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Buying Rock Shoes - A Jagged Globe Guide

May 2015

Introduction
You�ve booked your Jagged Globe Climbing course and want to buy your own rock shoes, but it can be a bit tricky to know where to start. Here�s a quick guide to help you get started.

You need to consider:

Comfort: critical to your enjoyment of the whole experience.
Security: your primary contact when climbing is the feet. Rock shoes should be snug but not super/painfully tight. You want as little distance as possible between your toes and the foothold, so sloppy boots and big thick socks are to be avoided.
Functionality: as a beginner, your feet will be unused to the stresses of standing on your tip toes, thus for your first pair of shoes, consider a stiffer and more supportive model.
Durability: poor footwork as a novice is very common (corrected after day 1 of the Intro course), you might also wish to use a climbing wall and both of these things will accelerate wear. Modern rubber is very sticky no matter the brand. For a first pair of shoes go with a more durable, thicker sole.

Now you need to find all of these things in a shape that fits your foot, and at a price that fits your wallet!

Construction

"PA's (first climbing boots) are the Achilles Heel of all climbers, they buckle your feet into claws and turn you into a tiger." - Robin Smith, iconic Scottish mountaineer, during his first ascent of The Bat on Ben Nevis , E2 in 1959!

Climbing footwear has radically improved since Robin Smith�s day. Boots/shoes are generally made in two ways:

Board last - a flat, foot shaped template which the upper and sole is then constructed around, suited for entry-intermediate level or people wanting a comfortable shoe to wear all day.
Slip last - a more sophisticated, 'shrink wrapped' and aggressive fit. They have a more aggressive fit. Great for harder climbing/bouldering where they generally are only worn for a few minutes, but not very practical for long days out in the mountains.

There are gender specific boots out there. The female foot tends to have a lower volume and a narrower heel. Many men wear women�s boots, (luckily they are not all pink!) and many women go for men�s boots. Rule number one: if the shoe fits, wear it.

Some less technical boots come to a point in the middle of the toes. That is not how humans are constructed! Your big toe (for some people, the second) is the biggest and then the foot gets incrementally shorter.
Many Brits have Frodo or flipper feet to deal with, which are very broad and flat. If your feet are like this, look for an asymmetrical sole i.e. big toe offset to the inside.

The fastening is important too. Velcro allows for fast fitting and removal, but lacing often provides a more uniform tensioning of the boot. A lot will depend on how well your foot fills the boot. If you have narrow feet, lacing can help reduce boot rotation.

Buying

To make sure the rock shoes you are buying are the right ones for you, you need to try them on. Visiting us here in the Jagged Globe Shop and taking your time over fit can make a huge difference. If you do need to buy them via our online shop, talk to us first about the fitting and if you haven�t worn them outside we will be more than happy to exchange them if they are not the right fit.

For your first pair, give as many brands and styles a go as you can. Don't try to do this in a 30min lunch break in the city, set aside an afternoon or two to try on as many as possible. Choosing your first pair of rock shoes is tricky because unless you have borrowed or hired some you will have no frame of reference, it's highly likely you have never had anything as constricting on your feet and it can feel very odd.

Here are some pointers to help you tip toe through the mine field.

1. DO NOT buy them two sizes too small despite what the 'dude' in the climbing shop says! Coming to North Wales for some of the world�s best rock climbing? You might well have the boots on for many hours, so beware of buying them too tight. We want you focused on the climbing and enjoying yourself, not needing to rip some instrument of torture from your feet. They should be snug but not painful.

2. Your toes should be in contact with the inside of the shoe all the way around. Avoid having them steepled back on themselves, (the little toe might be but only v slightly). Use the numbered sizing as a guide only, go with feel first and foremost. Top tip. Make sure all your toe nails are trimmed back, as it will make a huge difference to the fit.

3. To sock or not to sock that is the question? For longer routes, a thin pair of socks for extra comfort can be a good idea. Try with a very thin pair of liner socks and see how things feel. Modern boots are generally very well lined and you should be able to wear them with or without socks. The choice as they say, is yours.

4. Once you have a shoe that feels good, leave them on for 10-15 mins. They will warm up and ease into your foot shape. Watch out for any pinching of the toes and tightening around the instep.

5. All good shops will have a wall or board to test out the fit. Try standing on the big toe (not your instep) and then swap from foot to foot. Check there is no rolling inside the shoe; if there is, go down a size or try another type. When applying this sort of pressure does the heel dig in uncomfortably? Some people can have issues with their Achilles tendon here.

6. How much will they stretch? Boots that are unlined, i.e. you can see the raw suede or leather inside will be more inclined to. Over time all boots will give slightly in size.

Congratulations

You are now the proud owner of your first pair of rock shoes! Take them home and try them on after a hard day at work, when your feet are likely to have swollen up a bit. If they still feel ok after an hour or two, you have probably got it right. It's now time to get up to Snowdonia and out onto the crags.

Click to Visit our Equipment Shop.

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