Evolv Prime Climbing Shoe - 2009 BCS

I have a wide-high volume for foot. I also have the first two toes about the same length. Though it is a little baggy on the sides of the heel the shoe fits great. They are a huge pain to break in but you can get used to them. For the first 2 weeks I hated them.

I went up half a size and they were still painful at first. However they allow a wide foot to velcro up where other evolv shoes barely pulled close.

This was the first shoe I ever bought by evolve... and they are awesome!!! The downturn is just enough, the heel is pretty close to perfect, the trax rubber has stuck to nearly everything so far, and the rubber on the top has even helped keep them from getting torn up on some toe hooks! Watch out when ordering, they run very small. All my other climbing shoes are 44 and 1/2 while these are 45 and they fit wayyyy tighter than the other pairs. I recommend a half size up from your normal climbing shoe. Despite being tight they are actually really comfortable. Nice job Sharma! maybe give up climbing and just design shoes! haha

These are the ONLY performance shoe that has ever fit my foot even close to well... My second toe is longer, my heel is narrow, and my forefoot is fat and wide. These shoes fit great!

But beware the sizing, if at all possible, try a pair on.

These shoes are insane. Great aggressive downturn, extremely good edging, and great feel.

My foot size is 9.5, but I got these in 9.0. Could have gone down to 8.5 if I wanted 2 weeks of solid pain.

After about 4 months of 3-4x a week (mostly in the gym) there is a bit of stretch overall and the heel has bagged out which made me sad as it was so perfect when i first strapped them on, but the toe is still pristine and the heel is functional.

The downturn to these babies hasn't changed a bit since the day i first put them on and they have no problem climbing vertical, slab, or overhanging terrain. After a solid break in period the Primes will be a decent smearing shoe for you, but they are downturned so it may not be incredibly comfortable to do so.

The wider toe box isn't that noticable on the wall (except for slight comfort). the primes still have a small point and can be jammed into pockets. If nothing else the rubber is sticky enough to grab the smallest crystals on a vertical wall and hang on tight.

I will be getting these again, especially if they're on sale. If not, I may try resoling these whenever they actually need it . .maybe in another 4-8 months?

I use deodorizor on my pair and if I go 1-3 sessions w/o my feet reek. Not so much the shoes even, but my own freaking feet once they're out of em. I whole heartedly suggest using some spray, or any of the numerous methods described in the multiple reveiws of various synthetic evolv shoes. It's bad, but avoidable!

These are the only shoes I climb with, gone through a couple of pairs now. I get to climbing single pitch routes almost all the time and these shoes are awesome. I have wider feet and they have the perfect arch, edging etc.

Just back from long trip in red rocks where these shoes were on only really long climbs like crimson 1000ft, group therapy 800 ft and these shoes were absolutely horrible. My toes went numb from the pain. These are not the shoes for long sustained routes. Even with the straps open they were bad. So if you want to climb long trad routes, try something else...

I wear size 13 (US) and got size 11 to see if I could just wait out the pain and let the shoe stretch. Shoe didn't stretch and pain didn't go away. I love the shoe and I know that if I had a better size, I'd use them a lot more.

I have used this shoe outdoors and indoors for sport climbing as well as bouldering now for about 6 months. This shoe is very comfortable and supportive once you dial in the correct size as it doesn't stretch much due to being a synthetic material. The only gripe i have with the shoe as others have mentioned as the sole doesn't last quite as long as I would have liked and they are getting stinky. I would highly recommend this shoe nonetheless.

Love these shoes. They will not stretch so get the size right. They fit small. I wear size 11.5 street shoe and 12 in the primes and they are still crazy tight. Not the most comfy shoes but the rubber is sticky and you can step on anything with these.

For years I have been a Five Ten man. But, after trying these out on the wall at my local store I was convinced I had to have them. They are my favorite shoes for steep boulders. I have never, until now sized up in climbing shoes. These shoes perform that well and actually are comfortable.

These are the second pair of evolve shoes that I have boughten and the brand in general is great.

This shoe edges super well and super stiff, and fits and forms to your foot great. Though not great at smearing, what performance velcro shoe is?

Over all and great shoe and if you want a great edging shoe, get this one.

The only evolv shoes i like to climb in

I've had my primes for 4 months now and can't complain at all. First of all the toe is amazing for edging, I literally haven't found a single foot chip that doesn't feel completely solid if you have your feet set correctly. Toe hooks are very solid, and the heel is not amazing but it is more than sufficient for any heel hooks you want to throw at at it. These shoes have a TON of rubber, and are pretty stiff but still manage to smear passably. I haven't had any issues with durability despite climbing 3-5 days a week either in the gym or on rough granite, but if what I've read about the TRAX rubber is true I have no problem shelling out to get these resoled with some 5.10 Stealth rubber, or Vibram XS. They do run smaller than you would expect. I wear a 10 street shoe and remember wearing a 9.5 in both the Evolv Defy and Mad Rock Conflicts, and a 41.5 in La Sportiva Katanas, and a 10 in the primes gives me a very aggressive fit (one I would never try to belay in). They do start to smell like death after a while, which seems to be a trend with Evolv shoes, but I've found that airing them out between climbing days with 4-5 scented dryer sheets stuffed in each shoe keeps the smell at bay. Overall a fantastic shoe for short to mid-length sport routes and boulder problems.

I wear a 10.5 to 11 size shoe, I ordered an 11 in this shoe, and it was way too small, 11 fit more like a 9. Climbing shoes are supposed to fit snug and curl the toes a bit, but they are not supposed to feel like Cinderellas sisters did, when they tried on the glass slipper

I wear a 10.5 to 11 size shoe, I ordered an 11 in this shoe, and it was way too small, 11 fit more like a 9. Climbing shoes are supposed to fit snug and curl the toes a bit, but they are not supposed to feel like Cinderellas sisters did, when they tried on the glass slipper

These are the best aggressive shoe I've found. The most important thing for me is that they fit me feet really well. These shoes have a more symmetrical toe box which is what I need. I've tried other aggressive shoes but none fit my feet as well. As far as shoe function goes these are great. Great edging, great performance on steep stuff and the rubber on the top of the foot gives a nice advantage for those rare situations where you need a good toe hook.

these shoes are awesome!! they do fit tight though.. which I like...

These were my first rock climbing shoes that I've owned and I'm on my second pair. To start off I wear a wide 9.5 street shoe. My first pair was the same size as my street shoe and I nearly cried at the pain. After many bouldering sessions, as that's what I primarily do, the shoes loosen up considerably. It got to the pain that my heel was popping off any time I'd try a fully committed heel hook. So I got a second pair a half size down and they fit much more snuggly. Heel completely filled in and toe box snug. After time the shoes continue to stretch and I have a problem with the heel again. Now the problem I had with both pairs is that the rubber burns though very very qiuickly. It does not last long at all. Now I normally do bouldering 3-4 times a week at a v7-v8 level and toe chips get very small at that point. As the rubber loses it's aggressiveness, the ability to latch on to those chips goes away very quickly. Overhanging, roof, and technical slab where holds are microscopic take more effort because you trust you feet less. However the ability to smear well is amazing. I can do slab stuff and smearing much better than my friend in his solutions. Also for toe hooks the rubber is placed in an awkward location on the rand. There's an opening on top of the toe box where the yellow preforated material is exposed and that's where the rubber needs to be when using toe hooks. Can you still do it? Absolutely. Could you do it better? Absolutely. I don't want to be seen as knocking them though. They've done me well and have helped me send many difficult problems that use aggressive heels, toes and smears. But for what I do I need something more aggressive that will last longer, probably a lace-up 5.10.

Pros: Great at smearing and at small chips while rubber is fresh.
Super comfortable for wider feet.
Two strap system makes on/off easy.
Heel shape is very effective as long as sizing is snug.
Mesh tongue breathes great and helps wick nasty foot sweat away.
Not as downturned as other shoes so walking around in them is possible.

Cons: Shoes stretch ALOT with much use.
Rubber goes away fast! My toes have gone through the rubber and the rand.
Heel slips often, even when straps are cinched down beyond max and shoes stretch.
No rubber in the one spot its needed on top of the toe box.
Not quite aggressive and sensitive enough for delicate footwork on roof problems.

Overall, great transition shoe from entry to more aggressive, but as you step up your climbing, you need to step up your shoe.

I wear a 9.5 in my street shoe, bought the primes in a 9.5 just received today, fit was perfect. very clean shoe, going outside to climb with them tomorrow. Have no concerns that they wont perform well.

Great shoe!! They are soft and you get decent smearing out of em but really bear teeth tenaciously on over hanging nubbins. They fit ME perfectly (but of course I can't guarantee the will be your case). I do really enjoy the rounded toe curvature as you can roll your foot across a small foot and still get precise stances. If you want needle like toe precision you may look to solutions, boosters, Jet7, etc. My only gripe is the cotton lining is not so comfortable.

Shoes are dope.
Filthin routes with ease.
Super tight so half size or size up.
Don't get if you are a rookie.

Shoes are everything that I want and are not my first Evolv shoes however these are a bit on the wide side making them just a tad loose for hard climbs.

The optomius prime is defintly the leader of the Transformers. These shoes drop heels hooks like Optomius drops Megatron. The rubber is still sticky in warm temps and loves to grag foot jibs. Buy or be a fool. Yep

I bought these shoes when I really didn't know what to look for in a performance bouldering shoe so I just took a shot in the dark. I missed. I lost the edge on the toe box and blew out the rand in four months. The heel is only good if you can put it down nearly perpendicular and the toe box is too fat to fit into smaller pockets. For a $120 I expected a much higher quality product. I have since switched to La Sportiva and never looked back.

My street shoe is a 10.5, occasionally 10. After climbing in Katanas (41.5) for the past six months (loved the fit, hated the lack of durability on the rand), I tried out 5.10 Galileos (9.5), 5.10 Anasazi Verdes (9.5), Evolv Pontas (9.5), and Evolv Optimus Prime (10). As has been noted by others, the Primes are very tight. I literally can not get my foot inside a (9.5), and the (10s) are still incredibly snug, but, i think, due to the symmetrical toe, not incredibly painful. I am only using the Primes inside, and I've kept the Anasazi Verdes for outside, since I would give that shoe the nod for edging ability (asymmetric toe and all). But the Primes stick to everything I've wanted them to inside and somehow manage to be extraordinarily snug while reasonably comfortable. So far, no signs of trouble with durability -- we'll see. So check these out - just don't kid yourself into thinking that you'll down size these much, if at all. And if the Primes aren't a good match for you, might want to check out those Verdes....

I have a very wide foot and found the Evolv Optimus Prime fits my foot better than any other velcro climbing shoe I've tried thanks to the symmetrical toe box and stretchy breathable uppers compared to the neoprene uppers of most velcro climbing shoes (like 5.10 Anasazi Velcro or the Evolv Pontas).
I've had one rand and half resole done and the downturn toe is still in tact and holds strong on steep climbs.
An excellent shoe!!!

For a shoe of this type (specialized for steep hard climbing) it is exceptionally comfortable and versatile. I often see beginner-intermediate climbers using this shoe and having fun -- which says a lot! Try another company's "secret weapon" model on anything but the gnar-gnar and you will feel like your big toe is about to break. The key to this comfort is a less asymetric last while creating an aggressive downturned shape that stays through the life of the shoe. This model also features a deep high volume heel cup which fits and performs very well for me. The Optimus Primes have helped me step it up on gently overhanging to severely overhanging terrain. They fit tight! I wear a 9 pontas, but a 9.5 Optimus Prime

Comfortable, love them anywhere, up a wall or in the fall, I will take them anywhere, green eggs and ham.

these shoes are super agro! they edge awesome and can stand on a thumb tack! they dont stretch at all but will shape to your foot nice after broken in.

Great shoes,i love them! The down turned last hooks onto even the steepest climbs, and the rubber uppers are great for toe hooking. If you like steep climbs, buy these now.

These shoes are perfect for everything! I climb V7's and 8's indoor and they are by the best shoe I've ever used. They are also great for routes of any sort. They're also incredible outside! They are extremely sticky and aggressive and will support your weight on the smallest of footholds. AWESOME SHOE!!

This shoe is so solid. I really like the deep heel cup and rigidity of the shoe. It really helps to know that my foot is secure and never have to worry about it slipping on heel hooks. Another thing I really like is that I have been wearing them for a year now ( I have two pair actually) and still have maintained the downturned profile they had out of the box. Great shoe.

These shoes are fantastic, the bit bigger toe box makes it comfortable even when sized a bit tight! The Xt5 rubber is super sticky and the shoe is very precise and feels very controlled even on the smallest holds! I fit my pair one half size below my street shoe size.

The Optimus Prime will slay anything steep you throw at it. These shoes are phenomenal. They need to be sized a half size larger than other Evolvs, but they are still super comfortable.

...they wear out way too fast! My pair lasted for 2 months and now both toe caps are broken and the soles are full of small cuts. The rubber sure is sticky but... Well, as they say, you can't get everything. If you're prepared to pay for the short fun, go ahead. I myself am going back to La Sportiva's Miura VSs (which is an excellent shoe forgetting that the front velcro attachment tears off after a while =) and consider trying 5.10 Dragons out....

weary nice shoe, a little smal in sice. But perfeckt four hard boulders with small foot grips!