Evolv

Geshido Lace Climbing Shoe

Far too wide but great for edging

I've been using them for almost a year on a lot of small footholds and it works like charm, very precise and great support for the foot, also the heel works amazing though a little insensitive. The one BIG problem it has is that the ball of the foot is gigantic, I can place my little finger on the side even though the toes are very crammed (but not excessively as I still wanted flexibility for smearing on credit card-like edges in less than vertical terrain); although the foot stays stable enough, is annoying that the foot moves side by side and if I wanted a tighter fit I would went with a more downturned slipper or velcro shoe for easier remove.

pretty dang good, just some small issues

This is a really stiff-toed shoe so it's really good on vertical climbs with small edges. but since it's so stiff, it makes smears (especially high feet smears) really sketchy. toe hooks felt really nice but I would have preferred a slightly softer heel to feel them better. I wear size 14 street shoes and got a size 13.5 but I really should have gone half a size smaller; I say this because when my feet start to sweat, my toes wouldn't stay right at the tip of the shoe. I blame part of that also on the felt that lines the inside of the shoe, it's comfortable but becomes really slippery when you sweat. The only other complaint would be that on my second session, the tongue of the left shoe fell off; most of the stitches on the tongue weren't actually connected (this didn't affect performance but it did look goofy). besides the tongue falling out, the looks of the whole shoe were superb. I got six months before the toe right above the sole rubbed away (mostly due to the smears that I was doing which are not what it's made for). overall, these shoes are really good for outdoor vertical walls and not for smears (still work, just not as well as a softer shoe). for future shoes, I would like an inside lining that's more focused on performance instead of comfort and a touch more rubber just above the toe of the shoe.

Breaks in nice!

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

Size Bought:

9.5

Love the fit and feel of the shoe. Heal fit is really good. Tried them at a demo and got the size right. They broke in and are just what I was looking for. A comfortable but snug and high performance shoe I can wear even on long routes. Leather upper feels good and stretched a little which is great as I went a 1/2 size down from my street shoe. Love it on granite and sandstone, not so much on plastic and slick limestone.

Great all rounder

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

Loving the new Geshido Lace. Fit is great and sized it the same as my street shoe size. Could have gone down a 1/2 size if I wanted it for bouldering/gym shoe. But street shoe size, it's comfortable and I can keep it on for multi-pitch and long routes. Leather upper melted to my foot shape pretty quickly and it's really comfy but still high performance a shoe.

Master of None

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

Let's start off with the good news: this shoe is a good fit for people with a wide forefoot and narrow heel looking for an asymmetrical shoe that doesn't bend the big toe distally. Street shoe size is was spot on for a snug but not uncomfortable fit. I am glad to see companies catering more for the wide forefoot/narrow heel foot shape since most shoes on the market pander to a narrow, Egyptian style foot shape. Now to the execution: this shoe utterly fails at being comfortable and supportive on multipitch applications for two reasons. 1. It is not nearly stiff or suppotive enough. The toes turn upwards significantly when standing on an edge. 2. Upward deformation of the toes tensions the slingshot rand, clamping down on the base of the Achilles tendon, causing instant discomfort to those suffering from bursitis. If this shoe were significantly stiffer, used a firmer rubber compound, and used an underfoot active randing tensioning system to resist upward deformation of the toes, it would get 5 stars. However, it is useless and painful for its intended application. There are plenty of great, softer, downturned shoes for overhung climbing. By trying to be good at everything, this shoe ends up bring good at nothing. Look elsewhere for a stiff, cambered edging shoe.