DENVER — Evolve, Scarpa and La Sportiva, among other climbing shoe retailers, presented their newest climbing shoes at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market this week.

Each company told KSL.com about their three newest shoes they are most excited about for 2019. All three companies have created a new class of shoes geared more toward gym climbing as athletes prepare for the 2020 Olympics.

La Sportiva

“For spring 2020 we’re really focused on the Olympics, so we have a couple new products that are geared towards the three disciplines in the Olympics (sport, speed and bouldering),” Michael Genauer, La Sportiva spokesman, said as he introduced the new shoes.

La Sportiva Solution Comp

“This shoe is based off our existing Solution, but we made the heel of it more like other solutions in our line,” Genauer said. “The heel is more rigid, making the overall shoe a little less sensitive. It’s more sensitive and better for heel hooking. It’s also a little narrower at the heel.”

La Sportiva Theory

“This shoe is geared towards bouldering competitions,” Genauer told KSL.com. “Bouldering on its own has changed quite a bit in the last couple of years. Where originally people were really focused on crimping and small holds, now it is much more dynamic with larger volumes. People are doing more jumping and are moving around in a different way.”

The Theory is the most sensitive shoe in the La Sportiva line, Genauer explained. The idea is that when you put the shoe on you can almost use your feet like hands.

“The other cool thing about it is that we are utilizing a no-edge construction so that it wraps the side of the shoe, which allows you to smear on volumes in a cleaner way,” Genauer added.

La Sportiva Cobra 499

“This is probably the first climbing shoe focused on speed climbing,” Genauer said. “We took this off of the Cobra and focused on making it lighter. The biggest feature is the heel, which is not utilizable in heel hooking. The heel is just there to provide some tension on the foot to make it feel like a slipper. There’s also a little bit of covering over the top of the toes, so that when you’re running up the wall you won’t have any resistance from the fabrics.”

Scarpa

Scarpa Veloce

“Our newest shoe is the Veloce,” Ben Firth, an employee for Scarpa, told KSL.com. “The idea with this one is that it is specifically geared towards the gym crowd. It has super sticky rubber and it’s a really soft shoe, which is great for volumes and overhung stuff.”

Due to the sticky rubber, Firth says the shoe is a little thicker and more durable, making it an ideal training shoe.

“Outside of that, it also has a more rounded toe to offer a little more foot shape and comfortability so you can wear it for the entire gym session,” Firth explained.

Scarpa Vapor Lace

“The Scarpa Vapor has been around for a while, but this year it has been completely revamped with some new technology,” Firth told KSL.com “The heel cup on this shoe isn’t connected, so it’s not as tight on the Achilles tendon (as other shoes).”

Scarpa also has developed a new rubber technology, in which they found a way to change the composite of rubber in the same sheet used for product development. “So instead of having a ridge between (the rubber of the sole and on top of the foot) that can catch, the stiffer edge runs all the way to a softer top,” Firth said. “People won’t catch their feet as much in cracks.”

Scarpa Booster

“This is a rework of our Booster S,” Firth explained. “It’s that same heel with less tension on the Achilles and is a little softer in the forefoot. The interior rim is tensioned in three different ways, which is how we keep a downward shape and asymmetric curve. It also has a ceramic inlay on some of the exterior, which decreases weight while increasing durability.”

Firth added that the asymmetric curve, which most climbing shoe brands had taken on for their newest line of shoes, is more aggressive and better for digging into smaller footholds.

“It’s great for twisting into a different position,” Firth said. “It keeps your foot not how it wants to be, but how it’s best.”

Evolv

Evolv Phantom

“This is our most expensive shoe,” Harrison Voorhees, Evolv spokesman, told KSL.com. “The Phantom is the pinnacle of weird technology we’ve been working on for the past few years. It’s super friendly and doesn’t take a lot to break in.”

Voorhees added that there’s a unique piece at the front of the midsole. If you’re climbing, the shoe still flexes in the front so you can smear on things; but the rigid plastic midsole gives you support for when you need an edge on something really tight.

“They have an interchangeable lace system as well, so they are super customizable to whatever foot shape you might have,” Voorhees said. “You can swap the laces out for different colors as well.”

Evolv Rave

“The Rave is a slip-on, so it would be something you could use as an all-day shoe, whether you’re crack climbing, sport climbing or doing big wall stuff,” Voorhees said. “This is your comfy shoe. We built it on a slightly different last shape, so it’s a little more asymmetric now. We updated the materials in the shoe to make it more comfortable and give it a better tension.”

Evolv Rebel

“This is one of our performance lifestyle shoes which might be referred to as an ‘approach’ shoe,” Voorhees explained. “They are more on the lifestyle side of things so you can use them wherever you go. They still have our sticky tracks rubber on the bottom, so if you’re scrambling around on rocks you can have all the confidence you need that you’re not going to slip and die.”

At the same time as a useful climbing shoe, the Rebel is also something that can be worn around town without looking like a rock climber. They are water resistant, super lightweight and comfortable.

What’s your favorite rock climbing shoe? Comment below.

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