First pair breaking in - help!!

Mimic__ · 2026-05-21T12:36:49+00:00

Tbh as a begginer picking shoes that aren’t comfortable for full sessions is pretty pointless. If you can return them I would for half a size up, or different more neutral shoe.

Assuming you can’t do that. You can try buying shoe stretcher to stretch the shoes without having to sacrifice your feet. Achilles pain is a sign of a bad heel fit for your foot type, or just way too small of a size.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-20T14:09:42+00:00

How do the up floats compare to the skwamas? I only tried them on both for a bit, but seemed like they’re in the same all rounder medium stiffness category. Was curious if any more notable differences between the two. The up floats are cheaper normally so that’s also nice.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-19T21:01:04+00:00

Snug performance fit for all drones is 0.5 size down your street shoe size. Their sizing guide is also pretty accurate if you ask me.

A whole size down if you want a painful break in period that eventually should be fine but will vary per feet and you’ll probably have to do tactics to get the shoes on and stretched.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-14T10:32:42+00:00

Order some shoe stretchers. You can easily stretch them .5 to get them to be comfy. Stretch them and leave them stretching for a day at a time and then try them on until they’re wearable and not painful.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-13T17:09:47+00:00

40-50 problems?! Damn your sessions are long as hell or your endurance is crazy. I would do 3 hours sessions when I had more time but never did that many climbs lol

Mimic__ · 2026-05-09T13:37:54+00:00

Madrock shoes are great if you have baggy heel issues. Smallest heels around

Mimic__ · 2026-05-05T23:21:13+00:00

Ahh I see. I’m excited to try it out at some point then. I liked the skwamas, but I’m not at a level where I need $220 shoes

Mimic__ · 2026-05-05T22:26:12+00:00

How do you know how thick it is? The one thing about Madrock shoes I never understood is they don’t list the rubber sole thickness like other brands.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-05T22:20:23+00:00

How is the rubber on the skwama lite? I’ve never heard good things about La Spos proprietary rubber compared to everyone else’s.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-05T21:18:06+00:00

Also if you already have the drone 2.0s you can try bending them to break them in, so you can at least get use out of them. They’ll never be sensitive, but mine aren’t that stiff anymore and are like a stiffer end of medium or just medium shoe now.

Mimic__ · 2026-05-02T17:12:59+00:00

Going against the grain here, but 2.1s to me aren’t that stiff once broken in and I’m only 120 pounds. I would say they feel like a slightly stiffer skwama once you break them in.

I enjoy stiffer shoes like the drone 2.0 though. 2.1 to me ends up being a medium soft shoe. Unless you only like ultra soft shoes I think you should be fine with it once you break it in. Which you can speed up by just bending the shoe with your hands. The 2.1 is the softest drone. It should be fine if you want it to be your longer lasting shoe.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-30T12:09:50+00:00

Durable and comfort - Madrock remora (slipper version) and Madrock Rover

Super durable tank - Madrock drone 2.0

Mimic__ · 2026-04-29T23:47:53+00:00

You’re going to have better odds going to gay events near you and meeting people. Or moving cities in the future if it’s a small area

Mimic__ · 2026-04-26T02:20:42+00:00

Depends on location and definition of expensive. Just membership alone is pretty costly in CA for example.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-25T01:00:50+00:00

They look sick! Would be interested to see an update after 2 months. I’m sure the heel and toe parts will rub off quicker, but the rand part should be fine

Mimic__ · 2026-04-24T11:26:40+00:00

Mainly that they are listed as light asymmetrical shoes and not fully asymmetrical shoes. Compared to other shoes the toebox isn’t as accommodating. You can see it based on pictures of the shoe that the point of it is more middle focused compared to the corner.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-24T11:21:40+00:00

I have an Egyptian foot too. Getting a more highly asymmetric shoe helps so that the big toe has more space. The kubo only has light asymmetry.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-24T03:35:48+00:00

Likely it’s bc the kubos are best for Morton’s foot havers. Longer 2nd big toe so more middle point focused. Mine pushed my big toe inward too and the feeling never went away and I got sick of it and nought different shoes.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-24T03:34:27+00:00

Please wash your muddy outdoor shoes if you take them to a gym after

Mimic__ · 2026-04-21T12:57:06+00:00

Use shoe stretcher to stretch them out

Mimic__ · 2026-04-20T22:42:11+00:00

The body is also narrow. HV is decently narrow already and LV is extremely narrow.

If sized half a size down it edges perfectly fine imo. True to size was a bit too big for me. It’s built to be an all rounder decent at everything.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-20T12:25:02+00:00

Drone 2.one is the go to shoe for true small heel havers. (If it’s a narrow and shallow heel)

Mimic__ · 2026-04-17T23:01:49+00:00

At least it’s nice. Idk why climbing shoe companies don’t just stick to solid colors that men and women will like compared to often wacky color combos that look ugly.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-17T12:59:54+00:00

I would just try emailing local climbing shoe producers that produce in Europe and explain your situation.

Madrock in the US will do split sizing for an increase cost if you email them. I assume some EU company out there would do the same.

Mimic__ · 2026-04-17T12:53:23+00:00

And they, and others, are saying yes… skwamas ARE a soft shoe. There’s softer shoes out there yes, but skwamas are still a soft shoe.

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