I found these took about 5 minutes to 'warm up', and after that they were extremely comfortable. Make sure you get the right size (I'm normally a size 10 in womens shoes, i got an 8.5 in this boot, it's perfect), and how they're laced can make a big difference in comfort, but these are versatile. you can go ultra-snug or as loose as you want.

When I started Derby, I knew these were the boots I wanted because of how great they look. The day my skates arrived, I could hardly contain my excitement. These boots preform as fantastic as they look, and I love them. However, I have noticed my "breaking in" period has been much longer than most of the other girls on the team. As others have suggested, the last couple toes on my right foot went numb after skating for a few hours. The numbness does change the way you can t-stop and limits your movablity. So I found this to be a very frustrating problem as I was prepping for skills. But, now my boots seem broken in, and I would not trade them for anything else. If you're considering these boots, just make sure you've got the time and patience to break them in properly before you write them off.

So these are the first skates I've ever owned, and I adore them. One problem I have is that I have trouble getting them to be quite tight enough. My right foot is bigger than my left, and if I'm planning on skating for a few hours, I need to keep 'em tight so I don't get blisters. I don't notice too much pressure, and I don't get blisters, but my outside three toes on my right foot fall asleep if I tighten my laces for long skates. I'm thinking about putting an insert of some kind in there to keep the boot from putting pressure on my foot, but I'm not sure that'd work. The point is, other than that one minor thing, and it really is minor, these boots NEVER hurt, and perform super well. I love them.

These a very nice if you have normal width, normal arched feet, but I have wide feet combined with a low arch, and for me, with my almost-flat and wide foot (D width), the inside of the boot, near my inner arch was annoying to me. The inside arch area was too narrow for me - way more narrow in the arch than the 125s. If you do not have a wide / near flat combination, this issue will not apply to you and you will enjoy the nice arch support. Now mind you many derby skaters love this boot, but the inside elastic straps bugged me because my feet are wide for a girl (D width). I loved the 125s feel and I expected the same from the 265, but I don't like the feel for my foot type at all. Some people have wide feet with higher arches and you may love these but in my situation, they didn't work for me. As a kid, I used to skate Riedell's full Kanga speed skates and these do not fit the same for me. The interior elastic band really bugged me. If you have flat, D to E width feet try ordering custom boots or try the normal 125s. I owned two pairs of regular 125s (regular width) that fit my foot type well. I skated 2-3 nights a week in the derby and I'm now considering full custom 595s or 695s.

Bought these boots because a lot of the girls seemed to like them. I developed a bunionette on my right foot and had constant problems with my feet. I think these boots work out great for some girls but other they my not be the right choice. My foot is too wide but I have a narrow heal so it felt super loose when I was skating. Maybe girls with a similar foot type would do better with a 126 boot or doing a special order on these.