By MIKE CORN

mcorn@dailynews.net

OAKLEY -- The shelves that line the walls in Ted Howard's shop outside Oakley remain filled, the result of a sour economy.

But that's a boon for this craftsman, whose boot repair shop sits about 5 miles southwest of Oakley, where he lives, keeps a few horses and manages an 80-head cow herd.

Rather than buy a new pair of boots, people are getting them fixed, and at an increasing pace, people are going to Howard's shop for the repairs.

The 54-year-old Howard draws in boots for repair from throughout northwest Kansas, not to mention a few other states. But it's the area boots that are the heart and soul of his business. And he's got a network of delivery systems that can't be beat.

Because his shop is located outside Oakley, he's got a drop-off point in Oakley, at the Golden Shears barber shop in town.

Friends who make regular trips to surrounding communities help him pick up boots elsewhere. They come from Goodland, Hoxie, Gove, Colby and Burlington, Colo.

"I've got a friend who goes to Burlington every Tuesday," he said.

People also drop them off from Sharon Springs, Hays and other locations.

Howard has been in the boot-fixing business for 15 years now, something he always wanted to do.

Initially, his shop was at the corner of U.S. highways 40 and 83 at Oakley's south end, a busy corner to be sure, what with all the truck traffic.

But the cinder block building in town left plenty to be desired, what with a lack of insulation -- meaning high prices for heating and cooling.

Today, it's in a shop just south of where he lives.

When he made the move out to the farm, Howard wondered if it was the right thing to do.

"When I finally came out here two years ago, I thought 'now what am I going to do?' " he said. "I think I'm going to starve to death."

But the economics of the situation worked.

His utility bills in town were so high, he said, that he had to do 29 half-soles and heels just to break even.

"You can't do that in Oakley," he said.

Then his rent was doubled. He first looked at putting his shop up on Main Street, but decided that he would lose some of his traffic.

So he made the decision to move outside town. First, a work area had to be made.

"But last winter, it took 75 gallons of propane to heat," he said. The shop doesn't add much to the electric bill, even keeping it cool in the summer.

To be sure, amid all the worries, the economy has helped Howard.

"Tough times have helped my business," he admits.

For a while, he said, he was 29 pairs behind.

"Now, I can kind of keep up," he said.

The business goes in spurts, Howard said, but "when 20 pairs are staring at you, it gets hectic."

While Howard isn't above fixing a pair of shoes, boots are the heart and soul of his business.

And while northwest Kansas brings most of the boots for him to work on, Howard said he's gotten boots from as far away as Alabama. He also gets them from South Dakota and Texas.

"Quite a few from Denver," he noted.

And the horses munching on hay along the south side of the building?

They're not just advertising for his boot and tack shop. He breaks and trains horses, and is a team roper.

"I went to the KPRA finals last year at Scott City," he said. There, he handled the head rope with partner Scott Lundgren of Scott City.

"We never roped together before that," he said. "We both needed a partner and they paired us up."