Evening Sends

I like using ropes, thanks very much, and have no aspirations to become the next free soloist, but the idea of eschewing socks and having a bit of climbing-honed performance underfoot for the approaches and technical scrambles is something that interested me. And so it was with that in mind that I picked up a pair of the Sportiva TX2 Evo approach shoes, one of the more technical and lightweight approach shoes made by this Italian company.go to full review

The Five Ten Crawe is very stiff and bulky, it almost feels like you’re wearing a high-performance ski boot when you first put it on. The shoe softens a bit over time, but not by much. If you like soft and sensitive shoes, this probably won’t be a go-to. I would recommend the Five Ten Crawe to intermediate climbers looking to step up their game and dive into more high-performing climbing footwear because it provides a lot of support and performance. More advanced climbers, however, might..." go to full review

More than two decades later, I had a similar experience with the Tenaya Tanta lace. The shoe is soft, which is good, but it lacks any support for edging. I had the following experience while bouldering on granite: the rubber repeatedly rolled up and over my toe when I tried to stand on slopey granite smear and my foot kept blowing off the hold. To make sure that I hadn’t sustained a sudden stroke that blighted my climbing proprioception and understanding of all technique and movement, I..." go to full review

To be clear, the Quantic is certainly a cut above more than half of the climbing shoes on the market, and I’d take it over most other brands. It’s just not my favorite of Scarpa’s sterling lineup of climbing shoes. I found the Quantic to be a bit too stiff for my taste, which led to a lengthy break-in period. The thick straps made the shoe feel just a bit too clunky. And it feels as if the shoe is lacking some of the more aggressive tensioning other Scarpa shoes have, which delivers the..." go to full review

The one aspect I really like is the sock-like upper that hugs my foot without the need to tie down my laces tight. This simple feature makes it so I can slip the Five Tennie on and off without bothering to tie or untie my laces, which is obviously nice when you’re doing pitches with your partner. Who would you rather climb with, someone who spends 10 minutes tying and untying their shoes while sitting on your rope tarp as you respectfully wait to just pull the damn rope? Or someone who doesn..." go to full review

After two months of wear, the Boostic continues to not only deliver the kind of performance I’ve come to expect from Scarpa shoes, but actually surpass it. Edging, smearing, heel-hooking, and toe-hooking are a dream—on the steeps, slabs and everything in between. This is my top pick for a climbing shoe that does it all, really well.go to full review

The real show-stopper for this rope is the bold bi-pattern color scheme: half the cord is red and half is blue. I’ve gotten tons of comments from other climbers who love this design, which makes identifying the middle as easy as can be. Most bi-pattern climbing ropes on the market retain the same colors but just switch up the design. The Tommy Caldwell Eco Dry Color Tec 9.3mm stands out with this really stark color shift. I would have no problem calling this rope the best bi-pattern climbing..." go to full review

If you’ve been a fan of Arc’teryx harnesses, you will likely enjoy this rig. It’s built to do it all, and be comfortable, light, and packable. If you’re new to Arc’teryx harnesses, this is a good one to rip whether you’re a gym climber or big-waller or something in between.go to full review

If you already own a relatively new Grigri, there’s no real rush to run out and buy a Petzl GriGri+. The Grigri is a fantastic and totally safe belay device. However, I would absolutely consider making the GriGri+ the next one you get because it’s even more fantastic and safer by a significant degree.go to full review

The La Sportiva Theory is an excellent shoe for shorter and more overhanging routes, boulder problems, the gym, Moon Boarding, and of course, for doing parkour tricks on indoor comp problems. People with narrow-ish feet who like soft shoes should definitely check this shoe out.go to full review