Description of Scarpa Marathon Rock Climbing Shoe:
A stiff forefoot, comfortable fit, and a dot rubber heel make the Scarpa Marathon Rock Climbing Shoe ideal for casting off on multi-pitch trad routes. The Marathon's solid edging platform gives you confidence when the next pitch is an 80ft slab with four bolts, and the Marathon's padded tongue increases comfort as you jam another sinker hand crack. This Scarpa climbing shoe's padded heel has dot rubber traction for comfort and traction during grueling walk offs, and the slightly asymmetrical fit gives you exceptional performance while maintaining excellent comfort all day.
Bottom Line: Twelve pitches of crack and face climbing is just a warm up for the Scarpa Marathon Climbing Shoes.
The shoe performed super well for a short while. Comfy, awesome toe box, perfect for an all around shoe and the extra padding on the tongue is super nice. Serious design flaws. Scarpa put their brand marker right where the shoe gets stressed when jamming cracks so it blew it out after three uses, both shoes, Then ALL the stitching fell apart on the laces so, that when you tighten them it just pulls the loops out of the leather. poor construction. I am a big Scarpa Fan, this is my fifth pair, highly recommend the brand, but this shoe needs work.
Out of the box these shoes are tight, but thanks to the leather uppers they will eventually break in. I also wear a 10 (43.5) and it has taken several weeks for break in, but now I can go all day. It might still be a good idea to go 1 size larger then normal...best to try on 1st? These shoes work great (I climb 11's) and I found them for just over $50 on sale....I do get strange looks due to the unconventional heal design. I wouldn't use them for walk offs though.
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Great Shoe for All Day Routes with some Scrambling 12-18-09
These shoes are perfect for long routes with mixed terrain between pitches. Though I dont think they would be great for "grueling walk offs" as it says above, they are wonderful for scrambling from pitch to pitch and those places in between.
The shape of the shoe makes them much more comfortable than a more agressive climbing shoe. And though you trade off some precision, with a more relaxed toe shape and flatter sole profile, you get much more comfort.
Even with these comforting features the she still performs very well on cracks and moderate slab climbing. And its great not to have to take them off to move between pitches, or while slaving at the belay.
I got mine a little big so I could use them while wearing lightweight socks for colder assents in the sierra and north cascades. I have been very pleased with their performance.
