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yodadave
Feb 8, 2011, 3:10 PM
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OK so in my 10yrs of climbing and 6 pairs of shoes i have only ever needed 1 resole.
I attribute this to several factors, limited gym climbing (5 of my 10 yrs) , good technique and rock types that i climb on.
However the wear on all my shoes is nearly always in the same pattern, be they sport, trad, gym or bouldering shoes.
I predominantly wear the inside of the shoe down, think directly behind the big toe.
guys that i climb with that are climbing a grade or 2 harder than me alway seem to wear out the toe of their shoes. SO is "front-pointing" a better technique than turning your heel in to the rock?
flame on
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jmeizis
Feb 8, 2011, 3:18 PM
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Yes, you can't curl the side of your foot around anything. It also depends on the holds and body positions, but for the most part, standing on the tips of your big toes instead of the sides will be better.
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shoo
Feb 8, 2011, 3:29 PM
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yodadave wrote: OK so in my 10yrs of climbing and 6 pairs of shoes i have only ever needed 1 resole. I attribute this to several factors, limited gym climbing (5 of my 10 yrs) , good technique and rock types that i climb on. However the wear on all my shoes is nearly always in the same pattern, be they sport, trad, gym or bouldering shoes. I predominantly wear the inside of the shoe down, think directly behind the big toe. guys that i climb with that are climbing a grade or 2 harder than me alway seem to wear out the toe of their shoes. SO is "front-pointing" a better technique than turning your heel in to the rock? flame on
There is also some confounding here. Steeper routes and smaller footholds require the use of the tips of your toes more than easier stuff. It's often more efficient to use the side of your toe to help keep your hips in on less steep terrain. Just be virtue of them climbing harder, more wear on toes would be expected.
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shockabuku
Feb 8, 2011, 6:00 PM
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10 years of climbing how many feet per week? An average of 100 ft/week is going to produce a lot different effect than 1500 ft/week.
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yodadave
Feb 8, 2011, 6:10 PM
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i don't know that i could put a ft/wk on it but i think it probably averages out to 2 3 hour sessions per week.
best results
V6
5.12 sport
5.10 trad
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caughtinside
Feb 8, 2011, 6:57 PM
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yodadave wrote: i don't know that i could put a ft/wk on it but i think it probably averages out to 2 3 hour sessions per week. best results V6 5.12 sport 5.10 trad
if you've only owned 6 pairs of shoes in 10 years, climb that much and are getting those results, I'd say you likely have excellent footwork and don't change a thing.
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shimanilami
Feb 8, 2011, 10:49 PM
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The crazy thing is that he climbs in these:
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granite_grrl
Feb 8, 2011, 11:53 PM
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I'm not sure how you can climb 5.12 and keep wearing out your shoes where you do. Foot holds on harder routes are generally smaller (hard to place your foot on them to get that kind or wear) and standing on your toes is a good way to maximize your reach, better spot to pivot from, and so forth. Generally I see this kind of shoe wear from people who don't climb harder than 5.10.
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yodadave
Feb 10, 2011, 4:29 AM
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i lived in Scotland for 4 years and picked up their intense frugality. I think i've spent a total of $200 on those 6 pairs.
The old Scarpas took the brunt of the wear and loved it.
I could never afford 5 pairs of shoes a year.
I just read some of Dave McLoeds book and it definitely speaks to squaring up to the wall in order to grab holds better.
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rock_fencer
Feb 10, 2011, 4:36 AM
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my wear is almost the same except it sits almost exclusively on the inside of my big toe. I think this is pretty common for NC climbing, where your smearing but have to have hips rotated a certain way. When i lived in Il and MA and climbed more overhanging routes the wear points shifted to the outside of the big toe.
puting your toe on a hold does allow rotation on the hold as well as allowing toeing in. each has its place i think.
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vegastradguy
Feb 10, 2011, 6:12 AM
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granite_grrl wrote: I'm not sure how you can climb 5.12 and keep wearing out your shoes where you do. Foot holds on harder routes are generally smaller (hard to place your foot on them to get that kind or wear) and standing on your toes is a good way to maximize your reach, better spot to pivot from, and so forth. Generally I see this kind of shoe wear from people who don't climb harder than 5.10.
nah, thats where my shoes wear as well. i've never worn my toes out (although many of my friends do, including folks that dont climb as hard as i do)- i could see that on alot of REALLY steep climbing, but even in the gym on the steepest stuff, i dont toe point that much.
shoes generally last me about 9-12 months, give or take.
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cmagee1
Feb 10, 2011, 7:19 AM
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seems to me that an irregular amount of smears would also wear shoes faster around the ball of the foot. Is that the area were talking about? Im having a hard time visualizing..
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trenchdigger
Feb 10, 2011, 7:45 AM
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vegastradguy wrote: granite_grrl wrote: I'm not sure how you can climb 5.12 and keep wearing out your shoes where you do. Foot holds on harder routes are generally smaller (hard to place your foot on them to get that kind or wear) and standing on your toes is a good way to maximize your reach, better spot to pivot from, and so forth. Generally I see this kind of shoe wear from people who don't climb harder than 5.10. nah, thats where my shoes wear as well. i've never worn my toes out (although many of my friends do, including folks that dont climb as hard as i do)- i could see that on alot of REALLY steep climbing, but even in the gym on the steepest stuff, i dont toe point that much. shoes generally last me about 9-12 months, give or take.
I'm going to throw out a wild guess that you guys don't climb much granite. I don't remember the last time I climbed a route where even half of the footholds were big enough to put any more than a tiny portion of my big toe on.
I climb a lot of granite involving a significant amount of thin slab and face, as well as cracks, and my shoes tend to wear the most about 1/8 to 1/4" in from the edge of the shoe, right under the big toe.
I like to think I have pretty good footwork, and I've gone through a lot more than 6 pairs of shoes in just 8 years of climbing.
(This post was edited by trenchdigger on Feb 10, 2011, 7:49 AM)
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vegastradguy
Feb 10, 2011, 7:58 AM
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nope- lots of sandstone for me usually, although a fair bit of granite is climbed when im not on sandstone- but then its almost always crack climbing. thin granite slab holds little to no appeal to me right now as a climber.
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twise
Feb 23, 2011, 9:26 PM
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I have noticed the toes wearing out on my kids shoes who climb mostly in the gym and much harder than me.
I think it comes pivoting on the foot, rather than front pointing. When you pivot from the inside edge to the outside, the toe abrades the wall and wears.
I think this is the cause when climbing in the gym. I don't know about climbing outside.
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enigma
Feb 27, 2011, 1:04 AM
Post #18 of 38
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yodadave wrote: OK so in my 10yrs of climbing and 6 pairs of shoes i have only ever needed 1 resole. I attribute this to several factors, limited gym climbing (5 of my 10 yrs) , good technique and rock types that i climb on. However the wear on all my shoes is nearly always in the same pattern, be they sport, trad, gym or bouldering shoes. I predominantly wear the inside of the shoe down, think directly behind the big toe. guys that i climb with that are climbing a grade or 2 harder than me alway seem to wear out the toe of their shoes. SO is "front-pointing" a better technique than turning your heel in to the rock? flame on
I think it goes into the pronate discussion. Alot of people wear shoes, sneakers down in the same areas due to their feet and how much pressure they are putting on those areas of climbing shoes.
In addition I also think various climbing shoes wear differently. I have a pair of 5.10's that are super comfortable put have had to get resoled more than my sportivas.
Shoe company aren't stupid if your shoes could last longer you wouldn't have to keep buying new ones. I think alot of people just buy new shoes rather than resoling them.
Of course the rock you climb on is going to also make a difference , if its rougher and sharper its going to wear down your shoes. If you downclimb a route , or climb off wearing your shoes they aren't going to last the same as if you are just using them inside,
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cacalderon
Feb 27, 2011, 2:06 AM
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Shoe wear is directly related to technique but ALSO to the type of rock... 6 pairs in 12 yrs is pretty amazing! I've gone thru many more in the same period of time. I'm willing to bet that the rock your climbing is nothing as tough as granite which eats your climbing shoes in weeks or months depending on climbing frequency.... that... or your "climbing" shoes are really more like hiking boots with a 1.5 inch sole.
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jt512
Feb 27, 2011, 5:48 AM
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twise wrote: I have noticed the toes wearing out on my kids shoes who climb mostly in the gym and much harder than me. I think it comes pivoting on the foot, rather than front pointing. When you pivot from the inside edge to the outside, the toe abrades the wall and wears.
I have that problem. My gym insists that all low foot holds be microscopic, so when traversing the gym there is no way to put your foot on any hold so that you leave room between your toe and the wall. Therefore, if you do much pivoting when you traverse, you wear the toes of your shoes out quickly.
Jay
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yodadave
Feb 28, 2011, 12:01 AM
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i understand peoples disbelief that my claims are true but i attribute it to a couple of things.
I was taught early on to look at my feet twice as much as my hands.
I hate the feel of scumming my feet up the rock
i buy shoes with pretty conservative designs, not super soft and sensitive.
I took about a 2 year hiatus from climbing somewhere in there
i don't pull plastic a lot (haven't been in a gym in 18 months and was still pulling V5 today)
i had dedicated gym shoes when i did gym climb
Also i have been trying to climb more front on especially on steep stuff and it is really helping, especially for dynamic movement.
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ceebo
Feb 28, 2011, 1:38 AM
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Im putting thin steel plates on my next shoes (fuck knows how).. the holes are in places i dont even put pressure on.
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jt512
Feb 28, 2011, 3:00 AM
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ceebo wrote: Im putting thin steel plates on my next shoes (fuck knows how).. the holes are in places i dont even put pressure on.
IIRC, we established in another thread that you drag your toes up the wall, a practice you defended, for some reason.
Jay
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Good God man! I go through 5-6 pairs per season.
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