Mammut Goblins
So I thought this was probably a review that was a long time coming, especially considering that it was my first pair of climbing shoes. The Mammut Goblins have been long time friends of mine and are in need of visiting a cobbler and getting a good ole resoling. The only reason they have not been resoled yet is because I have been waiting on another one of the pairs of my climbing shoes being ready to go and my pair of La Sportivas is almost to that point. I have had these shoes so long and I have become so comfortable wearing them that These shoes have been around so long and through so much that the metal buckles the velcro straps go through is rusting and the yellow leather on the outside of the shoe has almost bleached out. Now I want to put this out, I have TRASHED these shoes as far as climbing shoe use goes. After I wore a hole through both of these shoes I decided that they would be my rainy day shoes and I did not take care of them. Part of the reasoning behind lack of care was that I really didn't understand the respect that was required to care for most climbing gear. A praise I have for these shoes is that the opens up almost to the toe and to add positivity to that it's velcro and that makes them very easy to get off and on. In comparison to other pairs of shoes I own or have worn these have definitely been the easiest to get off and on and still fit very tightly. They are curved just enough to give you a little bit extra on those edges and at the same time not so stiff as to prevent you from smearing on a flat wall. Personally they have been my favorite pair of shoes and considering the abuse they have been through I have got to say that I love them. In comparison to a lot of the climbing shoes that run for $150 these shoes are right there with them if not better in some areas, if you are looking in the $100 range I would definitely suggest these and tell you gladly that these are worth your money and will be in it for the long haul.
Mad Rock Maniacs
So I have had a pair of Mad Rock Maniacs for a while and I typically use them for climbing when one of my non-climber friends needs to borrow my shoes, but I do have a couple of complaints as well as a couple of compliments about the shoes. First I will start with the bad and move to the good because everyone wants to end on a good note. First off I will be forward and tell you I haven't had them that long and I haven't trashed them so I can't give the same intensity of review as I did with the Goblins. My first problem with the Maniacs is that they are velcro but the velcro is almost pointless it goes under the shoe which worries me that after wearing them for a long period of time and them breaking in really well that eventually the velcro strap will just wear away until it breaks. Another con to these shoes is that the rubber around the heel on my left shoe is not the same as the one on the right, it is actually smaller and harder to get my foot in, the rubber around the back heel is very thick and because of that it won't stretch so that I can easily slip my foot in. And to add to this problem is that the hole that you get your foot in is just big enough to get your foot in so overall if you get this shoe a half size smaller, like most people do, then it will be a very snug fit. On a positive side is the price, they are a very inexpensive shoe just as most things from Mad Rock are, BUT they are still of a high quality with plenty of rubber to wear through before you have to worry about taking them to get resoled. They are about $70 MSRP, but I got mine for $49 and I have seen them for cheaper than that so in that area they are definitely worth what I paid for them and I would definitely say they would be worth the $70 with a slight adjustment to the shoes as far a getting your foot in.
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