The lace up is a very good shoe; does all that everyone else here says it does. Stiff for edging and vertical climbing. But that doesn't add or help much, does it? Nah, the only reason I'm writing is to add some fit data for those considering the shoes. I use a 10 running shoe: in the Defy, good gym shoe, I use a 9. Also a 9 in the Pontas velcro, but 9.5 in the lace up. They all fit just about the same (which is odd), pretty tight, without pain after break in. Translation: you could go down a full size in the velcro but only a half in the lace up, unless your feet are less bumpy than mine. The velcro is much more an all purpose shoe than the lace up. If you're undecided, go for the velcro. Wipe them out when you're done and spray them occasionally with Lysol, and the smell won't kill you.

I bought a pair without trying them on; a mistake. I was advised by Backcountry's gear guys to buy the same size as my comfy Mythos. That's wrong. The Mythos stretches and the Katana does not. I tried to bully them into usability, but they are pretty useless to me: just too tight. So.... try a pair on first or just be aware of the limited stretch. My street shoe is 9.5; I wear a 40 in the Mythos. I'd probably go to a 41 in the Katana.

This is a superb shoe. Edges beautifully, smears fine. The fit is of course the most important thing in any shoe, which is why I'm passing on my experience with the greenies. I went down half a size from street shoe size: 10>9.5 and find that the greenies fit great heel to toe. No movement, heel stays put. But the shoe volume otherwise is a bit big and I really have to lace them tight. So, this might be a super fitting shoe for you if you have a medium to large volume foot. If small volume like mine, you might want to size a whole size down and hope your toes can stand the pain. I'll try that next time.

I bought the Spectrum 33 Tent in hopes of a strong, light, and affordable 3+ season tent, and I've been generally happy with it. It’s virtues are considerable: it is very strong in the wind; its free-standing structure pitches simply and taut; it is very light for its size; the steep sidewalls increase useable interior space. Downsides are few. As with most single-wall tents, condensation is a problem. The Spectrum uses a ventilation chimney, structured by an ingenious pole design. This does in fact work well in windy weather. On calm nights, the puny back window does not give enough airflow through the tent (and out that chimney) to keep the inside dry. A generally viable solution is to sleep with your head to the door and keep the vestibule open. When the elements won't let you do that, you'll find the walls a bit wet, but, it must be said, not as wet as other single-walls I've slept in. Size is also an issue, as with the smaller version of this tent. The 33 is a roomy two-person tent, and I use it that way.