Thursday Women’s Captain Review | The Rare Resoleable Women’s Boot

When it comes to footwear — and life in general — I’m an instant gratification kinda gal.

I live in New York City, meaning I walk an average of 10,000 steps a day and contain zero ounces of patience in my body. As a result, I pretty exclusively seek out shoes that feel comfortable straight out of the box, even if that means sacrificing quality and longevity in exchange for said comfort. I broke in a pair of Doc Martens once, and it almost broke me.

Welted boots, then — the kind built tough and heavy and resoleable for all eternity — were for other people. People with more endurance than I. People willing to incur short-term blisters in exchange for long-term quality. I thought I am simply not one of those people. 

Then I got a pair of Thursday Captain boots.

Thursday Boots Women’s Captain: Pros & Cons

Pros

• Repairable and resoleable; rare for boots marketed at women
• The Goodyear welt construction is very water resistant
• Comfortable out of the box with very little break-in
• Great price for a Goodyear welted boot

Cons

• A bit stiff at first
• Heavier than more “fashion forward” boots I own, but worth it for extra durability

The Company: Thursday Boot Company

Founded in 2014 by college buds Connor Wilson and Nolan Walsh, Thursday Boot Company is built around a direct-to-consumer model designed to make boots more affordable. Since the beginning, when the company only produced men’s boots, they’ve maintained a dedication to versatility and durability, popularizing sleeker designs than you normally see in the world of resoleable boots.

In the decade since, they’ve expanded to women’s styles and grown quite a collection— most of which are cemented for affordability, lightness, and comfort. That means the sole is basically glued to the upper like your sneakers are.

But the women’s version of the Captain boot is an exception to that rule: it’s the rare Goodyear welted boot that’s marketed for women. And while I thought that would make them too stiff and heavy, I was pleasantly surprised.

The Style: Thursday Boot’s Captain

• Sleek silhouette with an almond-shaped toe
• Classic design with smooth lines
• 1″ heel, 5.75″ height

The Captain exists somewhere in the middle of a spectrum stretching from work boot to dress boot: it’s not chunky and heavy, it’s not dainty and high fashion.

It comes in ten leathers that fall into the categories of “Rugged & Resilient” (a more outdoorsy look), “Classic” (less matte and more fashionable) and the “StormKing Lug” sole versions, which have a tougher, serrated sole for better grip.,

I opted for the Rugged & Resilient version in the Arizona Adobe shade — a slightly distressed reddish-brown leather designed to soften with wear, a welcome departure from my usual black boot obsession. The style and color will go with just about anything — the touch of red means it’s not as out of place under black jeans as brown boots can sometimes be — and I found they pair particularly beautifully with jeans and this long denim skirt I just got from Free People and am currently obsessed with.

The Captain has a slim silhouette and an almond-shaped toe with a matching toe cap. Dark brown laces criss-cross through shiny silver eyelets that add a lovely contrast.  The stitching on the vamp and heel counter make for some nice smooth lines that aren’t over-the-top, and a humble one-inch heel adds shape without too much height.

They’re hardy, sure — the leather and build make them water resistant and the low heel emphasizes its utility — but this is a classically beautiful pair of boots.

The Leather: Thursday Captain Boot

The Rugged and Resilient collection comes from Tier 1 USA cattle and is sourced from the Lefarc Tannery in León, Mexico, which won a gold medal from the Leather Working Group in 2009 for its dedication to ethical and sustainable leather production.

A lot of cheap leather is made in badly regulated facilities that release toxic chemicals like chromium III into waterways and workers’ bodies; the Leather Working Group certification means the tannery’s regularly audited and it’s a nice way to know your leather isn’t bottom of the barrel.

The Rugged and Resilient leathers are more matte than the Classic offerings because they’re infused with a lot of oils. This not only gives them nice, subtle variation in their color, it also makes them very water resistant and it means the boots don’t need a lot of care and conditioning. (Some brands ask you to apply creams and conditioners every month, but that’s not the case here.)

The laces are made of Kevlar — yeah, the same material used to make bulletproof vests — and the buttery leather lining, cork-bed midsoles, and Poron® Shock-Absorbing Insoles are designed to form to your feet over time.

The Construction: Thursday Captain Boot

• Repairable and water-resistant Goodyear Welted construction
• Studded rubber outsoles provide traction without looking too aggressive
• Poron insole absorbs shock better than most boots.

Now, let’s talk about what’s under the upper.

While most of Thursday’s women’s boots are cemented (meaning that the top of the boot is glued to the sole for a lightweight sneaker-y feel), the Captains are made with Goodyear welt (GYW) construction.

This means that the welt, a strip of leather that runs along the sole’s perimeter, gets sewn to the upper and the sole instead of the two being attached to each other. It’s a way of ensuring a durable connection (no soles peeling off like my sneakers do as they near their end) and it means that the boots are seriously water resistant and capable of being resoled again and again. 

They’re not waterproof, which often requires bulky Goretex lining and a lot of extra volume. But GYW boots are perfectly waterproof enough for walking through rainstorms. You just can’t stand in a lake all day like a fly fisher.

The rubber sole does a good job of combining aesthetics and utility: it’s flat when viewed from the side, but it has studs that are recessed into the sole so you get grip without adding aggressive lugs.

For their sleek profile, the boots are a bit heavier than the average woman’s boot (but not even close to the weight of, say, my platform Doc Martens) but they’re surprisingly soft to walk on because the insole is a kind of foam called Poron that’s more common in sneakers. Most welted boots have leather insoles and while they have their benefits, the use of foam makes the Captains feel softer underfoot and it reduces the break in. 

All in all, these boots defied my expectations in terms of comfort. Even though they’re welted, they felt quite nice right out of the box — if a tiny bit stiff, which is to be expected.

It did take a few walks around the city to break them in fully, but they’re perfectly flexible now and the more I wear them, the more the leather, insole, and midsole conform to my foot’s shape. That’s a big part of why folks fall in love with boots: they get incrementally more comfy and custom-feeling the more you wear them.

The Sizing & Fit: Thursday Captain Boot

• Order a half size up from your sneaker size

It’s important to note that these boots run a bit small. Thursday advises sizing half a size up from your normal sneaker size, and you’d do well to heed their advice. I’m typically a 9, but a 9.5 felt perfect.

Despite the boot’s narrow profile the toe box felt plenty roomy, even for my slightly flipper-shaped feet. 

The Price & Value

• $198

The fact that these boots are Goodyear welted, made from LWG rated leather, and only cost $198 is really something. Similar brands and styles like Grant Stone’s Nora boot and Red Wing’s Clara boot will run you nearly twice that, at $328 and $360, respectively. Those brands are made with thicker leather and insoles, yes — but they’re heavier and less comfortable as a result. Plenty of men like that extra bulk, but Thursday did a good job of balancing unusual durability with the kind of comfort the women’s market prefers in their boots.

A classic pair of Doc Martens 1460s ring in slightly below the Captains at $170, but a side-by-side comparison of the two reveals a clear advantage: the Thursdays have better leather (Docs can’t even tell you where theirs comes from; we’ve asked), a better fit (far less break-in time and more half sizes), and more durable construction (while the Docs are also welted, the welt isn’t leather and they’re attached with fire, both of which make Docs hard to resole).

Last year, Stridewise’s dear leader Nick proclaimed that the Captains are the best value boot on the market for men, and I think one could say the same for the women’s version. 

Wrapping Up: Thursday Boot’s Captain for Women

I appreciate that the women’s Captain includes nearly all the same features as the men’s version — the Goodyear welt construction for longevity, the Poron insole and cork-bed midsoles for comfort, the studded rubber lug soles for grip and the added confidence I won’t slip on my butt.

The only thing missing here is the steel shanks, which are in the men’s version to increase stability on rough terrain. They also add weight, though, and make the boots less flexible, which is probably why they’re not present in the women’s version (and perhaps why the women’s version cost $198 instead of $199??) 

All in all, the Captain is a rare boot — comfortable enough to appease my need for instant gratification, but built to stay functional and beautiful for far longer than your average glued-to-the-sole women’s boot.

And at just $198, they’re a steal. Welcome to gratification in all its forms.

Check out these Thursday women’s reviews before you hit the checkout button:

• Thursday Boot Company: Women’s Premier Low Top Sneaker
• Thursday Boot Company: Legend Women’s Chelsea Review
• Thursday Boot Company: The Best Value Women’s Leather Jacket?