Rock Shoes: Boreal Crux
1st Mar 2006
£72.95 | Velcro | size reviewed 10 (foot size 10) | weight 588g | medium asymmetry
Boreal claim that their new rubber is so sticky that the boots have to be shipped in separate plastic bags to stop them gathering fluff and dust. I’m sure other manufacturers could make the same claim, but fair play to Boreal for pointing out the reason and using it as a marketing tool. The point of mentioning this in the review is to let everybody know that Boreal have come of age with regard to their rubber. We remember well the days of Ninjas and Aces, excellent boots at the time, but it is a not so well kept secret that Boreal sponsored climbers the world over used to take their new boots straight down to their local re-solers to get some decent rubber put on! FS Quattro works, and it works well. These Crux’s performed equally well on edges, smears, cracks and overhangs. A performance shoe they may be, but an all rounder at that. They are an un-line leather upper. There was no movement whatsoever in the heel when aggressively hooking. This is due to the first Velcro strap which is angled to pull in the heel cup. We read in another review that this is at the expense of a snug fit under the arch, but didn’t notice any such failing. The design is pleasing to the eye, the multi coloured leather patches actually differentiating between different thicknesses of material – the paler stuff over the toe is 2mm thick to protect the area of quickest wear, as opposed to the 1.8mm darker stuff on the rest. In addition to this extra thick leather the rubber toe strap gives some more protection and helps keep the toe box rigid and stiff. A super thick tongue and two well positioned, wide Velcro straps makes for a very comfortable fit, without losing any sensitivity. All in all a very strong offering from Boreal.
This review was carried out as part of a massive comparative review of 25 pairs of Performance Rock Shoes. We think that this could be the biggest review of such shoes ever undertaken. You can read the whole review here.