Tenaya Climbing Shoes

I had a similar question. My best shoe is the Katana Lace and my gym shoe is the Vapor V tho I do put on the KL when I lead at my limit. The other night a climber was dancing up pretty hard stuff in his Oasi. We chatted after the fact and he said he ditched his Solutions for the Oasi in short order for the comfort of the latter, with very little or no loss in performance.
I too have been eyeing the Inti as a comfy gym shoe but now that I know they have no downturn, I am starting to think they are not the right shoe for the gym this winter. Oasi is definitely pricey as a gym shoe (I paid $81 for the VV, for instance) ... I might have to switch over to the Ra instead.

Thanks for the suggestions!

My feet are pretty wide, so the Ra may be my best bet. I'll try on all the slippers and see what fits best. I assume no stretch?

I wore Testarrosa's for years but they started to hurt my feet and I had to switch to something less 'challenging.'

I kind of hope I don't like the $165 Oasi. Anyone know if Bentgate has any discounts at present? Neptunes has a 25% off deal going for a few days, which would bring down the cost of new Katanas nicely.

Mark E Dixon wrote:I assume no stretch?

Very little stretch. They'll conform to your toe knuckles, but they won't get any longer/wider.

Mark E Dixon wrote:Thanks for the suggestions! My feet are pretty wide, so the Ra may be my best bet. I'll try on all the slippers and see what fits best. I assume no stretch? I wore Testarrosa's for years but they started to hurt my feet and I had to switch to something less 'challenging.' I kind of hope I don't like the $165 Oasi. Anyone know if Bentgate has any discounts at present? Neptunes has a 25% off deal going for a few days, which would bring down the cost of new Katanas nicely.

i have been climbing in the ra's for the last few months, and i would call them a narrow shoe. i have a really skinny foot, and they are pretty narrow on me (to the point that sometimes they try to pull my pinky toe under my ring toe).

mono - do you have narrow feet? for some reason i always imagined you having beefy feet (?).

i have been meaning to post a review of the ra's, but i have been pretty busy. a quick summary would be;
1) absolutely great on pockets (probably the best shoe i have ever worn for pockets).
2) ok at edging, but not great. the toe area is too symmetric and your big toes aren't knuckled up, so it is hard to generate the force required for really nasty edging. my galileos are still, by a long margin (IMHO) the best edging shoe i have worn. for the most part though, i have been able to get by with the ra's.
3) mostly really compfortable, except when they try to pull my pinky toe under my ring toe.
4) i agree with mono that the inti's are better for edging, which is pretty weird when you compare the lateral bending stiffness of the 2 shoes about the long axis of the foot - the ra is much stiffer, and the inti is way flexible. pretty crazy.

I pretty much agree with Slim. The Tenaya is a pretty narrow shoe. Narrower than any Five Ten I've ever worn. I have a skinny foot, but not necessarily a narrow one. They fit me, but I sized them down so much that I can really only boulder in them. If I go on any sport climbing trips next year I might buy some a half size larger, because they are probably the best performing shoe I've owned for bouldering/sport.

I also agree with Slim that the Galileo is the best edging shoe ever. I have two pair in two different sizes for everything from vertical wall climbing to all day trad.

I do think the Ras edge really well though. But they do really shine in on pocketed limestone. For a slightly downturned shoe, they are also extremely comfortable. If I had a full size bigger I could probably climb all day trad in them without sacrificing too much performance.

slim wrote: mono - do you have narrow feet?

I think I have stubby and wide feet. BITD I fit really well in Fiveten Anasazis (velcro and lace), and I felt like Katanas were a bit narrow (but I could stretch them to the right width).

I wonder if shoe width is "linear" across the size range. It seems to me like often the big sizes are relatively narrow and vice versa.

Really want to try a pair of Oasi - anyone comment on fit? I hear they run larger.

I currently climb in Scarpa Instinct VS size 44 - but they are too small. The 45 fits perfect but digs into my fibula so no go.

John Tissavary wrote:Really want to try a pair of Oasi - anyone comment on fit? I hear they run larger. I currently climb in Scarpa Instinct VS size 44 - but they are too small. The 45 fits perfect but digs into my fibula so no go.

I wear a size 13.5 in the Masai and Ra, but a 11.5 in the Oasi fit perfectly. I guess that means 2 sizes down from street, at least for me, but I like my shoes to be comfy.

My friend wears an 11.5 street and had to go down to a 10.5 in the Masai to feel right for him, but he has super narrow feet and I think he is okay with a little toe pain compared to me.

Mark/Mono: I'm looking at getting the Inti or Ra for climbing on vert granite sport (Lower Rock Creek) and in the Owen's river Gorge, what would you prefer??? I'm just assuming you've climbed here since you've been EVERYWHERE it seems.

Mark E Dixon wrote:Any suggestions for a Tenaya style that might replace the Katanas I currently use in the gym? They are a couple of resoles beyond their lifespan already. I was thinking maybe Intis?

An update-

I tried on Ras and Intis. The Ras fit my wideish feet much better.
I wear a size 38.5 Katana, and ended up with a 40.5 Ra.
The Ra seems fairly similar to the Katana with respect to asymmetry and downturn, but are much stiffer. They climb as well, but I can't curl my toes over footholds nearly as easily.
They are much more comfortable than my Katanas, although not an all day shoe for me. But at least my feet don't hurt after a gym session.

DoesNotCare wrote: Mark/Mono: I'm looking at getting the Inti or Ra for climbing on vert granite sport (Lower Rock Creek) and in the Owen's river Gorge, what would you prefer??? I'm just assuming you've climbed here since you've been EVERYWHERE it seems.

I think foot shape is probably the determining factor, but for me, the Inti is better for edging. The Init toe box is lower-volume and less 'pointy' than the Ra. If you like more of a square toe box, go with the Inti. My feet are more stubby than pointy, my big toe doesn't stick out from the others, so the Inti fits me best. I think they kick ass on thin edges.

Monomaniac wrote: I think they kick ass on thin edges.

In your opinion, would Masai be the right shoe as a replacement for Miura lace-ups?

I have a wide boxy forefoot and find the Ra's to fit wonderfully, providing good sensitivity..multi-pitch comfort and edge quite nicely...very similar to the anasazis. My new " go to" shoe

Anyone have recommendations for good fits for my feet in the Solution/Instinct VS/Oasi style?

I have pretty low volume feet but street size 12, so I can't just get a woman's shoe since they don't make them that big. Medium width forefoot, high arch, but skinny heel and pretty asymmetrical toes, so I need a decent amount of camber even in all-day shoes (e.g. Anasazis and Pontas are painful on me because they push my big toe toward the other toes).

My current sport/bouldering shoes are Geshidos and Shamans; while the width of the forefoot and camber is perfect in those, I need to crank them down allll the way to get the air out, and I feel that the heels fit just a bit to square/baggy. Tenuous heel hooks are made even more so.

My suggestion is to check out the Tenaya Inti, which is made for narrow feet. Probably street or half down from street size.

I tried on some Ras, they fit really well but the sole felt kind of weird, like there was a hinge point just behind the forefoot area and they bent really easily there. Felt like no support from the whole sole (no tension from the heel??). I'm having a hard time describing it well, but very different sole flex pattern than other shoes I've worn. Currently in Katana Laces for sport. Anyone else notice that?

I haven't noticed that, but I find the Inti to be much stiffer/tighter in the same length, so you might try those if you think the Ra is not stiff enough.

Masai rock! Like the pink Anasazi, but without the pain.

Marek Sapkovski wrote:Masai rock! Like the pink Anasazi, but without the pain.

I compared my masais and ras to a pair of the new pinks and they look like almost the same shoe. I also just got a pair of Intis, now I have hard-sport/bouldering, long sport/steep climbing, and super comfy sizes (12.5, 13.5 and 14). The Inti (13.5) fits my foot really well in my street size, and the width of the Ra (12.5) seems like the same width as the Intis.

I just hope they can stay in the US market since they are more comfortable than any other shoe I've tried and climb just as well.

anyone know how the sizing on the Oasi compares to the Tatanka?

No sotres near me have the Oais, but id like to get some. Im just wondering if I should go same size as the Tatanka.

superkick wrote:anyone know how the sizing on the Oasi compares to the Tatanka? No sotres near me have the Oais, but id like to get some. Im just wondering if I should go same size as the Tatanka.

Unfortunately you have to size the Oasi down-I went 2 FULL sizes down at a demo-I normally wear a 13.5 in the Ra, but 11.5 in the Oasi.

Good luck, they have free return shipping at Trango, so you could order 2 or 3 pairs!