If you climb both indoors and outdoors, you’ve probably noticed your shoes wear differently depending on where you’re pulling on. Modern indoor walls — especially big, textured fibreglass volumes — are basically sandpaper for toe rubber. Great for friction, terrible for longevity. Outdoor wear, on the other hand, tends to be sharper and more localised: tiny limestone edges, Dartmoor granite crystals, or slate that slices through toe patches like a cheese wire.
The trick is knowing what wear patterns mean. Small holes near the big toe? Classic toe-dragging on comp-style holds. Thinning edges? You’re probably doing lots of techy trad or sport outside. Heel balding? Dynamic indoor problems are likely the culprit.
The good news is that all of these are entirely repairable. In fact, mixed indoor/outdoor climbers often benefit most from a timely resole because we can match the rubber to their style: super-sticky for plastic, or a slightly firmer compound for those long days smearing on grit.
If you’ve noticed one part of your shoe disappearing way faster than the rest, pop them in the post — we’ll patch, resole and rebalance them for your next project.