsmen and yachtswomen competing in The Race, the Admirals Cup, the Vendee Globe, Americas Cup and B.T. Global Challenge amongst others.

As well as their hard core, stick to the foredeck in a cyclone, human fly, Clint Eastwood style sea boots, Dubarry makes an attractive range of deck shoes. The advantage of their deck shoes is that they function well on a boat, but are dressy enough to be worn ashore. Burke describes them as ‘crossover shoes.’

‘You could wear them onshore as much as much as on the boat. Particularly the three eyelet shoe, the Compass. That’s quite a nice, dressy shoe that one. Some of the colours are conservative enough to wear on shore.’

Burke is importing three new styles for the 2007 season. These are the Compass, Cruiser and the Seychelles deck shoes.

The Compass is the star of the show. It’s made from oiled Nubuck, which is cattle leather that has been buffed or sanded on its outer surface to give a velvet like surface. There’s shock absorption in the sole and Dubarry’s famous Dryfast-Drysoft™ finish.
‘It also has a moisture wicking lining with built in antimicrobial protection against bacteria and fungi, so whether wet or dry, hot or cold, this shoe will keep feet fresh and comfortable.’
The Seychelles will be popular with the ladies. It’s a dedicated ladies two eye deck shoe which comes in a wide range of colours and super soft leather.
‘And that’s the things I guess Dubarry is famous for. Soft leathers and really good grip.’

Contact details
Address : 1/5 Clyde Street
City : Rydalmere
State : NSW
Postcode : 2116
Country : Australia
Phone : +61 2 9638 4333
Email : sales@burkemarine.com.au
http://www.burkemarine.com.au
http://www.dubarry.com