Problem with new walking boots

mostly_harmless

Another thing to consider is when rubber soles are manufactured the mould is sprayed with mould release so they can get it out. This will make the rubber slippy until it's worn off. The same thing happens with bicycle tyres, they can be very slippery for the first 20-30 miles until the mould release has worn off. You could very lightly sand the soles with some fine sandpaper to rough them up a bit.