Evolv Yosemite Bums

Has anyone had good experiences with the new Evolv Yosemite Bums? I was super excited to try them out but I found them to fit super weird. I have medium-wide feet so TC Pros are just more narrow than I want. I am a street shoe 12-12.5 so I ordered those sizes and could barely get my feet into the 12.5s. Then I went to a store and tried on 13s and they were still way to small. 

Anyone know what's up? are the designed to be sized with some toe curl? Also why is the toe box so high volume? It just makes no sense to me. I would love to hear if anyone has used them a lot and likes them.

Also the free resole idea is awesome, I hope more brands start offering something similar.

Yup. Love em.

nic houser wrote:

Yup. Love em.

Would you care to share any more details?

How did you size them compared to your street shoe and overall how do you find the fit? What do you like about them? Have you had issues with Trax SAS wearing quickly?

Thanks :)

I had to go up 1.5 or 2 sizes (can’t recall) to get a similar fit to my TCs. I’ve had that experience with all Evolv shoes I’ve tried.

Ultimately they were too wide around the toes and didn’t fit me. I wrote to Evolv asking if the LV model is actually narrower or if it’s just less material in the build, they never responded. 

I have em. If the shaman fits you well, so will the YB. I guess it’s a wide feet kind of fit, like a lot of evolvs line.

that said , I’d really only use the YB for all day climbing where I’m rarely if ever taking off my shoes (eg multipitch). Laces are too annoying to deal with when cragging.

otherwise, great shoe for stuff that isn’t pushing your grade

Evolve, Yosemite bums!

At least that’s how my eye read it at first glance. And I was thinking that many (but not all) certainly have, with their built-out custom 100k vans.

Ok, back to the topic at hand… apologies for the brief interruption.
; )

The instep of the tc pros are too short for me, do y'all think that the evolves my offer greater space.

Finn Lanvers wrote:

The instep of the tc pros are too short for me, do y'all think that the evolves my offer greater space.

I find most LS and Scarpa shoes crush my toes when the width is right, and have too much width when the toes are right. Or in other words: maybe; Evolv shoes, in my experience, have a larger length to width ratio.

I could be misremembering though. It's been ages since I put on anything other than an Evolv (besides Scarpa Magos which gave me horrible toe blisters)

thanks for the advice

Sam Ehmann wrote:

Would you care to share any more details?

How did you size them compared to your street shoe and overall how do you find the fit? What do you like about them? Have you had issues with Trax SAS wearing quickly?

Thanks :)

Haha! I thought you meant Yosemite bum resoles since they were taken over by evolv. I had no idea they made a shoe and named it after the resole shop they run. Looks like a nice shoe!

Not sure what you mean by a high volume toe box, it's about as flat as the TCs or Alturas. Definitely designed to fit with toes flat, maybe they just don't work for your feet? 

FWIW I like my pair a lot, comfy and stiff enough. They definitely stretch at least 1/4 size all around, so keep that in mind for sizing. And Evolv does run really small, I wear a 43 in Scarpa and a 45 in Evolv. 

I like them. I wear a 10.5 wide street shoe size and have a 10.5 mythos and my YBs are 12.5. In this size they fit with the tiniest amount of toe curl which helps edging. They don't edge as well as TC pros but smear way better, and the toe box makes me more comfortable.

Isaac Mann-Silverman wrote:

Not sure what you mean by a high volume toe box, it's about as flat as the TCs or Alturas. Definitely designed to fit with toes flat, maybe they just don't work for your feet? 

FWIW I like my pair a lot, comfy and stiff enough. They definitely stretch at least 1/4 size all around, so keep that in mind for sizing. And Evolv does run really small, I wear a 43 in Scarpa and a 45 in Evolv. 

That is really good to know, maybe I really do just need to keep sizing up and try a 13.5 or 14. I just assumed that if the shoe was designed for you to have flat toes, it would fit that way at around street shoe size but maybe that is naïve of me. I will order some more!

Sam Ehmann wrote:

That is really good to know, maybe I really do just need to keep sizing up and try a 13.5 or 14. I just assumed that if the shoe was designed for you to have flat toes, it would fit that way at around street shoe size but maybe that is naïve of me. I will order some more!

If only climbing shoe sizing made that much sense

I just gat my second pair delivered. First pair I ordered 1/2 size up from street shoes, and my toes were too crammed/curled. I sent them back. I’m now a full size up from street size and they’re perfect. Still snug for sure, but I’m anticipating a bit of stretch.

The shape of the forefoot is the best for my foot than I’ve ever had from any maker. The split tongue isn’t as finicky as I was imagining it would be. And they’ve definitely a lower toe profile and stiffer midsole than the Scarpa Maestro they’re replacing. The synthetic suede seems a bit thin, though. Hope it’s tougher than it looks.

I won’t have the opportunity to take them on long multi-pitch until the season advances a bit, but I’m sure they’ll do just fine on the moderate trad stuff I climb at the local crag in the meantime,

Just picked up a pair from REI - I recommend ordering 2 or 3 pairs and pick up at the store, and return the pair(s) that don’t fit. Use your membership perks and REI credit card and the shoe becomes quite a good deal for being a brand new model - especially with the free resole.

I opted for a “performance-comfort” fit - without socks on, toes just starting to curl, no dead space. Very comfortable all-around and no hotspots.  Figured I could always throw on a pair of socks if they stretch a little. I have wide-ish feet (I’m a Vans and ASICS kinda foot), with a “classic” toe box shape, according to Scarpa. I’m sitting on my couch wearing them right now and I must say, they feel friggen smooth.

For reference, my Scarpa Origin and Scarpa Instinct VSR that fit really well are 43.5 EU (tight, but pretty comfortable upon break-in). I have a pair of Scarpa Vapor S that are 43 EU and are more of a gym-fit as I have to take them off after a climb or two. I also tried on the new La Sportiva TC Pros and their 42 EU felt about the same lengthwise as the US 11 Bums, albeit narrower.

My Vans street shoes size is US Mens 8.5-9, but I wear a lot of slip-ons so I probably size them tighter than normal. For my lace-ups, I’m more like US Mens 9-9.5.

Hope this helps for those looking to order these shoe - at least get in the ballpark!

I have about 20 pitches on my YB’s and haven’t noticed any real stretch. The fit has molded but the size is still what I was going for. here’s my sizing references:

Street shoes, 8 1/2

My Miuras, toes curled but still comfortable, are 40.5

My Scarpa Maestro’s, toes just starting to knuckle a tad, 41.

TC Pro (tried on in store), toes flat, 41.5.

My Yosemite Bums, toes flat, 42.5 (9 1/2).

And FWIW, the synthetic suede is burlier then I thought at first. The rubber is definitely sticky enough, and I’ve only been out on cold days. The split tongue is great. All around, I am 100% satisfied.

Can anyone compare the rubber compound on the Yosemite Bums to the Generals? I switched from the Generals to the 5.10 Grandstones because the Generals rubber wasn't very sticky, but they don't make the Grandstones anymore. I had better luck climbing friction slabs at J-Tree with my approach shoes than the Generals.

Definitely took the ybs up a few slabs in jtree, I'd say they're actually better slab shoes then edging though maybe my fit isn't aggressive enough to really push that. I like the combination of softer rubber and firmer midsole, it strikes a good balance of sensitivity and support. 

I'll probably resole them with UP rubber after the first free resole just because, but I'm pretty happy with their performance out of the box.