5.10 > Jet 7's

Jacky > Jet 7: This climbing shoe is nothing new, but it had been on my list for a while so I gladly spent a few bucks when 5.10 showed interest in a review. Considered as a high performance bouldering shoe, the Jet-7s inspire nothing but praise.

Evidently, this shoe will make a bigger difference for high caliber climbers. Since I’m a V5 climber, I probably won’t be able to push this shoe to its limit but I will do my best to give you a detailed and exact account of my impressions on these shoes when I use them. Mostly because of school, my climbing schedule gets limited to a couple of sessions a week and I therefore take more time than Muckle or Noodles, like 6-8 months, to destroy shoes.

My first steps in these shoes were made at Val David, during an outdoor bouldering session. Since we were climbing at night, we had to look carefully and find footholds with our headlamps before getting on the boulder. Once the enemy identified, we were ready for attack! On the first problem, I had to heel hook the rock. I found my heel slipping out of the shoe, and I was uncomfortable with the move. I tied up the upper velcro some more and that sufficed to solve the problem. On the next problem, I was pleasantly surprised by the toe work. The toe of the shoe is very precise and natural. On my first try standing on this crimper for the feet, I was shocked by the shoe’s adherence to the rock. The cut of the shoe is such that the tip gets a good contact with a ledge of only a few millimeters and the sensitivity allows for precise work without hesitation. I must have told Muckle ten times how precise my toe work had become…well, enough times to make him want to try them! He tried them… but I took them back quickly enough! :P I also noted the rubber’s tenderness, rendering the sole a very useful tool when it comes to smearing. The only damper, is the interior of the heel of the shoe. Since we were outdoors in a damp area, I had to change between my hiking and climbing shoes quite a bit. By the end of the night, I had nice irritation marks on both feet right below my Achilles’ heels. Since they are brand new shoes, I can’t tell if it’s the fabric’s roughness or the stitching that chafes… We’ll see in time if this goes on!

My second run with the Jet-7s was on the boulder at the local gym. Since the Tour the Bloc competition just passed by our gym (Allez-Up), there were a few serious problems left to work on. That was pure delight! The most technical move in my whole session was one where I had to bring my entire weight back to a vertical position while avoiding a slip with a toe-hook. I was therefore able to use the Stealth Paint covered top for the first time. My hook was placed on a fairly slick part of the module I was climbing and I do think the textured covering helped the movement by increasing my adherence. Moreover, the combination of the fabric and the rubber gives such an aggressive shoe a more comfortable feel. Note: since it was a short session, I had no irritated heel.