UKC

Its high level of stiffness and support may not be for everyone, or every occasion, but the Boostic R really is 'the edging machine', and this makes it perhaps Rob Greenwood's all-time favourite performance shoe for hard trad and sport climbing. 

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Didn't realise you could size down XXX sizes...  

Oops, I meant to update that before it went live 

I went down a single UK shoe size (and the article has been updated accordingly). You could go down 1.5 sizes if you were after a super technical fit, but obvioulsy that would have a knock-on effect to comfort, and I was probably after a bit more of a balance (i.e. snug, but not crippling).

No worries thought I'd point it out!

For my 2p's worth I find measuring the sole length helps me guide size. The Instinct 41 is the same as the Boostic OG 42, very similar fit for me in terms of performance. I wear 42 in TX4's, Mescalito's & Gecko's in approach shoes!

Is Deep Rake now the official UK shoe testing venue? 
No wonder so many of the routes now seem more polished. 

Scarpa's Miura VS?

I too was wondering if Rob thought the Muira VS was less stiff or has just been forgotten/not tested 

Apologies for the delayed reply on this, I'd completely missed C Rettiw's original question.

There's definitely similarities between them, insofar as they're both stiff/supportive shoes designed for performance trad/sport; however, there's also some quite significant differences.

The Miura VS actually feels quite old school in terms of its construction. The support comes from the the fact it's got a thick, solid midsole. The Boostic R, in comparison, features all the tech construction-wise and the support comes from that in the form of the shoe's randing, tension and also the midsole, but the other factors play a huge part. 

The strength of the Boostic R is also that it's a lot more adaptable, whereas the Miura VS feels a lot more one dimensional. If you stand on a micro edge the Miura VS is incredible, but if it does get at all smeary then the Boostic R would be the shoe you want on, because it's capable of a much wider range of use.

This isn't to say that I don't like the Miura VS, because I do - they're absolutely great; however, they're just a little more limiting. 

As always though, try before you buy!!

We did Deep Vein Thrombosis twice on camera, and I think I've done it a couple of times before, but there's 678 other ascents in the logbooks. I'm not sure what you're saying about my footwork, but it doesn't polish the crag up that quickly in comparison to other people's 😂

What other shoes come in this category? Miuras? TC Pros?

In terms of support the TC Pro and Scarpa Generator are definitely contenders, although both sit at the comfort (as opposed to the performance) end of the spectrum. I'd say they're very different shoes to the Boostic R, but share a little more in common with the Miura VS.

I think, as with all these sorts of things, it's worth asking yourself what you want/need. Is it performance, comfort, support, sensitivity? The Boostic R is definitely geared towards climbing hard (i.e. as hard as you can), whereas the Generator can climb hard - it's not what I'd choose to climb at the very top level. 

Sorry Rob, how did you find the sizing compared to the original? Exactly the same or slightly different? 

Has UKC reviewed any footwear made by Scarpa lately?

12 months of footwear reviews, excluding group tests:

16 standalone review articles.

10 for Scarpa models

6 for all other brands combined (Boreal, La Sportiva, Unparallel, Oboz, Mammut).

This might just be an anomaly, because the year of footwear reviews from May 2023 to May 24 looks to be a bit more varied and less Scarpa-centric. Or it might be something to do with a change in the marketing dept at Scarpa, perhaps they’ve uppered their game and are pressing harder to be the sole UKC brand. Or it might be that they’re just churning out loads of new things, lacing up the market while every other shoe manufacturer is making their existing models last. Or it could be a change at UKC, a new editorial direction or something?  But yeah, since I first noticed this current trend / anomaly I haven't been able to stop noticing it, so I'm trying to get myself to stop noticing it by putting it out in the world. (Y’know like how if you want to rid yourself of a demon you have to be able to say its name, or to stop being plagued by an earworm you have to go and listen Carlie Rae Jepson’s 'Call Me Maybe' 3000x slower on youtube for a couple of hours).

The other trend I've spotted over the last 12 months, which has long since been noted elsewhere in the forums, is there have been 16 standalone footwear review articles and 2 footwear group tests, and they’ve been reviewing men’s shoes (and have been written by men) in all cases except one instance where a woman talked about one women’s model. I don’t think this makes May 2024-25 anomalous though.

In reply to myself, I purchased a pair of the new R's in the same size as my old pair (42). The sole length is exactly the same and I can't really tell the difference between the OG's and the R's after 7 days of climbing. The only difference is the rubber toe patch is slightly softer on the R's which puts less pressure on the toes and the material inside is softer to the skin. 

For more reference, the sole length is the same as the Mago, Chimera and Drago LV all in a size 42. I find they fit all the same (bar the LVs which are narrower). 

Hi Joe, It's interesting to notice that your post got 9 dislikes. It always impresses me how many people don't like well researched facts presented in a coherent fashion. They probably all voted for Brexit too. 

But you're right, it usually seems to be Scarpa, and they always seem to be the "best shoe" in whatever category. 

Having said that, I only ever wear Scarpas, but still - a bit of variety might be nice!

Given UKC's stated policy of only reviewing products from brands that advertise on UKC, can we draw the conclusion that Scarpa are the footwear brand that pay UKC the most/most frequently for advertising?

I'm sure there is much too that, although I suspect it is more to do with constancy than amount. You also get the feeling from doing reviews certain companies go through phases of regularly contributing products for reviews - a couple of years ago Dolomite put up quite a few different boots and approach shoes for reviews - both in group tests and standalone reviews. I get the feeling that for non-UK brands this often corresponds with the company pushing to be more prominent in the UK market, perhaps they have a new and more proactive UK agent or similar. 

When I started writing reviews for UKC - the earliest ones are now almost 18 years old! :-0 - I remember reviewing lots of DMM gear - harnesses, krabs, offsets, Torque nuts, ultimately the Dragons when they came out. I think the last DMM thing I reviewed was the pivot which now has to be 10 years ago, and besides the ice tools I can't remember seeing too much stuff being reviewed by others. I don't know if DMM have just chosen to focus their marketing elsewhere, or haven't had many new products recently, but over that last decade it does seem that Edelrid has worked a lot more with UKC and put forward lots of products for testing. 

Could it be just that Scarpa has had a couple of years of releasing lots of new climbing shoes? Or updated classic models?