[tc]

An appeal to the collective wisdom of UKB on behalf of a friend in Germany who is doing some research:

What do people think about Boreal? Have you used their shoes? Have you ever used any of their other products? How do you rate them? What kind of image do you associate with the brand?

Thanks.

[tomtom]

[tc]

Yeah, me too!

[Muenchener]

There was this problem, at the Manchester Uni MacDougall wall, that I did exactly once, in my first brand new pair of Firés, and never managed to repeat.

[galpinos]

My general opinion is that I have no inclination to try any, the last pair I had was a pair of Vectors. I generally climb in 5.10s and have had forays into La Sportiva and Scarpa. I'd be more inclinded to try Unparallel or tenaya next than Boreal.

Not only do they look awful (the rock shoe equivalent of Montura trousers/those red rab trousers with the black knee patches Caff used to wear) the rubber used to be really shiny that made my head think they wouldn't be very sticky. Rock shoes are expensive so I'm not willing to waste my money on boots that look like they were designed by my 3yo with rubber that may or may not be sticky.

[spidermonkey09]

I had a look at their range quite recently but lack of lace up options and variety made me look elsewhere. I have never used their shoes but I definitely have the perception that they aren't as good as the likes of Sportiva, Scarpa et al. I'm not sure why that is. I think the perception that the rubber is poor has caught on and if they used vibram rubber that might help.

I think they probably had a bit of a renaissance when Ben Moon did Rainshadow in them but I've never felt inclined to try them. Would happily give them a go at a boot demo or similar though.

[steveri]

I had a pair of Lynx when I first got back into climbing and eventually wore out the Vectors from the loft. Wore the Lynx until I couldn't get them to stick on a relatively modest problem at the Roaches and decided I liked a softer shoe. I think it was me. Rainshadow.

I find the shoe market sufficiently bewildering that I'm happy enough to have a choice of only the 20-odd Scarpas. Wouldn't rule Boreal out though. Diabolo climbed well on a demo day.

[cheque]

My second pair of climbing shoes were Boreal Spiders- they were a massive upgrade on the green “entry level” Red Chillis I’d started in and I loved them- the sole and the rand were moulded in one piece, they had a kind of scallop out of the front of the sole and a sort of ridge on the heel that you could use to hook behind positive indoor holds. All things that seem naff and unnecessary to me now but at the time I thought were great.

One day there was a Five Ten demo at the wall and I tried some green Anasazis. I immediately realised why lots of people had them and very few had Boreal- the rubber felt softer and stickier than the plasticky Boreals and they fitted way better. I got some immediately and have pretty much worn Five Tens ever since.

I’ve no idea what shoes Boreal make now ‘cos no-one at the crags seems to wear them- people wear all kinds of punter shit indoors but I never pay attention. I associate Boreal with the past and older (or at least more experienced) climbers than me having fond recollections of Firés, Ninjas etc.

[SamT]

Early 90's when I started climbing in earnest, they were pretty much the only manufacturer out there.  Fires had been and gone, Aces, (all round trad), Nijas - ubiquitous grit go to's - and ballets for slateheads and welsh walls.   Virtually every photo in the mags the subject was wearing boreals,  (a few had those green asolos).  Then came the brilliant (in my opinion) lazer which seemed to function equally well on grit and steep lime.  Many happy day wincing around breaking in a pair of ninja's 3 sizes too small and only possible to get on by putting your feet in a sandwich bag first.

Then I had a pair of vectors, which somehow never seemed to be quite as good as a lazer. 

The 5.10 Anazazi suddenly appeared and seemingly over night, nobody ever wore a boreal again (I jest a little).  Thing was they never really fitted my feet (still dont) so I battled along. I had a pair of stingers for a little while, cant recall that they were that amazing.

The first boot to come along and really fit me and inspire confidence after that was the red chilli habanaro (orange and red ones) and I probably did my hardest climibing in a pair of those.

I've been wearing lace up Scarpa instincts (the red and white ones) for a long time now.  Have 2 pairs on rotation, softer older pair for grit and a newer pair for lime, with a 3rd unused pair in reserve. 

No real desire to look at any 'new' shoes until they're all spent.

When my old habonaros gave up the ghost and I was hunting around for a new boot, it was always a case of trying 'everything' on, all brands, and finding one that fits the best and inspires confidence on footholds.  5.10 just do not fit me.
never have and seemingly never will.  I have no brand loyalty, so when the time comes. I'll happily try some boreals along with all the other boots in that same style of boot.

Boreal do seem to have really lost their way/market.

[tomtom]

Dolly had a pair of the new Ninja's a couple of months back. Said they were pretty good.

Though I have noticed he's not used them since..... (that I've seen)

[mrjonathanr]

Then I had a pair of vectors, which somehow never seemed to be quite as good as a laser. 

+1 The Vectors were too clunky so I switched to Sportiva Kendos and they were brilliant. Then had a long, long layoff and now use Scarpas.

I think the Boreal Zenith rubber looks really good but not tempted to return, Scarpas fit me and quality is top notch so why go back?

[Andy F]

I wore Boreal in the early 90's, laser, vector, ninja. Then 5.10 came along and the anasazi velcro was the shoe for a few years. Tried the Stinger (probably the last good shoe they made), which I liked, then they brought out the IRS models. Bought a pair, went to Almscliffe, fell off everything, a mate lent me a pair of Scarpa's and I've never looked back.

I'd never go back to Boreal. The designs look like they've been coloured by a 3 year old with a serious sugar addition, the rubber shinier than a bowling ball after a run in with Mr Sheen and toes pointier than Eric Bristow's dart collection. Terrible shoes. Unless you get them purely to campus in.

[webbo]

The last Boreal shoes I wore were Lazers. I had 2 pairs, I had the older of the two pairs resolved with stealth rubber and after that I never wore the new pair again. I gave them to my then 8 year old daughter to wear.

[SamT]

What kind of image do you associate with the brand?

Just re-read the O.P. and this is great question.

Ben pulling on a pair of Lazers underneath Raven Tor



Johnny in pair of ballets on Quarryman



(And any photo in the froggattt or stanage guides from the early 90s where nearly everyones is wearing fires/ninjas)

[SamT]

I wore Boreal in the early 90's, laser, vector, ninja....
a mate lent me a pair of Scarpa's and I've never looked back.

The Vectors were too clunky
Scarpas fit me and quality is top notch so why go back?

Interesting.

[tim palmer]

Like many previous comments I started climbing in boreals (lasers, matrix, bambas, ninjas).  Then got some scarpa dominator slippers and never went back, even the old vibram compound was superior to the boreal and fit so much more precise.   Now boreals are very expensive and look weird.

[SamT]

And so the Boreal->Scarpa pattern continues.

What were the sort of purple ones with a neon yellow flash beneath the ankle.  I can picture a photo of Dave 'Hard-on' on the cover of OTE on Strapadictomy wearing a pair.  And I'm sure there lots of photos of Jerry wearing them for a spell.

Were they 'sprints'.

Cant find a photo anywhere online.
Some good old classics on here - https://thea.com/Shoes-Footwear-Boreal-Climbing-Shoes/

[NaoB]

It makes me feel sad reading all these comments. Basically, boreal had some issues with their rubber many years ago, which they have more than sorted now, but the damage to their reputation is done. We went to the factory and saw a fancy machine they had for testing the slippage of different samples of rubber on various rocktypes - the newer boreal rubber outperformed all other samples, even stealth. Still, whenever this topic comes up, there are the same people who pipe up with snidey comments, generally people who have not even tried the current range so how do they know??

You no doubt think I am biased... Here's my opinion anyway! We (me and especially Jordan) have been offered lucrative, tantalising deals from other shoe manufacturers, we choose to continue wearing boreals because they are fantastic. The build quality, fit, heels, rubber and the range available all work for us to a high standard. When I've tried other shoes over the years nothing has compared well.

Probably the biggest issue for many UK climbers is that boreals are developed and made in Spain, the shoes mostly are particularly suited to limestone climbing with supportive soles and edges. However, if you want a super soft shoe for the grit, they do a slipper called the synergy.

There are lots of boot demos happening across the UK. At least try the new stuff and give it a proper chance, don't hold on to ancient opinions that are not relevant any more.

[moose]

My first rock shoes were a pair of Boreal "beginner" shoes (Diablos?), recommended by someone at a climbing shop who I can only imagine had very quickly developed a grudge against me.  Completely insensate, lumpy clogs.  It was a revelation when I replaced them with a pair of Sportiva Katanas - being able to precisely place my big toe on the tiniest of footholds with confidence they would stick.

Years later I bought a pair of aggressive Boreal laceups (can't recall name, red and black, Quattro rubber).  The fit was okay but the rubber was awful.  I am generally pretty insensitive to the vagueries of rubbers - I have shoes with various 5.10 compounds, Vibram XsEdge, Vibram XsGrip, and if I am being honest I cannot reliably detect any difference.  Perhaps because I have big feet but am pretty light, so they aren't being stressed so much, or maybe because I am a shit ignoramus. Anyhow, wearing these Boreals felt like ice skating.  Weirdly they were worse, the bigger the footholds were; climbing easy indoor warmups essentially became a campus session (perhaps I should have kept them, I might be stronger).  I was very happy, when I "accidentally" lost one of them......

Since then, I have mainly stuck to Sportivas and never been disappointed (except the Genius - didn;t like the toe box shape and they felt slippy compared to the Futuras).   I liked the Scarpa Instinct  and can see why people like the brand - obviously good quality construction (better than Sportivas) - but I prefer the broad, more asymmetric toe box that Sportivas tend to have.

Never been tempted to try any of the recent Boreals.  I know they have a proud legacy, but so do EBs  and hob-nail boots.  I view them in the same category as Red Chilli and those makes you only ever see as climbing wall hire shoes - if I see anyone in them I assume they are either hard-up and found a pair in a bargain bin, or are sponsorred.  I suspect Ben Moon is must be capable of climbing 9c, or his Boreals are special custom jobs with different rubber.

[tomtom]

Fair enough NaoB - there was a Boreal demo at Wiltonfest on Sat - and I didn’t try a pair (I didn’t feel like it TBH) though plenty of others did (I think only one pair is still waiting to be returned )... and TBH I didn’t hear anything bad about them - but didn’t hear anyone raving about them either (n=5 or so..).

For me - enough time has passed for me not to view them with any negative past reputation, but I’m just pretty happy with the fit, price and performance of the shoes I use... I also (like several people here) have a couple of new spare pairs of my chosen brand/shoe in a box upstairs that I’ve got in offers/from ads here etc.. so it’ll be a while before I burn/slither through my stock and will want some more...

Though wasn’t the OP about perception of Boreal... to which there have been some pleasant  and also some blunt views...?

[Bradders]

Have never seen any of the ones I'd have considered buying in a shop, and am not minded to order online without trying them on first!

Otherwise I'm open minded about them and seriously considered them when I last bought shoes, before opting for Scarpa and 5.10.

[Yossarian]

Vectors were my second pair of shoes, which felt like surgical instruments after their predecessors - Kamet Joshua Trees. Lots of people in both the uni clubs I was in swore by Aces for trad, but I thought they were terminally unhip. I then went through a Ninja phase, before moving on to Stingers. Boreal was obvs a pretty strong brand back then. I then moved onto 5.10.

There’s so much competition now, and I hardly ever see them at the wall. TBH I’m more keen to try Ocun and maybe Evolve over Boreal these days.

[duncan]

Similar story of fires, ninjas, lasers (all great for their time), then transferring allegiance to 5.10.  It’s unlikely I’ll buy more 5.10 in the post Charles Cole era so when my stock of Blancos and Dragons are depleted I’ll be casting around for something else. Scarpa and Sportiva don’t fit but Boreal might be in the mix. Made in Spain is a plus for me. Caff wears them and you’d think he’d have the pick of shoes as he should be about the most attractive proposition amongst UK rock climbers to sponsor (ha!).

Shoe demos are really important now, the lack of real climbing shops in large areas of the country (London now has a solitary one: Rock On at Mile End) means greater interia in shoe buying.

TC, who is interested in Boreal? Feels like they might benefit from a bit of marketing pizzazz. Vaude/Edelrid would gave them a leg-up but they already own Red Chilli don’t they?

[tim palmer]

the damage to their reputation is done......
there are the same people who pipe up with snidey comments, generally people who have not even tried the current range so how do they know........
Probably the biggest issue for many UK climbers is that boreals are developed and made in Spain, the shoes mostly are particularly suited to limestone climbing with supportive soles and edges.........
There are lots of boot demos happening across the UK.

I have the tried the satori and another shoe of the same iteration in the boreal range, the odd plastic-y rubber on the heel really put me off.  I don't see how this represents a progression from the same thinking which produced the mutants which had that bizarre heel with the spur on it.  They were the same end of the price spectrum as the top end scarpas and sportivas and were more expensive than 5.10s.  I can't see many people going away from a brand they trust to buy a brand which is the same price without a recent track record of producing well thought-out shoes.  I don't think Boreal are viewed as a premium brand anymore (I see significantly more people wearing butora, mad rocks and tenaya) and I don't see why they should be priced as such. 

I am not sure the argument that the shoes are constructed for steep limestone so are beyond the comprehension of the average climber holds any water at all as most performance shoes could be described in the terms listed above.

[webbo]

It makes me feel sad reading all these comments. Basically, boreal had some issues with their rubber many years ago, which they have more than sorted now, but the damage to their reputation is done. We went to the factory and saw a fancy machine they had for testing the slippage of different samples of rubber on various rocktypes - the newer boreal rubber outperformed all other samples, even stealth. Still, whenever this topic comes up, there are the same people who pipe up with snidey comments, generally people who have not even tried the current range so how do they know??

You no doubt think I am biased... Here's my opinion anyway! We (me and especially Jordan) have been offered lucrative, tantalising deals from other shoe manufacturers, we choose to continue wearing boreals because they are fantastic. The build quality, fit, heels, rubber and the range available all work for us to a high standard. When I've tried other shoes over the years nothing has compared well.

Probably the biggest issue for many UK climbers is that boreals are developed and made in Spain, the shoes mostly are particularly suited to limestone climbing with supportive soles and edges. However, if you want a super soft shoe for the grit, they do a slipper called the synergy.

There are lots of boot demos happening across the UK. At least try the new stuff and give it a proper chance, don't hold on to ancient opinions that are not relevant any more.

Maybe if they offered a free pair to all the regulars on here which would be 30 or 40 pairs I guess. Then when said regulars rave about them to every body they will everyone’s go too shoes again.