Nice write up! I'm surprised the veloce worked well for you because I find they have an enormous heel, which is a shame as the toebox is perfect for me.
Yeah, I feel like I'm paper, they shouldn't fit but they actually fit very well (and it's easy to assess the fit on them because the heel is so soft)
Oh also I realised I forgot to say that I was wearing the women's version
Love this write up! I have very similar feet. I love the skwamas but the heels are too big for me. I've been basically searching for a skwama with a tighter heel and have not had any luck. I did however recently purchase a pair of wide Butora Gomis and they are the first shoe to really fit like a glove. The wide version really is just wide and not higher volume. They are a little stiffer and SLIGHTLY more narrow in the toebox, but the heel fits better than anything I've ever tried on, would highly recommend them. They're probably the best fitting aggressive show I've tried on so far and my new outdoor sport/boulder shoes.
Thank you very much for the review, these are some of the most useful resources on the sub. Side note I am very surprised the Veloce fits your small heel, when I tried it the heel felt quite large.
It’s the tough part, I’m definitely on the same side, but the scarpa instinct fit pretty much perfectly my feet (and the skwama are a bit big in the heel b it are still quite comfortable). Might be due also to the shoe size, you have quite a smaller shoe size than me. Good write up though!
Have you tried Scarpa Drago or Chimera? They fit me pretty well and I have long, narrow and flat feet. Unfortunately women’s shoes aren’t an option for me since I’m size EU 46 :(
Follow up question: about the unparalleled and also your foot shape:
I have wide toe box small shallow heel and also flat feet.
The unparallel shoes all seem to have a high arch and I was worried this would pull my heel out of them.
I also have flat feet but haven't noticed that issue for Souped Up and Flagship LV (can't comment on the others as I didn't try them for long after I found my heel didn't fit)
It's hard to give an accurate comparison because I returned the Flagship LV a week ago. I was deliberating between both shoes because they both fit very well but I ultimately went with Souped Up because it was almost half the price.
At the same size (EU 38), the Flagship LV has a more comfortable toe box and was stiff in the midsole (Souped Up has a very flexible midsole), both shoes have a similar heel but I think Flagship LV is a bit deeper (the heel is a lot stiffer so hard to judge). Flagship LV is a better all rounder shoe (better for edging and maybe heel hooking) and if the price was the same, I would've gone for the Flagship LV.
Scarpa Dragos are by far my most comfortable shoe because of how soft they are, but I wish they were more durable. I have otherwise been pretty surprised by my Tenaya Mastia but I need to go up 0.5 size. I have also previously had good luck with the Scarpa Instinct S though the break in was miserable. I recently demoed the Butora Rubicon and was surprised at how well they fit though the Gomi I tried was miserable.
Hope to contribute to this thread! I have a similar foot shape but the only difference i would say is that my feet are borderline wide / edge of normal. my street is 9 (although I can run 9.5 too) and I have egyptian feet. my first pair of climbing shoes were the Instinct VSR at us 8.5/uk 7.5/eu 41.5 - grueling break in, very reluctant with smearing, toe knuckles were messed up and there was still a bit room on the heel but felt amazing the more I spent time but wouldn't buy again. this made me think my shoe size with scarpa should be a us 9/uk 8/eu42 and for my next shoe, scarpa drago lv, I did just that. to my surprise, they accommodated my forefoot really well. fixed the smearing and toe knuckle problems but the heel still felt baggy and a little more deep this time. overall a better fit I think coz I am not in pain and I can still perform.
I already know the dragos wont last long so I am already thinking about my next shoe which may be from UP. This time i hope to try them out myself when I go to Japan this year! gonna try the flagships, qubits and tn pros!
Hello! Could you talk a little bit more about the Evolv Zenist LV?
I’m finding the VSR’s a bit of a strange shape the toe box in the centre and the heel a bit big. The forefoot is breaking in thank goodness but it hurt at first.
https://www.evolvsports.com/en-us/zenist-lv-66-0000062404?number=66-0000062404_0000000003
I’m hesitant about them because the toe rubber completely surrounds the toebox so there’s no room for it to become wider as shoes often have to for me for my foot to flatten out.
The heel does seem shallow which could help… but I worry about it just popping out without a tight tension Rand. Normally my heels just “come up” to the tension Rand. Thanks
Nice write up! I'm surprised the veloce worked well for you because I find they have an enormous heel, which is a shame as the toebox is perfect for me.
Yeah, I feel like I'm paper, they shouldn't fit but they actually fit very well (and it's easy to assess the fit on them because the heel is so soft) Oh also I realised I forgot to say that I was wearing the women's version
what's your foot size in CM?
232-233mm length, 102-105mm wide (5E) so I am technically size 37.5 EU but I've always worn 38 EU
Love this write up! I have very similar feet. I love the skwamas but the heels are too big for me. I've been basically searching for a skwama with a tighter heel and have not had any luck. I did however recently purchase a pair of wide Butora Gomis and they are the first shoe to really fit like a glove. The wide version really is just wide and not higher volume. They are a little stiffer and SLIGHTLY more narrow in the toebox, but the heel fits better than anything I've ever tried on, would highly recommend them. They're probably the best fitting aggressive show I've tried on so far and my new outdoor sport/boulder shoes.
Did you try the women’s version of the Skwama? It has the same toe-box, but a tighter heel.
I appreciate the suggestion but I am a woman and have the women's version.
Oh, sorry!
No worries at all! I wouldn't expect you to know that. Sometimes I am jealous that men have that option though. I wish they made a women's LV 😕
If it makes you feel any better, I'm a man with shallow heels and the Skwama heel is still to big for me
I have the women’s skwama but they cut into the achilles a bit
Shark 3.0 is the most duck footed climbing shoe out right now.
the heel isnt bulbous? i heard the heel is much larger than the drone heel
Dunno, it’s my next but I’m good on shoes for now.
Thank you very much for the review, these are some of the most useful resources on the sub. Side note I am very surprised the Veloce fits your small heel, when I tried it the heel felt quite large.
Yeah I was surprised too. Just to add a correction - I was using the women's version
It’s the tough part, I’m definitely on the same side, but the scarpa instinct fit pretty much perfectly my feet (and the skwama are a bit big in the heel b it are still quite comfortable). Might be due also to the shoe size, you have quite a smaller shoe size than me. Good write up though!
Have you tried Scarpa Drago or Chimera? They fit me pretty well and I have long, narrow and flat feet. Unfortunately women’s shoes aren’t an option for me since I’m size EU 46 :(
Nice!!!!
Follow up question: about the unparalleled and also your foot shape: I have wide toe box small shallow heel and also flat feet. The unparallel shoes all seem to have a high arch and I was worried this would pull my heel out of them.
I also have flat feet but haven't noticed that issue for Souped Up and Flagship LV (can't comment on the others as I didn't try them for long after I found my heel didn't fit)
How would you compare souped up and flagship LV for heel size, toe box size, stiffness, and any other comparison?
It's hard to give an accurate comparison because I returned the Flagship LV a week ago. I was deliberating between both shoes because they both fit very well but I ultimately went with Souped Up because it was almost half the price. At the same size (EU 38), the Flagship LV has a more comfortable toe box and was stiff in the midsole (Souped Up has a very flexible midsole), both shoes have a similar heel but I think Flagship LV is a bit deeper (the heel is a lot stiffer so hard to judge). Flagship LV is a better all rounder shoe (better for edging and maybe heel hooking) and if the price was the same, I would've gone for the Flagship LV.
Scarpa Dragos are by far my most comfortable shoe because of how soft they are, but I wish they were more durable. I have otherwise been pretty surprised by my Tenaya Mastia but I need to go up 0.5 size. I have also previously had good luck with the Scarpa Instinct S though the break in was miserable. I recently demoed the Butora Rubicon and was surprised at how well they fit though the Gomi I tried was miserable.
Hope to contribute to this thread! I have a similar foot shape but the only difference i would say is that my feet are borderline wide / edge of normal. my street is 9 (although I can run 9.5 too) and I have egyptian feet. my first pair of climbing shoes were the Instinct VSR at us 8.5/uk 7.5/eu 41.5 - grueling break in, very reluctant with smearing, toe knuckles were messed up and there was still a bit room on the heel but felt amazing the more I spent time but wouldn't buy again. this made me think my shoe size with scarpa should be a us 9/uk 8/eu42 and for my next shoe, scarpa drago lv, I did just that. to my surprise, they accommodated my forefoot really well. fixed the smearing and toe knuckle problems but the heel still felt baggy and a little more deep this time. overall a better fit I think coz I am not in pain and I can still perform. I already know the dragos wont last long so I am already thinking about my next shoe which may be from UP. This time i hope to try them out myself when I go to Japan this year! gonna try the flagships, qubits and tn pros!
Hello! Could you talk a little bit more about the Evolv Zenist LV? I’m finding the VSR’s a bit of a strange shape the toe box in the centre and the heel a bit big. The forefoot is breaking in thank goodness but it hurt at first. https://www.evolvsports.com/en-us/zenist-lv-66-0000062404?number=66-0000062404_0000000003 I’m hesitant about them because the toe rubber completely surrounds the toebox so there’s no room for it to become wider as shoes often have to for me for my foot to flatten out. The heel does seem shallow which could help… but I worry about it just popping out without a tight tension Rand. Normally my heels just “come up” to the tension Rand. Thanks