I have poor ankles and wanted a higher shoe for ankle support to prevent folding. I had a pair of French shoes of this style that worked extremely well; however, the soles have begun shredding after several years of use, so I was looking for a less expensive alternative. These shoes provide some support but not the strong grip of the others. In general, though, I have not had any incidents of ankle rolling and am satisfied.<br />Revised review. Purchased in 2015. This past week (8/2017) cloth loop for boot lace frayed apart - can't replace loop as it's sewn in between two pieces of upper leather. Upon inspection found all of the cloth loops in the upper portion of the boot showed signs of fraying. I don't know if two years is about right for these shoes or not but having to put them aside because of cloth loops seems very unfortunate. Other than that, they were good boots and I never had a rolled ankle while wearing them. I am trying some other Columbia boots that use metal loops.