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Don Walker hung up his truck driver job decades ago to fashion a new livelihood — custom bootmaking.
He couldn't make a living on the road, he said, but his new trade is seemingly recession-proof: Constant orders from places such as Carbon County, Long Island and Moscow mean that customers now face a yearlong waiting list for a hand-crafted pair from Walker Boots.
"My retirement plan is, I get to retire when all the orders are filled," he said. "I don't plan on retiring."
The Sanpete County craftsman prefers to build versions he knows will be put to work.
"I don't want 'em all spiffed up. I want them lookin' used," he said. "I wish I could just make boots for working cowboys, working ranchers. But there's not enough of those," Walker said Saturday at the Natural History Museum of Utah, where he demonstrated his skills as part of the "From The Horse's Mouth" series, which brings a variety of people who have some kind of connection to horses.
His wife Ellen Walker is tied to the animals, too. She raises Hungarian horses on the couple's property near Spring City, which also houses the boot shop.
She said her husband doesn't think of himself as an artist. "He's a perfectionist, he'll keep at it until it's right," she said.
For his part, Walker specializes in Western dress boots with ornate designs, which start at about $850 and take a year to reach customers after he begins work on a pair. But he also fashions hiking boots, sandals and orthotics.
The former Army nurse was part of a team he says oversaw the emergency room at Dugway Proving Ground.
After that, Walker, 62, a Nebraska native, spent 17 years as a truck driver and returned to Utah to start a boot repair service, even though he calls himself a "lousy businessman."
He realized he could make sturdier boots than the ones he was mending and found a mentor in Randy Merrill, the former footwear CEO, who he says taught him various tips.
For customers, Walker takes a variety of measurements on each foot, then grinds or builds the leather to match accordingly.
"You don't have a pair of feet. You have a right foot and a left foot," he said.
He had on display a star-spangled version he made in a series of late-night work sessions while his son served an Army tour in Iraq.
"I didn't get much sleep that year," Walker said.
He told museum-goers Saturday that his customers try on a test model made with packing tape, and Walker readjusts until he finds the right fit.
Buyers can pick from cowhide, stingray, calf, kangaroo, and even elephant and ostrich, which he says is known to be more durable. Customers choose among tones ranging from muted and natural to fire-engine red, and also decide on heel height and toe shape.
Added Walker: "I maintain artistic license."
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