I wear a pair of sperry topsider boat shoes, and they develop a similar funk to them over the summer with sweaty feet. I've found that hydrogen peroxide does the trick quite well. Since the stench is caused by bacteria, best way to get ride of it is to kill them. Pour some in there and watch it bubble away. After you do that throw them in the washing machine and they should be good as new.

If you can squeeze into your shoes with a thin pair of socks and climb with them every so often, the micro-organisms will transfer to your socks that can be washed and slowly the stench will decrease. This will also stretch out your shoe some, so they will be a little more comfortable on long pitches.

Stich says, "'That is also certainly the case with my old fleece and synthetic shirts.'"

What, you don't wash those things after a day of climbing? Your poor partner(s). LOL

Funny thread that comes up now and again....

Personally, I've never used anything for my shoes and they don't smell that bad. But then again, I have about 4-5 pair of shoes that I rotate. I also keep everything aired out in my gear room, ropes, packs, shoes, all soft goods, everything.

Mi dos centavos

adios y tengo un buen dia
Juan

Make a tea tree oil spray with some water. I'd say 2 oz of water to about 20 or so drops of tea tree. Spray it in your shoes and on your feet before and after you climb. Works well for athlete's foot as well.

Dr Scholls foot powder regularly both during and after use......cedar shoe forms when shoes aren't being used.

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I always had disgusting shoes until I put essential oils of Maleleuca and lavendar in my shoes. Works wonders!

Isopropyl alcohol works wonders.

Here's one solution that works and I swear by...

Pour about 4-6 oz. of Pin-Sol in a bucket of water. Put some rocks in your shoes so the sink. Soak for about 24 hours. Take out and rinse with water. Air-dry.


This works wonders. Pine-Sol is a natural anti-bacterail, and is bio-degreadable. It is safe on your shoes and doesn't melt the rubber off or do anything to ruin the shoe.

Wear Socks. If you start doing this with a new pair of shoes, they will stay fresh MUCH longer. Even a thin liner sock will help.

Should not effect your ability unless you are climbing 5.13 or harder.

I used to have this problem until I started carrying my shoes clipped to the outside of my pack. I appears that damp shoes buried deep inside a climbing pack create a veritable paradise for bacteria.

Shoes on the outside of ones pack stay dry and in my experience smell free. Plus what better way to show off to the world that you are a bad ass climber.

After climbing open up your shoes and put a dryer sheet or two inside of each. It should help with the smell. Also don't keep the shoes closed up tight, or in the bottom of a bag.

Its a trick I learned with my mountain bike pads.

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