UKC

Hi All,

I'm starting to look for my second pair of climbing shoes, and would appreciate some advice.

I current climb in these:
http://www.decathlon.co.uk/EN/vuarde-climbing-shoe-3232830/# On roughly 50:50 resin and grit (but also do the odd sport route on lime).

The only issue I have my current shoes, is that they don't seem to have enough friction for some of the more challenging smears that I've tried. (Although my technique could be a contributing factor here).

Beyond making sure that they fit properly what should I be looking for (shape-wise)?

Cheers

In reply to mmmhumous:

Best advice i can give you is go to a shop try on loads of pairs and buy the ones that fit best not the ones that look the best

In reply to pauldr:

Cheers Pauldr

Realised I wasn't particularly clear in the OP ...... what I'm getting at is: What makes a particular shape of shoe better for say smearing. Are there differences in the rubber used, and when manfacturers talk about their shoe being technical etc. does it actually mean anything?

Cheers

In reply to mmmhumous: The more rigid the shoe the better it is at edging and I would have said that the opposite is also true i.e. the less rigid the better at smearing but I have just bought a pair of Sportive Muira VS which are very rigid but are still very good at smearing so I'm not sure that the old rules still apply. To a large extent I suspect that this is down to modern high friction rubber.

Al

In reply to mmmhumous:
Yes there are differences in the rubber its the same as buying a set of tyres for your car and i imagine it is the same principal of the cheaper the tyre (boot) the lower the quality of the rubber used.

A technical shoe tends to mean there are a few differences in the design of the boot. The shape tends to be more agressive forcing the foot into a certain position. there is a good amount of info here.....
http://www.outside.co.uk/knowledge/which_rock_shoe.html

For smearing the most important thing is fit, you could have the stickiest boots in the world but if your foot slides around inside then you might aswell wear teflon coated bannanas!

as above try on as many shoes as possible when you find a good shape try on different sizes, preferably in a store that has a wall of some sort to practise on.

Good luck.

In reply to kilner:


Fit is the most important thing for everything. But otherwise you are spot on.
Iain

In reply to mmmhumous: I'm on my first pair of shoes still but have heard from many people that my Evolv Defys are a great smearing shoe, and I can believe it they'll grip almost anything you throw at them. I think it has to do with the flexibility of the shoe, as people have said, but also the width of the shoe. The more surface area the more friction, plus they have quite soft rubber. They're really comfortable as well. One downside is they don't have much edging capability but it's swings and roundabouts really. If you do end up getting a pair, mine have stretched quite a bit so make sure when you buy them they're super snug. Cheers.

In reply to mmmhumous:

Thanks for all the advice so far (including the emails). Very much appreciated.

I've tried on the Boreal Joker and Five Ten Anasazi Velcro at my local shop and climbed a range of routes in both my shoes, and my partner's (Scarpa Vantage), so I'm starting to get more of an idea of what I'm after:

The Jokers were pretty comfortable and the Anasazi were right at the limit of comfort I'm willing to sacrifice for performance (their shape forced my toes to curl slightly).

Climbing a few routes in my partner's shoes was eye-opening though! I hadn't realied just how thin and flexible the soles on my shoes are, there was a lot less feeling through the Vantage's soles (less precise, but also less painful on spikey holds), but also their stiffer mid-sole provided far more arch support than mine do.

So I 'm after a non-aggressive shape, with 'relatively' thin soles and good arch support/stiff mid-sole.

Any suggestions? Do these shoes exist, or do I need a hacksaw and some no-more-nails? I'm off to a few more shops tomorrow.... hmmm B&Q or North Face?

Cheers

Maybe try Anasazi Verdes: soft enough to be a good smearing shoe on grit, but just about stiff enough for plastic. Because they're lace ups you may get away with a more relaxed fit lengthwise than with the velcros - you can really tighten them up for the odd hard boulder problem but keep them a bit looser the rest of the time. They're certainly sensitive anyhow, and I like mine!

In reply to mmmhumous: have you tried squeaking your shoes? I have a pair of decathlon shoes and the rubber on them is ok, but in most instances a really good clean helps loads.

In reply to Max factor:

Thanks. In retrospect, I think whenever I've slipped while smearing, it has probably been down to poor technique rather than the shoes.

In reply to Siderunner:

Will do. Cheers

In reply to mmmhumous:

I have a pair of Jokers, they're comfy enough to just leave on all the time, well maybe I take them off once in a while. I'm currently trying 7a's and I don't feel that it's the shoe's that are holding me back.

Having said that I just got a pair of Crux's to try someting different. Much stiffer shoe, more for edging than smearing. Nowhere near as comfy as the jokers, can't leave them on while belaying. Currently I'm only using them when trying small hold type climbs, I still use the jokers for most climbs. Maybe when the Crux's wear in a bit they'll be better.

In reply to mmmhumous: I put my five ten spires through the wash the other day: OMG, the rubber's like brand new and they stick to anything. Having them resoled next week as well, since they're coming through at the toe.

In reply to mmmhumous: I've found Evolv Bandits to be great at smearing and edging, but also comfortable enough for all day use. They also feel secure on smears unlike other shoes I've used with a harder rubber.

They're not the most technical shoe at all, but for your second pair they would seem a good choice to try.

In reply to mmmhumous:

Just picked up a shiny new pair of 5.10 Anasazi Verde. In the end it came down to a toss up between them and a pair of Boreal Silex (slightly more precise, but not quite as good a fit).

Surpiringly, when measured, it turns out I'm a wide size 8 ( I typically wear size 9.5-10).

I went for the 5.10s in and 8.5 for the balance of comfort and perforamce (but could get away with an 8 when I'm looking for something to wear on more technical stuff).

In the end the grip and fit swung it in favour of the 5.10's.

Thank's for everyone's advice. Most useful advice I'd pass on (other than actually trying rock shoes on) is to try any shoes out on actual holds. It makes all the difference.

Cheers