La Sportiva Testarossa Climbing Shoe

Follow the description, these shoes are for intense bouldering and not for hanging around the crags. They are one hell-of-a painful shoe but the edging power is phenomenal. I can stand on something about 3 mm wide and relax. If you want to instantly jump up a grade, get these. However dont be fooled and think its all in the shoe, I would not recommend for a beginner.

I am a solid 38.5 in wmn's Sportiva Katanas (my staple, all purpose shoe) & Miuras (my harder trad shoe). I am a 38.0 in Sportiva Solutions. Not that comparing boot sizes help for rock shoe sizing, but for what it's worth I am a 40.0 in Sportiva Nepal extremes & 39.5 in Sportiva Baturas. I wear US wms 8.5 in street shoes. I tried on Testarossa's for the first time last week & found myself in a 39.0. I believe they run *slightly* smaller than Sportiva Katanas/Miuras/Mythos. The Testarossa's are really aggro shoes that that perform really well on sport routes (or make you climb/look really good in the gym). At this price, I'd prolly "save" them for harder gym/sport routes & use my resoled Katanas for easier/moderate climbs.

well if you search around the net anywhere you going to get great reviews of this shoe, its extremely aggressive so they do feel a bit uncomfortable at first, my shoe size varies a lot because my foot is much wider so i tend to wear a size 10 in all my street shoes, but i went with 9 1/2 with these (42 1/2) and i think all they need is a little break in time and they are gonna feel great. and i just want to thank backcountry.com myself, i do a lot of shopping online and i order these shoes a tad on the small size, i went out and gave them a try and i knew i just couldnt climb in them, backcountry's 100% guarantee completely took care of me and i will continue to shop with them :)

I normally wear a women's 6.5, so I ordered a 36.5 which is supposed to be around a size smaller than what I normally wear, but the shoes were still too big. I would reccommend getting at least a full size smaller, and probably 1.5 sizes smaller.

Great for steep, hard routes. Not a comfy all day shoe, obviously. Also, I would not get these shoes unless you are a solid 5.12-13 climber.
But a genius pair of shoes that will take your steep climbing to the next level.

This is the best pair of shoes one can possibly have. Best for bouldering and sport climbing. Great toe-in, heel. It is tricky to toehook, though you get used to it. Great rubber, takes a day to break in.

I thought the Testarossa climbing shoes were very good. I felt like I was able to stand on some pretty small stuff with them. I also liked how the design put all of the weight onto my big toe. I really liked the shoes a lot but I would definitely say they are a sport shoe and not so much a trad shoe.

Kind forgot to put this in the last one but I thought the shoe size ran a little big so I ended up getting a half size smaller.

Aggressive heel and down turned toe. It fits as tight as a glove (maybe uncomfortable for beginners and intermediates), providing ultra-sensitivity for steep overhung routes. This is my 2nd pair and I love them just as much as the 1st! I wear a US 10-10.5 street shoe, and the size 43 fits perfectly.

I wasn't exactly sure what was meant by the whole anatomical-foot-bed / weight-transfer thing when I bought the Testarossa shoe, but, boy, am I ever now. I was climbing in some three-year-old Mythos (talk about an impressive statement about the quality of a La Sportiva shoe), and I found that I was having to adjust my climbing to factor in the probability of my foot slipping on micro-edges. No longer, boy. The Testarossas have stuck every itsy-bitsy hold I've tried them on. As it's winter and all of my favorite crags are colder than, well, they're cold, I've only used this shoe indoors. I'm more than a little certain that I'll only be more stoked about my sweet new shoes when I take 'em outside. Oh, I have wide feet, and they're breaking in just fine (my feet and the shoes, both). They're great; I love 'em.

Size 10 street shoe, I bought a size 39.5. They stretch a lot as they go on your foot, although the fit hasn't changed much in the two months I've owned them.

Extemely comfortable for how much you can crank them down, great performance fit, plenty of room for your toes to knuckle up comfortably. However the loops on the heel's stitches are not covered and can get bothersome.

I would recommend these shoes to anyone climbing steep 5.11+

i love this shoe! it is amazing,it has an extremely down turned toe. they fit real well, very COMFORTABLE. 1.5 - 2 sizes down from your street size gets the perfect fit depending on how tight you want them. they're great for heel hooking and toeing down on the tiniest of rocks. this shoe has 2 different prices on the market 130 and 150 dollars so be sure to buy from the right place. Buy this shoe, you'll love it

Best shoe I have owned. Heel is a little soft for some hooks, but allows for a larger contact area. I wear a 42 in the solutions, and a 41.5 in the test. I use them for Bouldering and short single pitch routes. No complaints so far. They've sent V5 and 5.10c with no problems.

Haven't had them for very long but they are already fitting like a glove. Really comfy for such an aggressive shoe, which especially amazing considering i downsized as aggressively as i could bear (Sportiva trango boot size is Euro 45 - got them in 43). I have a fairly high arch and they fit me so perfectly that removing them after a good climb is like peeling skin off my feet ;). the perfect rock shoe, miles better than my Katanas, Chilly Spirit velcro, Miuras and all those unpleasant synthetic Evolves and 5.10s! super sensitive and yet hard enough for some mighty edging and toe hooking. The heel is great too and the laces enable me to achieve a perfect fit depending on nature and level of the route/problem. the only rock shoe worth getting!

This shoe is my favourite I've bought thus far in my climbing. It can stick on any edge because of the glorious definition in the toe, and the curve to the sole of the shoe is perfect for placing your weight just so. It's true that the shoe isn't the most comfortable one out there, but the way that my climbing has improved because the attention this shoe brings to my feet - I wouldn't trade it for the extra ounce of comfort. A bit high on the price, but definitely worth it.

I wear a 42 Birkenstock, so I first bought these in a 41.5. Brutal! I had to return them because they were too painful, and I finally settled on a 43.

At this size, they are comfortable, and I can wear them tied up for an hour before I have to let my feet out. The comfort comes at the expense of having a perfectly fitting heel, so if you plan on heel hooking a lot, you might want to buy these shoes painfully small. Also, as the heel isn't completely covered in rubber, the shoes don't make for the most secure heel hooks, but they get the job done.

The extremely down-turned shoe takes a little getting used to, but it works great for most moves. For me, there was a learning curve with toe-hooking, because of the shape of the shoe. In a few uses, I acclimated to the shape.

These shoes are designed for overhanging boulder routes, and that is where they shine. Getting a toe on a tiny hold in a cave is a breeze with these shoes, which saves time and energy. One can put a big percentage of body weight on poor holds without slipping.

As a bonus, they don't smell.

Ok, to be totally fair, I know that climbing shoe selection comes down to personal preference. I just don't tend to do very well with La Sportivas in general. I thought I'd like these and they simply didn't work for me -- that said, I have numerous climbing friends who LOVE La Sportivas - - so please give 'em a shot if you so desire -- but I prefer full heel cups that don't get crushed after a few uses. Of course - I have narrow heels. Hope this helps!!