|
|
|
|
pico23
Oct 9, 2003, 4:14 AM
Post #26 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Mar 14, 2003
Posts: 2378
|
In reply to: no you dont a small amount of pain is ok. but it is personal preferance. I had a situation similar to this. I could not walk, or edge. It was rediculous. Some of the best climbers i see in my gym wear shoes that are the same size as their regular shoes. I now shoes that i am quite comfortable in and climb fine. At first, the should be a little small so they streach into shape. There should be no gaps anywhere in the shoe, and should curl your toes IT IS PERSONAL PREFERANCE
Certain styles of shoes are meant to curl the toes. You can determine if the shoe was intended for curled toes by the shape of the toe and the curl of the sole.
Maybe people are curling there toes in the Mythos but looking at the shoe and wearing it for years I'd think it would be a terrible shoe for that. Same thing with the 5.10 Spire and other similar shoes. Those shoes were meant to be worn with the toes completely filling the shoe after stretch but not completely curled. You just need to look at the last of the shoe to see how you should fit it.
|
|
|
|
|
tahquitztwo
Oct 9, 2003, 6:52 AM
Post #27 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 1, 2002
Posts: 197
|
You didn't mention your normal street size :?
When I help fit folks to climbing shoes my rule of thumb is:
There is no stretch between the toe and the heel so FIT the shoes so your toes are filling the toe box completely and as evenly as possible(all of the lasts are going to be different, find the manufacturer whose last fits your type of foot!)......if they're laceups....be sure there's at least a finger width between the snugged laces to allow for future stretch....
if there are no laces, go about a half size from your street size and see how they feel....sloppy????? go down another half size until you have snug but NOT painful. Most of the newer materials supposedly don't stretch a lot, just conform to your foot....
HOWEVER, Mocs do stretch at least a full size to a size and a half......
And I totally agree that climbing shoes should be reasonably comfy and you should be able to climb several pitches without having to take the shoes off at each belay.....I have a comfy pair for long climbs and a slightly snugger pair for harder stuff and one inbetween pair for whatever :D
|
|
|
|
|
wonderwoman
Oct 9, 2003, 1:42 PM
Post #28 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2002
Posts: 4275
|
They should be tight and maybe painful as you are breaking them in. I would say try on a variety of different shoes. Everyone's feet are different shapes and losts of shoes are different shapes, too.
My street shoe is nothing like my climbing shoe because I need a huge toe box and a narrow heal. I have about five pairs of climbing shoes ranging from 38 - 40 while my street shoe is always 38. You just have to try a bunch on.
However, if you shoe is too soft and comfortable, you probably won't be able to use it for heel hooks and other moves you need support for. I just moved from my comfy sapphires to a pair of mad rocks and now I'm heel hookin' all over the place. Whenever I tried that in my sapphires my shoe would start to come off and it would hurt like a muthah!!! So there is some trade off between comfort and performance I guess!
|
|
|
|
|
wonderwoman
Oct 9, 2003, 1:48 PM
Post #29 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2002
Posts: 4275
|
In reply to: No, the pain is not really necessary. Give the shoes to your girlfriend (assuming you have one) or just sell them to someone else.
I HAD to point this out... The original poster is a female climber.
Geez Louise :roll:
|
|
|
|
|
vertical_reality
Oct 9, 2003, 1:54 PM
Post #30 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 19, 2002
Posts: 2073
|
My first pair of shoes I bough a 1/2 size smaller then my street shoe so they were still pretty comfortable and didn't cause any pain at all. My second pair (5.10 Moc's) I bought 2 sizes smaller... because all the cool kids were doing it. But I'm glad I did, they stretched about 1 size so now they are nice and tight, I can still wear them for a couple of hours without noticing.
As long as they are tight enough so that your foot doesn't slide around in them you'll be fine.
|
|
|
|
|
cracklover
Oct 9, 2003, 2:36 PM
Post #31 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Nov 14, 2002
Posts: 10162
|
In reply to: So I just bought some new Moccasins (size 4.5) and they hurt so bad I can't wear there on a route for more than 15 minutes. I can barely edge in them without wanting to cry or scream curse words. When I was at the store the guy told me that these were actually too BIG and should really get 4's. I declined and got the 4.5s any ways. He gave a look that said, "obviously you're not a hard core climber." I've been climbing a long time and have always wondered... is the pain is really necessary.
No. Chances are the climbing shoe salesman is a newbie, and is just repeating the hype he's been told. Alternatively, the shoes may simply be the wrong shape for your feet (poor fit because too tight in one area, too loose in another). Either way, contrary to popular belief, if your shoes are so tight that they cause lots of pain, you lose far more performance from your lack of ability to feel the rock than you gain from that little bit more skin-tight shoe.
GO
|
|
|
|
|
traddad
Oct 9, 2003, 2:46 PM
Post #32 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 14, 2001
Posts: 7129
|
Pain is the door to enlightenment. Accept it, explore it, use it.
The Dali Traddad.
|
|
|
|
|
pico23
Oct 9, 2003, 8:24 PM
Post #33 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Mar 14, 2003
Posts: 2378
|
In reply to: No. Chances are the climbing shoe salesman is a newbie, and is just repeating the hype he's been told. Alternatively, the shoes may simply be the wrong shape for your feet
I was actually just thinking the same thing as I reread the original post.
It's not even that the salesperson was a newbie it might be that they are trying to get you out of the store with a good fittting shoe. Sometimes people who haven't climbed much don't understand that dead space in the shoe is bad for edging tiny holds. I climbed with a few people that had shoes that were WAY to big for there first shoes and ended up having to buy another shoe not because they needed to replace theres but because it was actually holding back there climbing.
Before I bought my sister shoes she rented a pair and the guy at the store asked her her size and she told him a 9. He said you know you want the shoe to fit tight and even after trying them on she said they were good. He doubted it and she complained to me about him being an ass. Well on the cliffs that day I looked at her shoes and even though they were literally brand new shoes I could see the sloppy dead space gaps in her shoes right away. I said those shoes look huge to her and sure enough the clown shoes she rented were giant.
|
|
|
|
|
bertman
Oct 9, 2003, 9:01 PM
Post #34 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 17, 2003
Posts: 184
|
In reply to: In reply to: No, the pain is not really necessary. Give the shoes to your girlfriend (assuming you have one) or just sell them to someone else. I HAD to point this out... The original poster is a female climber. Geez Louise :roll:
Your point? 8)
|
|
|
|
|
antigrav
Oct 15, 2003, 6:33 PM
Post #35 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 18, 2003
Posts: 215
|
A cannot see that others have mentioned this, but to me painfully small shoes totally compromises the climbing! Bot consciously and unconsciously I think I avoid the footholds that bring out the pain. Also, I only look forward to getting down/up from the route/boulder, instead of enjoying the climbing. For me, shoes must be somewhat tolerable to wear while belaying, when taking turns climbing/belaying. At least for a couple of rounds.
:D
|
|
|
|
|
rvega
Oct 15, 2003, 6:45 PM
Post #36 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 28, 2003
Posts: 421
|
In reply to: No, the pain is not really necessary. Give the shoes to your girlfriend (assuming you have one) or just sell them to someone else.
I am a girl. :wink:
|
|
|
|
|
rvega
Oct 15, 2003, 7:02 PM
Post #37 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 28, 2003
Posts: 421
|
Okay sorry but this may be a bit late of coming.
First off I've been climbing for ten years but for the first 7 I wore the same shoes and never needed to have them replaced. Then I bought some new ones, (5's) Sapphires, and they hurt in the toes. But I wanted a third pair that was aggressive and slippers (I hate laces).
So I went to the same store I always do. My partner and I despise this one salesman who is always there cause he is a total elitish and kind of a jerk. I wear a 6.5-7 in girls and he suggests the 4's. I put them on and tears come to my eyes when I try to stand up. I can't walk or even straighten up at that. He says these are the ones I want. I'm like are you crazy I can barely stand to have my feet in them much alone climb in them. So I try on the 4.5s and while they still hurt like a son-of-a, I agree they they fit really good all around.
I decide on the 4.5s. The salesman just looks at me like I'm a total loser and a waste of his time. I could see the disgust in his eyes. I've climbed in them for several weeks now and they still really hurt in doors, and I can only do a route or two in them before having to take them off. They do noticabley inhibit my climbing because I avoid tip-toeing, which for my height is an essential skill. Magically, however, they seem to be perfect and less painful outside (the heat maybe). So thanks for all your commments.
Finally I'd like to apologize for a shoe thread. When my partner saw that I posted one, he almost broke up with me. :lol:
|
|
|
|
|
dingus
Oct 15, 2003, 7:12 PM
Post #38 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 16, 2002
Posts: 17398
|
Sort of depends upon the climbing you're doing with the shoe too. Climbing hand cracks in a shoe that is too tight is basically idiotic. The pain reaches a point where you start to take more on the arms to give your feet a break. That is not the way to enlightenment.
For enlightenment you need to go the opposite direction. Try climbing in floppy shoes. I'd guess that for the majority of climbing you do the looser shoe will not hurt your performance. There will just be no pain.
I used to go for that down sizing shit. Then I realized the advice was offered by people who only downsized. What do they know?
I'll tell you... they know pain.
DMT
|
|
|
|
|
jt512
Oct 15, 2003, 7:25 PM
Post #39 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Apr 12, 2001
Posts: 21904
|
In reply to: Okay sorry but this may be a bit late of coming. First off I've been climbing for ten years but for the first 7 I wore the same shoes and never needed to have them replaced. Then I bought some new ones, (5's) Sapphires, and they hurt in the toes. But I wanted a third pair that was aggressive and slippers (I hate laces). So I went to the same store I always do. My partner and I despise this one salesman who is always there cause he is a total elitish and kind of a jerk. I wear a 6.5-7 in girls and he suggests the 4's. I put them on and tears come to my eyes when I try to stand up. I can't walk or even straighten up at that. He says these are the ones I want. I'm like are you crazy I can barely stand to have my feet in them much alone climb in them. So I try on the 4.5s and while they still hurt like a son-of-a, I agree they they fit really good all around. I decide on the 4.5s. The salesman just looks at me like I'm a total loser and a waste of his time. I could see the disgust in his eyes. I've climbed in them for several weeks now and they still really hurt in doors, and I can only do a route or two in them before having to take them off. They do noticabley inhibit my climbing because I avoid tip-toeing, which for my height is an essential skill. Magically, however, they seem to be perfect and less painful outside (the heat maybe). So thanks for all your commments. Finally I'd like to apologize for a shoe thread. When my partner saw that I posted one, he almost broke up with me. :lol:
They might be a half-size small, but I suspect that if you keep wearing them they'll stretch more and end up being the perfect size. Moccasyms stretch more than any climbing shoe I've ever worn. Try wearing them around the house every day for 15 minutes at a time to get them to stretch faster. I think that they'll eventually be ok for you, but next purchase, you might want to go a half-size larger.
-Jay
|
|
|
|
|
rrrADAM
Oct 15, 2003, 7:38 PM
Post #40 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Dec 19, 1999
Posts: 17553
|
They don't need to hurt so bad, but the best part of climbing is taking your shoes off. :wink:
|
|
|
|
|
noal
Oct 15, 2003, 8:23 PM
Post #41 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Feb 22, 2002
Posts: 185
|
Buy comfortable shoes, until your good enough to not have to ask this question!!! This will make you much happier and want to climb longer, which will help you more than painfull shoes that you can't climb hard enough to make use of. 8) Keepin' it real Hommie 8)
|
|
|
|
|
petsfed
Oct 15, 2003, 8:43 PM
Post #42 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 25, 2002
Posts: 8599
|
With moccasyms, the guy was right. You need to spend more time just walking around in them, preferably while wet, and they will stretch. I usually wear a size 10. I got size 9's. They are now my primary shoe because they fit so well and jam incredibly well. Initially however, I couldn't even walk in them. They hurt that much. So here's what I'd do. I'd go to my kitchen sink and soak them really good. Then I'd pop in a movie, sit on my couch, and wear those suckers until the credits rolled or I couldn't stand it anymore. I can usually make it to the end of The Fellowship of the Ring before I have to take the shoes off now. And they will always stain your feet, don't worry.
|
|
|
|
|
rvega
Oct 15, 2003, 9:16 PM
Post #43 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jul 28, 2003
Posts: 421
|
In reply to: I can usually make it to the end of The Fellowship of the Ring before I have to take the shoes off now.
The extended version or the in theaters version? :)
|
|
|
|
|
jabtocrag
Oct 15, 2003, 9:18 PM
Post #44 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Apr 22, 2003
Posts: 476
|
In reply to: They don't need to hurt so bad, but the best part of climbing is taking your shoes off. :wink:
similar to...the best part of sex is taking the condom off :wink:
|
|
|
|
|
fear_vergnuegen
Oct 15, 2003, 9:27 PM
Post #45 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 30, 2003
Posts: 3
|
As others have said, clerks in outdoor shops are an unrealiable bunch. They are frequently kids with a passing enthusiasm who pull plastic and spray a lot. In a year, he'll have forgotten all about climbing.
I like having tight shoes, but lots of geezers can outclimb me in EB's with kneesocks.
My humble advice is to look for a shoe that fits your foot well. For me, that means that the shoe can be quite tight without being painful. The wrong shoe will hurt and/or have loose spots and air pockets. Don't worry about brands or reputations or styles or rubber formulas too much. Just try them all on and see how they feel. They will stretch a little, especially the unlined shoes and slippers. Remember that the shoes your friends love may be wrong for your feet.
-faw
|
|
|
|
|
jono
Oct 15, 2003, 9:47 PM
Post #46 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Aug 6, 2002
Posts: 2067
|
in my opinion you should get some that are comfortable. i agree with noal in that "if you have to ask."
|
|
|
|
|
saderinger
Oct 15, 2003, 9:53 PM
Post #47 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 11, 2003
Posts: 79
|
shoes should be tight but not too painful! My first pair of shoes where very painful and I assumed that was they way they where supposed to be, but they gave me 4 ingrown toenails on my big toes, wich i had to have removed by surgery. So be careful!
|
|
|
|
|
climbhigh2005
Oct 15, 2003, 11:05 PM
Post #48 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Jun 14, 2003
Posts: 1500
|
All climbing shoes hurt really bad for about at least a week!! then they get better.. but the best thing to do is have teva or chacos with ya so you can change while belaying!
|
|
|
|
|
captianstatic
Oct 16, 2003, 12:07 AM
Post #49 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Oct 15, 2003
Posts: 47
|
I recently purchased a pair of 5.10 moccasyms. They were insanely tight at first, however they are unlined shoes which means they WILL eventually stretch out and become one with your foot. Give them a couple solid weeks of climbing, then you'll love 'em.
|
|
|
|
|
climb_plastic
Oct 16, 2003, 8:14 AM
Post #50 of 53
(4984 views)
Shortcut
Registered: Sep 24, 2003
Posts: 706
|
In reply to: but the best thing to do is have teva or chacos with ya so you can change while belaying! |
|
|
|
|
|
