shoes

[niqaeli]

I have some questions about shoes. I'm pretty sure if I go digging through the community, I can get find recommendations on an affordable initial pair of shoes because rentals are, um, disgusting and not conducive to me wanting to go climbing -- but if anyone cares to rec their favourite shoes that would be awesome.

Relatedly, though, how long do you expect an initial pair of shoes to last? I mean obviously that's going to be affected by how often you're going climbing, but ballpark estimates? Are you more likely to wear through them before needing a new pair for other reasons (ie, needing a more technical shoe, or having gone down in size)? If you're climbing outdoors rather than at a gym does that tend to make a difference in the wear? If climbing outdoors, does the type of rock you tend to climb make a difference in the wear?

These questions are brought to you by the letter M, the number 4, general curiousity, and also fic research. :P

Comments

[wpadmirer]

Lace-ups definitely will fit better than velcro. Wide feet or narrow feet, you can lace appropriately. My first pair of shoes were Evol Royales and they lasted a year of constant climbing (and very, very bad technique!) (grin)

Royales don't have a good curve for bouldering, though. They're a great shoe for a beginner, and they last great, but they have a round front toe that doesn't lend to toe hold things.

I currently and wearing La Spotiva Tarantulas. They're one of their less expensive shoes, but they are velcro. I have very narrow feet, but by going down to a smaller size, they fit snugly and are not painful.

[aella_irene]

...this may explain why I and my new Evol Royale's have been unable to cope with recent changes to the traverses at my local club which involve tiny toe holds. And there I thought I was just a bad climber! (Well, I am, but the tiny toeholds are not helping.)

[wpadmirer]

That can definitely be a factor. That's why I changed to a shoe with a pointed toe. It helps!

[aella_irene]

That explains so much! Alas, I cannot justify new shoes for a while, so I will just struggle on...

[niqaeli]

Lace-ups do sound like a very good idea for me. I have a fairly severe bunion on an already wide ball-of-foot with the rest of my foot not being nearly as wide. So, yeah, being able to vary the lacing will be good.

Not being able to balance on my toes would drive me nuts so it's good to have the reminder about that. <3

[rydra_wong]

Oh yeah, lace-ups sounds like a very good idea then. IIRC, someone in the comm got Sportiva Nagos as their first shoes and liked them. The Sportiva Mythos shoes are more expensive but get a lot of love.

There are various lace-up Five Tens, and Evolv's website says they've got lace-up Elektras and Defys out now, so you won't be short of options.