Bouldering

[KnottedYet]

My latest "heads up" regarding bouldering shoes: wrestling shoes!

Wrestling season is over, so the wrestling shoes are on clearance. (I can't find any in my size, bummer.) One boulderer said he got some for $18.

I'm thinking I'll just go barefoot like I did umpteen years ago and climb on some outdoor walls. If I feel the love, *then* I'll go buy some shoes. Meanwhile I'll scour the internet for cheap off-season wrestling shoes, just in case...

Edit: BTW, the Mad Rock Phoenix shoes didn't fit my wide toes AT ALL. None of the women's shoes fit me either. La Sportiva Cliff fit me nicely. Of course, they cost more than the Phoenix... poo.

[Kimmyt]

I have a wide toe box and have found very few velcros that fit me. i'm much more lucky with lace-ups, but I do like the versatility of a velcro. I have the 5.10 Ascent which is marketed as an 'all-day' trad type shoe, but I use it for everything. it's a bit soft at times for doing really technical climbing on tiny edges, but it works for most everything I can get on anyway.

I don't know about the wrestling shoes, though... the sticky rubber on climbing shoes really makes a difference. i climbed in some Mad Rock rental shoes which were super cheap and the rubber felt like climbing on glass, it was that slick-feeling. Also, particularly with bouldering, and once you get onto harder problems that are more overhanging and technical, you may find you want a shoe with more of a downturned toe. But then, these tend to be less comfortable, so it's hard to find a good compromise between comfort and aggresiveness.

K.

[solobiker]

Could you try the shoes on the indoor wall at REI, or maybe purchase them, try them out at a local gym and if they dont perform the way you want you could retrun them. A few climbs should't change the sole that much. I have mythos, marathons and just got a new pair of 5 10s for alpine climbs

[KnottedYet]

That's what I gotta talk to the store manager about. (now, years ago this wouldn't've been an issue... ah, how things change...) I really think I'll just putter around barefoot like I used to, then see about buying shoes. The ones I liked best were the La Sportiva Cliff, though I'd like to try the 5.10 Spire. The Spire is what my REI rents out on the climbing wall, but they didn't have any in my size on the shelf that I could try on.

Tomorrow is my first day "off" on my new 4x10 shift clinic schedule. Gotta million things to do, REI might end up low on the totem pole.

And I agree; my feet don't do well with velcro. I end up with wads of leather here and there and strangled toes. I like the full-laceups, too.

Slippery soles: do folks still use wire brushes to freshen up their rock shoe soles? Or is that something from long ago that no-one does anymore?