Evolv Oracle Climbing Shoe Climbing Shoes

Product Information

A foot type rating is also provided to suggest the most appropriate foot type for that particular model. It is important to feel all parts of your climbing shoe as your body and your feet are always in a power position. Precise foot position is required all the time, as the climbing session is usually short and intensive. In this discipline it is important to have a shoe that will not stretch too much over the time. The sole needs to provide enough rigidity and at the same time the suitable sensitivity and delicate heel & toe hooks. The other important consideration here is that the Agro stretches probably the least of any shoe I’ve ever worn. Not only is the upper made of a non-stretchy synthetic (and vegan) material, but there’s also rubber covering so much of the shoe that it has very little potential for stretch to begin with. In other words: with the Agro it’s important to get the right fit straight away. The Agro is may be slightly less sensitive than the Solution, though not dramatically so. In terms of broader performance characteristics, the Solution handles vertical edging better than the Agro, but both shoes perform quite well on really steep terrain.

TRAX-SAS is such a composition that is a mix that’s both long-lasting and low-friction. If you don’t mistreat the soles, you may expect them to last a long time. The Agro’s toe box tapers moderately from the outside to the toe and has a pretty sharp bevel on the vertical dimension (i.e., the slope that covers your toes from the tip of the shoe to the upper). This is again similar to the Solution (which is possibly the most apples-to-apples comparison to the Agro), and in contrast to shoes like the Five Ten Hiangle and So Ill Street, both of which have more rounded toe boxes. At first I wondered whether the Oracle would be too soft for limestone edging. On the sport routes of Portland and the trad climbs of Pembroke it took a while to get used to this, because I would normally be wearing a stiffer shoe for this sort of thing. However, once I learned to trust them I found they didn’t let me down on small edges. While a stiff heel structure is good for bouldering, a softer midsole, or split sole for the front end of the shoe is preferable for low angle climbing. Here, control and friction is generated from dropping the heel. The Shaman excels here. Love Bump: Fills dead space under your toes while putting much needed energy towards the edging surfaceThe laces extend far enough down the length of the foot, but not so far that they will get mashed up on toe hooks. They are protected by the upper, though I do wonder how much wear and tear the delicate looking plastic inserts at the top of the micro cord can take. Build quality, however, seems good all round, and the lacing really does make getting them on and off much easier than other lace ups that use a more traditional system. Performance The bevel on the Agro’s toe box functions much like the toe box on the Solution and provides a high degree of precision, particularly when the terrain is steep.

Test Locations: Rifle, Clear Creek Canyon, & Eldorado Canyon, CO; Ten Sleep, WY; Kraft Boulders, NV; Moe’s Valley, UT From the Agro, the Oracle inherited the stiffer “Dark Spine” midsole and heel tension which ensures a supportive fit and plenty of friction for heel hooks. A Flexible Sling Shot (FFS) heel tensioner is embedded into the top lace loop. When pulled tight, the heel and arch can be pulled in with plenty of precision. Feeling – toe is softer than Solution and heel cup much tighter and sensitive. Feeling wise after session in Agro, heel cup on Solution is significantly baggy and insensitive.A volume rating (Low/Medium/High) is provided for each shoe. The male tester has medium width, medium volume feet so anything that was a perfect fit was judged as ‘Medium’ volume, anything with very little room as ‘Low’ volume and anything with lots of room in the body of the shoe as ‘High’ volume. The TRAX® SAS is developed in partnership with an actual rubber scientist (a doctor of material science / chemical engineering that specializes in rubber) according to Evolv. From the Agro, the Oracle inherited the stiffer "Dark Spine" midsole and heel tension which ensures a supportive fit and plenty of friction for heel hooks. A Flexible Sling Shot (FFS) heel tensioner is embedded into the top lace loop. When pulled tight, the heel and arch can be pulled in with plenty of precision. WARM YOUR SHOES - Never try your NEW shoes on when they are cold out of the box. Leave them in a warm room for an hour or so before trying them on, this will make them much more soft, supple and plyable. Disclaimer

Therefore the tester who measures EU 44would use a EU 42.5 for category A, EU 43 for category B, EU 43.5 for category C and as the shoe tested is an example of a technical shoe not designed for category D, NA is given. The rubber on the Oracle does seem hefty, but the sensitivity of the device has surprised us. It’s easy to detect a connection between your feet and the wall features/footholds, though. Sizing Of The Shoe The Geshido is one of two new models from Evolv released this spring. They come in lace-up and Velcro variants, and in male and female versions. I’ve been testing a pair of the men’s Velcro for the last few months, initially confined to my garage board, and more recently on the crags and boulders of South Wales. What kind of shoe is the Geshido? Comfort – the shoes are comfortable. Much more comfortable than Solution moreover Agro is not yet fully broken in. It’s not matter of size as visually Agro is few mm smaller than solution and also putting on the shoe is more difficult in case of Agro. So probably matter of inner lining and/or shape/fit. I expect the shoes will stretch little bit and I can even imagine to have it half size smaller but in this case issue will be put the shoes on. Finally, the Agro is noticeably tapered from the heel to the forefoot, with a relatively wide toe box but a narrow, tight-fitting heel. I have medium-volume feet and didn’t find the Agro to be uncomfortable, given how aggressive it is. And beyond just being comfortable, I found that the Agro inspired a lot of confidence on heel hooks, something that is absolutely essential for any shoe that caters to boulderers.Underfoot, the Oracle uses a 4.2mm TRAX SAS which is the ultimate combination of friction and durability.