2009 Shoe Review - August 2009

Five Ten Project

$144.95, fiveten.com
For a hypersensitive shoe, try the Project , which testers likened to “a rubber-coated sock.” Designed for overhanging rock, the Project features new Stealth Mystique that’s a mere 2mm thick. Two testers found the rubber slick, but others praised the shoe’s extreme sensitivity and “grab”: its asymmetric, downturned last lets your toes grip like fingers. Size tightly, because the unlined leather upper will stretch a half-size-plus, and the single Velcro closure is too far back to ratchet toe fit. Testers found the shoe a bit soft for face climbing.
Ideal Uses: Super-steeps, boulders, gym.
Bottom Line: Exceptionally sensitive steep specialist. Too soft for face climbs.

Five Ten Copperhead

$124.95, fiveten.com
I used to have a cobbler glue a patch of Stealth atop my crack shoes, since I wore through the uppers so quickly. Now Five Ten has produced a crack shoe with a similar patch, for jamming and durability. Like the company’s popular crack slipper the Moccasym, the Copperhead is made of unlined leather, has a low-profile toe, and a flat, asymmetric last beefed up by a stiffer midsole and innovative lacing system. (The side laces, mostly protected by the uppers, allow you to loosen for comfort and cinch down for precision.) Testers found the sole (3.5mm Stealth Onyxx) a bit clunky for face moves until they’d broken in.
Ideal Uses: Cracks — all shapes/sizes, trad.
Bottom Line: Premium crack-specific shoe, average at everything else.

La Sportiva Speedster

$132, sportiva.com
Testers unanimously loved the colorful Speedster, La Sportiva’s latest slipper. The unique sole wraps a fourinch swath of rubber back up over the forefoot — a design testers initially found baffling but then praised for its amazing “grab.” You won’t be edging much in these, but the sensitivity and second-skin feel of the ultra-thin 3mm XS Grip rubber crush steep rock. The Speedster has an asymmetric, downturned last and an unlined, suede/synthetic upper; most testers wore these about a half-size smaller than other La Sportivas.
Ideal Uses: Steep bouldering, cavey sport, gym.
Bottom Line: Extremely sensitive slipper for high-end overhanging climbs.