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Leukotape P: The Duct tape for your body
About 10 years ago I began the arduous process of finding “the right boot” for my foot. As many hunters and avid hikers know, especially those of us with picky feet, not all boots (or feet) are created equal. Boot after boot I struggled with excessive heel slip, toe boxes being too narrow, and arches being too high. Throughout this process which took a year or so and spanned many miles on hunts and at work, I learned one thing very quickly - how to manage blisters. Enter Leukotape P. It didn’t take much googling to stumble upon Amazon for this high tensile strength, high adhesive, and incredibly versatile athletic sports tape. In a country plagued by footwear designed for fashion over function along with an innumerable variety of foot shapes and sizes, it’s no surprise there are a lot of people working to avoid the wretched blister.
Leukotape P was designed primarily for two key functions. First, to reinforce weak or injured joints with rigid yet flexible mobilization. And second, to protect skin from excessive rubbing in high friction areas such as your heel, arch, toes, you name it. I would suspect that the vast majority of people using Leukotape P are doing so to prevent blisters on their feet. I have used it only in two applications - preventing blisters on my heel and toes, and creating added support for my incredibly flat feet and collapsed arch (often referred to as Low Dye taping or longitudinal arch support taping). What makes this tape so unique and valuable to a hunter or anyone putting in long hours on their feet is its high adhesive strength and ability to be both flexible and just rigid enough to provide support.
Once on a 7-day pack-in hunt, I taped up both of my feet in concerning areas and didn’t need to retape until the very end of the trip before we hiked 9 miles out. Even then I did so more as an insurance policy and not because the tape job had come apart. There’s something to the adhesive they use that allows it to withstand constant friction, moisture, and time, without it becoming irritating to the skin. Another major stress test Leukotape P passes with flying colors is our annual Rim 2 Rim 2 Rim hike in the Grand Canyon that spans 47.5 miles and an ungodly amount of elevation change. Wearing trail shoes, I’ve learned to tape not only my heels but my toes as well before the hike even starts so I avoid those pesky hot spots and blisters altogether. Through the hundreds of thousands of sweaty and dusty steps we take on that hike, Leukotape holds strong, stays where I put it, supports my arch, and makes sure I don’t suffer any crippling blisters.
I’ve lost count a long time ago of how many rolls of Leukotape P I’ve gone through over the years. It’s easily become one of the things I never leave home without and have a full or partial roll in all of my overnight kits as a precautionary tool on a hunt or even an active vacation.