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Tenaya Climbing Shoes

Marc Squiddo · · Mountain View, CA · Joined Jul 2008 · Points: 15

Thanks guys...my Ra's are snug but not painful.....seems like a 1/2 size bump is wise

M Bageant · · Los Angeles, CA · Joined Apr 2014 · Points: 70

I picked up some a pair of Oasis and Masais a few weeks ago, and I LOVE these shoes. They totally break the performance/comfort trade-off curve, so you can have your cake and eat it too.

I've been climbing in Five Ten Anasazis as a quiver of one for more than a year now, and I can definitely say that the Masai does everything my Anasazis do while being much, much more comfortable. The Oasi is a more aggressive shoe than I've ever owned but I was blown away by how comfortable it was as well as how many more footholds "appeared" on previously blank faces...

Sizing beta:
I am a female with wide feet (but a low volume heel) and I usually wear USW9 / Euro 40-41 street size, and I found a Euro 40.75/USM8/USW9 in the Masai (slightly lower volume shoe than Ra or Tatanka) was perfect.

I had to size down 1/2 size in the Oasi (which happens to be recommended by the distributor) to a USM7.5/USW8.5.

Beau Hilton · · Provo, Utah · Joined Aug 2014 · Points: 0

Love the Ra. Definitely try them on and test them out before buying if at all possible - I'm a 13EEE in street shoes (the "EEE" means "super wide") and the Ra in 11 is perfect, toes knuckled but not painful. The guys at Bentgate were great, btw. Colorado is the promised land.

Jeff G · · Colorado · Joined Feb 2006 · Points: 1,098

I've had Ra's resoled with XS grip and XS edge. Both seemed great. I've had one pair of Ra's resoled twice now with excellent results. Resoles were done at Rock & Resole, they did a great job! (And, no, I don't have RR's phone number)

Jeff G · · Colorado · Joined Feb 2006 · Points: 1,098

I dropped a pair of Ra's at Rock & Resole last week and they did them with XS Grip. Maybe they just ran out? I'd say you should call them...

wilcox510 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2007 · Points: 0

Anyone tried the Tarifas yet? Paging Monomaniac.....

Chris Graham · · Bartlett, NH · Joined Jun 2008 · Points: 545
wilcox510 wrote:Anyone tried the Tarifas yet? Paging Monomaniac.....
They look sweet!!!
wilcox510 · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Aug 2007 · Points: 0

No ones tried the Tarifa's yet???

SXL · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2014 · Points: 10

I got a pair of Masai, love them so far but the heel is a bit too narrow/shallow for me. Any of the models have a "vacuum" heel cup a la Mad Rocks?

Pam Peery · · San Clemente, CA · Joined Jun 2012 · Points: 5

Tenayas are available at the Gear Co-op in Costa Mesa, California. They offer discounts for signing up for a membership, reviewing them on yelp, etc. Great store, nice people and I look forward to trying on these Tenayas! (I mistakenly resoled my tc pros with c4 stealth, and now they don't edge well. Too soft at the toe, although they smear well. Look forward to trying on some Ras at gear co-op)

Locker · · Yucca Valley, CA · Joined Oct 2002 · Points: 2,349
"Locker, if you're reading this, you are still getting my Acopa resoles"

I think I am reading this a little on the late side. LOL!
Christopher Barlow · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Dec 2006 · Points: 540
wilcox510 wrote:No ones tried the Tarifa's yet???
I've had a pair for about two months now. Overall, I'd say they're are distinct from the Oasi and Ra in their design but equally awesome in quality. I sized mine the same as the Oasi, but I kind of want to try on a half size small just to see how it feels. They are a bit less aggressive than the Oasi but much more downturned than the Ra. They're comparable in stiffness to the Ra (a good bit stiffer than the Oasi). The toe box has an interesting design. Admittedly, at first I was skeptical. Over the curve of the whole shoe, the sole is downturned, and this is accentuated toward the toe box. But then, just under the big toe, there is a power pocket which is somehow more neutral thant the rest of the sole. Despite my skepticism, I've found that this design actually improves the shoe as it makes it more versatile (i.e. it can smear on slabby terrain and stand on very small, non-positive edges).

I'd compare the shoe to the Sportiva Katana Lace - only a slight downturn but very powerful toebox. With the toe design, I've found it performs a bit better in more varied terrain, especially jamming and smearing. I really like the shoe - I even sent my hardest route, a total lifetime project, in the Tarifa.
Chris Reyes · · Seattle, WA · Joined Nov 2014 · Points: 40

Looking to get a pair of shoes for semi-technical climbing, maybe on the more comfy side for multi-pitch. Been looking at the Inti/Ra. From what I can tell the only difference is the width and possibly stiffness, right? Any recs either way? Am I at least on the right track?

No one around here carries these things so I'm stuck ordering online (we really need more no questions asked return places that carry climbing shoes). Sizing wise is it reasonable to go with normal street shoes size with these? Currently wearing scarpa VS' which are TTS (8.5) and those are a solid (slightly aggressive) fit.

take TAKE · · Tempe, AZ · Joined Dec 2013 · Points: 186

I'd definitely recommend the Masais for multipitch. Unless you need the downturn of the Ra (in which case you're climbing MUCH harder multipitch than me) the masais will do really well. I'd compare them to anasazi lace-ups. As far as fit goes, they're narrow but run pretty damn close to street size. I've done delicate face and slab in them and walked off descent routes for 10 minutes in relative comfort.

S. Neoh · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Oct 2009 · Points: 35

It might be a one-off experience that I had with Tenaya shoes.
My street shoe size is Men's 7. I wear Sportiva Katana Lace 38.5 quite tight, Vapor V 39.5 nicely tight, and Ra in Men's sz 8 a tad tight. I had tried Ra in Men's sz 7 and I could not even get my foot into the shoe!
I also found the Ra to have less downturn than the Vapor V. I had been hoping for about the same. I also do not feel like the Ra is significantly more comfy than the Vapor V. Like I said, my experience appears to run counter to others' expressed here. Sorry.

Mike Collins · · Northampton, MA · Joined May 2013 · Points: 0

I have used the tatankas for a good part of this season climbing outdoors ( I don't use them inside) and so far I have loved them more than any shoe I have owned. I have climbed for a little over two years around 5.11+ getting on 12's and I have owned the shamans and the geshidos (which I also love). The tatankas are insanely comfortable out the box and still high performing. I will definitely be sticking with these for a while. I climb mostly face and sometimes overhanging routes and I have never been disappointed. Definitely worth checking out if you are considering tenaya.

BCamp · · Carlsbad, CA · Joined Jan 2014 · Points: 25

Thank you Monomaniac and everyone on their reviews.

This post will only be helpful to people located in SoCal. I just found out that Tenaya will be at thewallclimbinggym.com/ for the gym's 1 year anniversary on 6/27. Apparently WITH DEMOS to try out !! Check out the website for more info, looks like "Vendor fair open to all" starts at 5:30.

davegreg · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2015 · Points: 5

Thanks for your review. I get interested in the shoes. Can you tell me where to buy?

Jason L. · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jul 2014 · Points: 40

Available on BackCountry as we speak! 6.30.2015 at 12:54 PM

Alan Nguyen · · Alexandria, VA · Joined Jul 2015 · Points: 10

Forgive me if this has already been posted but just wondering if anyone has ever had to deal with Tenaya support? I bought the Oasis back in July and they are already falling apart on me. The velcro straps have been torn to shreds and the stitching was so close to the edge that they've fallen off and now the straps dont even hold my shoe closed anymore. Its a shame they fell apart so quickly because I love the aggressiveness of the shoe and how incredibly comfortable they are.

Would Tenaya replace the shoe or fix them without charge?

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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