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Vegan Crack Climbing Shoes?

• March 2010
• Hi Steph Climb Gear Vegan

Steph,
It’s been established that this season is going to be my first exposure to trad and crack routes (i primarily boulder and climb bolted routes), so i’ve considered purchasing an appropriate shoe.
I currently climb in Five Ten’s Team 5.10 and Evolv Pontas (though durability has become a concern with those as of late; thinking about giving the Galileos a try), but have learned that these are probably not a good choice for multi pitch crack routes.

From what i’ve “learned” (i’m mostly inferring this from various articles, shoe descriptions and forum threads), i want a shoe with:
– laces
– durable rubber
– a stiff sole (to avoid foot fatigue)
– and a less-than-aggressive/downturned fit/design

Sound right?

So far, it seems most of the shoes designed for crack or that meet these criteria are either leather or extinct.
I read your post on crack climbing shoes, but it seems that the Moccasym isn’t available in a synthetic version.
Do you have any advice for a fellow vegan looking for a shoe that makes a good choice for jamming his foot into cracks?

Thanks so much,
Carlos

PS– LOVE your blog. My girlfriend and i have tried most of your recipes and love them all! Beth’s banana bread is becoming a regular favorite at our place.

Thanks Carlos! I love Beth’s banana bread too 🙂
I have different crack shoes for different places. For me, the softer the rock, the softer the shoe. So if I’m climbing sandstone (face or crack), I want a soft shoe. If it’s granite, I want a stiffer shoe.

For Yosemite granite, I usually wear Anasazi velcros, either the men’s or the LV version. There are some situations where I choose the lace-ups, which are slightly stiffer, but I generally like a softer shoe, probably because I’m a little lighter, and the smaller shoes feel stiffer. If you are a bigger person, you’d probably pick the lace-ups, which kind of fit your checklist. Though they have laces (which is kind of a no-no for a crack shoe, in my opinion), the laces are so stream-lined and minimalistic, that they never cause a problem with bulk or excess pressure in the crack. They are really an amazing shoe, and if you are heavier than me, probably the perfect thing for almost all of your crack climbing use. The great news is that the velcros and lace-ups are synthetic!

For desert sandstone, I always wear Moccasyms for normal crack climbing, and the Anasazi LVs for thin hard cracks. The Moccasyms are leather, and the LVs are synthetic. The Moccasyms are one of my favorite shoes, and the shoes I climb the best in for crack climbing, which is the thing I like the most. They are pretty much the opposite of all the things you listed, which is why they work so well in sandstone cracks. A soft soled shoe, sized comfortably, without laces, and with sticky rubber seems to work the best for pure crack climbing in soft rock (though I also use them in Yosemite if it’s pure crack, without any face climbing).

I do, however, feel really bad about using leather shoes. I don’t use leather shoes for daily use or fashion, and don’t really use leather for anything except these shoes–my other athletic shoes are all synthetic (including all my Five Ten approach shoes). Five Ten has talked about making some Moccasyms from their synthetic material and I really hope they will, because Moccasyms are the ultimate shoe for pure crack climbing, in my opinion.

I hope this helps! And that you have a great spring season!
🙂 Steph