Waterproof footwear, such as boots, are used in outdoor recreational activities as well as in a number of industrial and professional uses. For example, waterproof boots are often used in hunting and fishing to ensure that the sportsman's feet remain dry during the recreational activity. Additionally, waterproof boots are used in the animal husbandry and farming environments, as well as many other professional environments.
One type of waterproof boots includes over-the-calf boots made entirely of rubber. Other conventional waterproof boots include an outer rubber waterproof layer over an inner layer of supporting material. The use of rubber as the waterproof material can provide a number of functional benefits, because rubber of sufficient thickness is strong, resilient, puncture resistant, and fairly durable. Such rubber boots, however, are typically inflexible, heavy, and do not fit the wearer's foot and/or leg very well.
Other waterproof boots have been developed that include a neoprene inner layer fully covered by an outer layer of rubber vulcanized onto the neoprene. This neoprene and vulcanized rubber construction provides a light weight boot that fits better and is more comfortable than the all-rubber boots. The manufacturing process of laying up the rubber and vulcanizing it onto the outside of the neoprene sock is a fairly laborious manufacturing process, which can increase the boot's manufacturing cost. The heat applied to the boot assembly during the vulcanization process can also have a negative effect on the inner neoprene sock. For example, the neoprene may be susceptible to taking a set and losing elasticity during the vulcanization process. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved light weight, waterproof boot and associated method of manufacture.