SHOE REVIEW: La Sportiva Katana (VS)

Katana* (VS, size 42) by La Sportiva
*old version/design

Killian Fischhuber, world renown bouldering powerhouse, still competes with these guys for a reason (I'm guessing that he likes them).

Two Velcro straps, two Velcro circles, and the character for "Katana" in Japanese mark this shoe branding it with the responsibility for precision, deadly accuracy, and power of the katana.

I've had these sweet mature puppies for over a year. They got me through the dark ages of poor footwork. The features an asymmetrical toe that really helps out with concentrating those little toesies into a point. It has enough toe rubber for toe-hooking when needed. The toe box isn't too advanced, which is likely related to the fact that it isn't particularly aggressive (even though it's named after a sword! HA I JEST). I find this to be a plus. When toe-hooking in an aggressive shoe, that toe joint curling into the safe welcoming home of the toe box is above the rest of the foot, which leads to terrible pressure on a red-point on your toe joint. With the Katana, this toe-issue (a tissue) is not an issue (not a tissue). You are able to toe-hook with ease.

Sizing (the wide-footed-man's shoe)
It's wide. It's comfortable. But it leaves too much dead space for my slender high profile feet. Furthermore, its not very aggressive. High-grade boulder problems could result in many foot-caused falls with these guys. Wide low profile feet rejoice! You have a shoe that can do virtually any style of climbing with have to be squeezed into a tube of misfortune.
You can crack, sport, trad, and boulder with these hombres.

So get to it!

Final scores:
Bouldering 3.5/5
Sport Climbing 4.5/5
Comfort 5/5
Crack 4/5

The Hardships of a Graduate Student

Dear Interneters,

I have clearly abandoned my post on the blog for an extended period of time. I have missed the blogging world: the thrills, the chills, the water-on-my-keyboard spills. All of it.

But,

I have returned. I have been busy with my graduate program, my job at the wonderful gym that is Earth Treks, and my second job at the American University Counseling Center (got that sexy secretary vibe going for me... or so my girlfriend says).

BACK TO CLIMBING,
When I do have time to climb, I've been regularly hitting up some sick bouldering climbs. The Earth Treks Setter Showdown (post in the works) was a rockin good time filled with unique and creative climbs that provided me with a ton of amusement... and pain! The climbs are awesome, and putting my Muiras (that's right they are still working after 3 years!), and Futuras (Mmmm *drool) to good use.

I have been training at home with my Blank Slate trainer (review in the works), and my lulu lemon yoga mat.

Anyway,
that's where I've been,
I hope to post more soon!

Thanks,
Kevin

Personal Update

Let's Get Personal! Acadia Trip

I am pleased to write that I have officially bouldered outside, and will be writing a review of my crash pad soon!

For those interested in the adventure:
My wonderful girlfriend Molly (who is responsible for the photos, link to her blog here) and I went to Acadia National Park in Maine staying in Bar Harbor. Hiking, eating, touring were all as fantastic as the East coast can offer. Before the trip, we planned it out with the help of rockclimbing.com and the mountainproject.com. It took some effort, and not all searching was fruitful, but we found some magnificent boulder spots: (Monument Cove, and Gorham). Truthfully, it was a fantastic trip for climbing in a place where bouldering is present, but not the most popular form of climbing. Not to worry though! As I walked with Molly, crash pad strapped to my back, climbers of all varieties would ask "You're bouldering? Where?". Plenty of friendly faces and rock lovers to go around.

Acadia is full of some pretty neato-burrito boulder problems along hiking trails with fantastic views. It also happens to be the only coast climbing on the East coast. The difficulties of the respective problems vary from good warm-ups (V0) to the extreme (V13). You could live a good life full of climbing in the town of Bar Harbor: full of beer from the craft ales of the Atlantic Brewing Company and good food of the Mainely Meat BBQ (located next to the brewery, which by the way offers amazing free tours!).

But seriously... That was some awesome beer and BBQ.

It was a fantastic trip! All of which I owe to my gal and her family. Thanks Molly!

SHOE REVIEW: Muira (lace-ups) by La Sportiva

The Muira (lace-ups, size 41.5):

A sleek design. A minimalistic feel. The Muira provides comfort and performance in force with this tremendous success by La Sportiva. There is a reason why these shoes were awarded "shoe of the decade" (that's right folks, "decade").

I've climbed in the Muiras for about a year and a half now. I've bouldered, top-roped, and lead in these workhorses and found myself pushing my limits in comfort. They are worn down and in need of a good resole. Even with absent toe and smoothed-away rubber, I can still go big and rock the rocks with little loss of my performance. Well done La Sportiva, well done.


Highlights:
Comfort - How La Sportiva managed to squeeze my toes into an asymmetric point without reshaping my metatarsal bones is beyond my comprehension.

The heel - La Sportiva's new release: the Futura has the body of the Solution with the heel of the Muira for a reason. It's a simple piece, but it runs narrow while tapering to the heel for a snug, sensitive heel.

Narrow - I have narrow feet. I have struggled with getting rid of the dead-space that narrow feet fail to occupy. Wider-footed ladies and gentlemen (particularly gentlemen) may find that the Muira is too tight. However, for those with narrower feel will likely find (as I have) a good form fitting shoe.

Rating (scale of 1 to 5):
Bouldering - 4.5
Sport Climbing - 5
Crack - 4.5
Comfort - 4.5