Climbing Shoe Review
The Tarantula is a comfortable shoe that feels at home on climbers with big features and low grades. If you’re exclusively bouldering indoors, I suggest also checking out the Tarantula Boulder.go to full review
Moderately overhung faces are the natural habitat of the Indalo. All its stand-out features offer you the tools to excel on this type of terrain; that laser-precise toe, a bomber 3D- heel cup with a “friction lock” that prevents it from crumbling when cranking hard, and a toe patch that provides buckets of friction on both rock and plastic.go to full review
When I first slipped into Mastia, I instantly noticed how asymmetric the shoe was. It felt strange for a moderate shoe to be so asymmetric, but once I started up some techie vertical sport routes, it all started to make sense. Honing in on small edges and features made me feel like a surgeon executing millimeter precision. The toe box feels so precise it confidently sticks to even the smallest of features.go to full review
Needless to say, I was impressed at how well the Masai handles on the edges, although hardly surprised. The full-length sole is about as stiff as they come, which proves plenty of under-foot support. Once the laces are tightly fastened and the heel properly secured, the board-stiff sole is tightly secured to the bottom of your foot. This creates the support we rely on while standing on micro edges and the high levels of comfort that is appreciated on big-wall adventures.go to full review
The Vapor V is great for beginners both in the gym or at the crag, as well as advanced climbers tackling a diverse range of projects. If you are looking for a shoe that can do everything well and become a long-standing member of your collection, the Vapor V will make an awesome addition.go to full review
In my opinion, a shoe like the Instinct VSR is the closest thing you can get to a sport and bouldering all arounder right now; soft enough to allow for flexibility to adapt to angles above and below vertical, enough support to stick smaller edges, and the sensitivity you need to get the read on how secure your foot placements feel.go to full review
I would absolutely recommend these to any reasonably experienced climber looking for a shoe that can do it all. As mentioned before, these were the reviewer’s absolute favourite shoe for several years before moving onto softer, more sensitive models and I still return to them for hard vertical walls or where I need a crucial edge.go to full review
The Cobra is all about cool, functional design and as Sportiva’s primary slipper, it excelles in indoor and all-day use. Frequently seen on hard grit and occasionally on competition style boulder problems, it can hold its own on the technical stuff, but is best suited to slabby, comfortable terrain where its soft moulding allows the user to wear it for long periods of time (as long as the fit is right).go to full review
Whether it’s bouldering (Dan Varian said they were the best single pair of shoes for bouldering, Alex Puccio likes them), trad (Emma Twyford used them on her ascent of the The Big Issue E9), sport or competition climbing (too many top-end climbers using them to name!), then these are going to make you better.go to full review
An incredible shoe with almost no issues, an affordable price tag, and a respectable record of brilliance from a family of shoes beloved by climbers the world over. Scarpa have become my go-to shoes over the last year or more, with a number of different models jumping out as the best of their category, and this is no exception. I use them in every session I have at the wall, and frequently outside as well.go to full review