(a rip off of "good for the body is the work of the body, good for the soul the work of the soul, and good for either the work of the other." h.d. thoreau)
so i'm feeling the ills of this paper chase and i'm skimping when and where i can.. but my last pair of shoes just blew threw and that was my last pair of decent shoes. now i've come to the point where i've got to sack up and buy a new pair.. but i'm having a really hard time justifying shelling out big bucks to buy a pair of high-end climbing shoes. in the past, buying something cheap, mad rocks or just larger shoes that were loose, was fine. but recently i've been on some routes that have had me wondering if i wouldn't appreciate a better shoe, that is one that doesn't roll over small nubs and that i can trust to actually stick where i place them.
what do you think? should i sack up and invest the money on a high-end toe cruncher (eg: muiras) or should i suck it up and deal with the low-end suite of climbing shoes (eg: fiveten coyote, madrock phoenix/flash)? i've found some sales but not for my shoe size (eu: 40.5-41) so figure i'm paying retail..
good for the soul the work of the sole
good for the soul the work of the sole
and great loves will one day have to part -smashing pumpkins
Good shoes help. How much depends on the route and the climber. I can tell a big difference between my Katana's and my muiria's/testarossa's. Esp. on project level stuff with tricky/small feet. So, sack up and buy a nice pair. Just make sure they fit you well, regardless of brand. Then wear your crappy shoes to warm up and doe easy routes, and break out the good shoes for sending.
"There is no secret ingredient"
Po, the kung fu panda
Po, the kung fu panda
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marathonmedic
- Posts: 1557
- Joined: Fri Feb 20, 2004 3:01 am
paul, for the longest time i saw you climbing in shoes with your big toe sticking out of them.
remember? you refused to get new shoes.
now you find that you like whole shoes instead of holey. i say experiment.
buy a pair cheap and a pair expensive. which do you end up liking best? which last longer and why?
then you'll know the right answer for you for the rest of your life.
remember? you refused to get new shoes.
now you find that you like whole shoes instead of holey. i say experiment.
buy a pair cheap and a pair expensive. which do you end up liking best? which last longer and why?
then you'll know the right answer for you for the rest of your life.
I know that you believe that you understood what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.
- Robert McCloskey
A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.
- Emo Philips
- Robert McCloskey
A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.
- Emo Philips
I could have got you a pair of anasazi velcros for like 40 bucks...the shop in Vegas had a mega sale, I think they do it once a year to get rid of inventory, next time it comes around I will let y'all know. It was well worth it, I got a nice pair of 5-10s for around 30 bucks....can't remember which kind they are, but the Manimal has em and he has been wearin them for a LONG time...
The sales are there if you look, I know people that bought a shit ton of the on sale shoes in Vegas and were going to sell them on the net, discounted but still making a profit.
Get a good pair, I hate climbing in Mad Rocks - I don't trust the rubber and I hate slicking off stuff, when I tell my foot to stick, I want it to STICK.
OR, just chalk up your tootsies and climb barefoot.
The sales are there if you look, I know people that bought a shit ton of the on sale shoes in Vegas and were going to sell them on the net, discounted but still making a profit.
Get a good pair, I hate climbing in Mad Rocks - I don't trust the rubber and I hate slicking off stuff, when I tell my foot to stick, I want it to STICK.
OR, just chalk up your tootsies and climb barefoot.
"I enjoyed a Guinness after I got back home from Palm Sunday Mass." - Captain Static
"Listen, you heard what I said. Do you want me to donate or not charlie. Suck it up and procreate." - Andrew
"Listen, you heard what I said. Do you want me to donate or not charlie. Suck it up and procreate." - Andrew
haha.. man.. i forgot about those days. but now that you're reminding me of them, you're reminding me that you can deal with just about any shoe so long as you use it well.meetVA wrote:paul, for the longest time i saw you climbing in shoes with your big toe sticking out of them.
remember? you refused to get new shoes.
now you find that you like whole shoes instead of holey. i say experiment.
buy a pair cheap and a pair expensive. which do you end up liking best? which last longer and why?
then you'll know the right answer for you for the rest of your life.
as for the experiment: if i had the kind of money to buy both, i would just buy the good pair. as it is, i don't..
i think i'm just going to get a pair of coyotes and see how they work out (the fact that they're new makes me feel like i'm splurging..). i figure if nothing else, one day when the perfect shoe for me comes along, i'll be able to use it really well.
and great loves will one day have to part -smashing pumpkins
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lordjim_2001
- Posts: 1764
- Joined: Fri May 30, 2003 5:07 pm