Review: Boreal Satori Climbing Shoe

Right out of the box, the Satori impressed testers with well-thought-out details, a near-perfect fit, and an aggressive feel. The forefoot is designed to scrunch your toes for precision and power, but designers lifted the roof of the toe box to give those cramped digits space, instead of smashing them down. Boreal’s proprietary Toe Flexion System also kept the forefoot very flexible. “I could wear these bouldering V6 in the alpine, and then rock them for three-hour sport sessions in the gym,” one tester said of the Satori’s versatility and comfort, the latter thanks to a foot-hugging sock-like lining on the top that sits underneath a padded tongue. “The lacing system is the best of two worlds. You get the simplicity of a single Velcro strap, but laces cover more than half your foot, so you can dial in a snug, tightened-down-all-over fit,” one tester said. “It really locked my foot in place,” which was great when combined with the all-rubber, narrow heel cup that made even the most technical heel hooks a breeze. By placing additional toe rubber over the entire top of the forefoot, testers could toe hook at all types of angles, even on the most extreme and awkward features. However, the shoes’ overall stiff feel, even in the upper, made these less than perfect on anything slabbier than vertical.