Scarpa Instinct VSR Climbing Shoes Black Blue - 34.5

I have been climbing in scarpa instinct vs for a year and a half and love the fit on my wide, flat foot. Figured I couldn’t go wrong with the VSR while my VS pair gets re-soled.I was unpleasantly reminded of the break in period and how tight these feel out of the box. I am normally a US 11.5 or 12 and I have the VS and VSR in 11. They feel all wrong at first but after several sessions they fit like a glove. I spent some time breaking them in at home, so I could enjoy my first sessions at the gym.I like that I will now have the option of a good edging shoe or a stickier shoe in the same fit.

Best all-arounder around

Outstanding friction and great comfort--if I wanted to, I could definitely keep these on for a couple hours at a time. I found a fit where my toes just start to curl (but aren't fully crammed) to be more than enough to feel comfortable on both edgy problems, and more friction-heavy stuff.Performs well across the board, including for both sport climbing and bouldering, although it's more of a 'does good work' than an 'outstanding, dream shoe' if you have a tiny little edge to stand on. Conceivably could be a single-pair all-round shoe if that's what you're looking for, although it's worth noting that if your footwork needs work or if you're heavier, the Grip 2 rubber won't last as long as Edge does!The Instinct VSR fits identically to the Instinct VS, and is very ... MoreOutstanding friction and great comfort--if I wanted to, I could definitely keep these on for a couple hours at a time. I found a fit where my toes just start to curl (but aren't fully crammed) to be more than enough to feel comfortable on both edgy problems, and more friction-heavy stuff.Performs well across the board, including for both sport climbing and bouldering, although it's more of a 'does good work' than an 'outstanding, dream shoe' if you have a tiny little edge to stand on. Conceivably could be a single-pair all-round shoe if that's what you're looking for, although it's worth noting that if your footwork needs work or if you're heavier, the Grip 2 rubber won't last as long as Edge does!The Instinct VSR fits identically to the Instinct VS, and is very comfortable for a medium-to-wide foot without much in the way of breaking in. . Size normally compared to your typical Scarpa size IMO, which for me is 1 size smaller than street. I'd say they stretch maybe 1/4 size, its more of an increase in give than anything else.

Favorite shoe for gym bouldering

This is my favorite all around indoor shoe, though I mostly boulder. It has enough downturn for overhangs, but still smears very well and sticks to slabby volumes. Solid heal and toe hooks.I think the stickiness of the XS Grip 2 rubber is great indoors. My gym rarely has small, sharp edges; when they do show up, "smedging" works well. The granite I climb on outside does have a lot of small, sharp edges. I find these shoes deform too much and get torn up quickly. I definitely prefer a shoe with XS Edge rubber outside. (Note, I'm 170-180lbs)My street shoe size is Men's 9.5 and I have this shoe in both 41.5 and 42. The smaller shoe takes some effort to put on, but then fits very well heal and toe. The larger shoe fits great in the toe, but the heal is a bit baggy. ... MoreThis is my favorite all around indoor shoe, though I mostly boulder. It has enough downturn for overhangs, but still smears very well and sticks to slabby volumes. Solid heal and toe hooks.I think the stickiness of the XS Grip 2 rubber is great indoors. My gym rarely has small, sharp edges; when they do show up, "smedging" works well. The granite I climb on outside does have a lot of small, sharp edges. I find these shoes deform too much and get torn up quickly. I definitely prefer a shoe with XS Edge rubber outside. (Note, I'm 170-180lbs)My street shoe size is Men's 9.5 and I have this shoe in both 41.5 and 42. The smaller shoe takes some effort to put on, but then fits very well heal and toe. The larger shoe fits great in the toe, but the heal is a bit baggy. They are much easier to put on and I can wear them for longer without discomfort. I notice minimal performance decrease versus the smaller size. Neither size stretched significantly after break-in.My only complaint is that the inner liner is orange and stains the bottom of my feet. When I take my shoes off, I look like I have a terrible foot fungus. I put up with this because the shoes are great to climb in.

Great all-around show

The Instinct VSRs were a better fit for my foot than the regular Instincts were. I’ve had them for about half a year and there is no sign of wear. Additionally, there is a great heel hook feature and the shoe is just aggressive enough to climb overhang but not too aggressive to make it difficult for slab. Overall the shoe works well for all styles of climbing and seems durable enough to last for a long time

Great shoe all around!

I have had these for about a month and am really pleased with them. I am a huge fan of my La Sportiva Turanchulace beginner shoes. So I decided to try a more aggressive shoe from La Sportiva. I’m pretty sure I tried on almost all that La Sportiva had to offer and was not able to find exactly what I was looking for. However, I really loved the La Sportiva Futura and Genius no edge shoes with softer souls. What I didn’t like about the Futura was that it has extra fabric on top of the shoe and one weak Velcro strap. I felt like I couldn’t get a snug fit with that kind of closure. I decided to switch to the Genuis because it had laces and advertised the same type of tech as the Futura. Unfortunately, I was disappointed in my pair because it has a stitch in the toe box ... MoreI have had these for about a month and am really pleased with them. I am a huge fan of my La Sportiva Turanchulace beginner shoes. So I decided to try a more aggressive shoe from La Sportiva. I’m pretty sure I tried on almost all that La Sportiva had to offer and was not able to find exactly what I was looking for. However, I really loved the La Sportiva Futura and Genius no edge shoes with softer souls. What I didn’t like about the Futura was that it has extra fabric on top of the shoe and one weak Velcro strap. I felt like I couldn’t get a snug fit with that kind of closure. I decided to switch to the Genuis because it had laces and advertised the same type of tech as the Futura. Unfortunately, I was disappointed in my pair because it has a stitch in the toe box that was hurting my big toe and didn’t quite fit the shape of my feet the way I wanted them to. Even though I love the way laces can mold to your feet I was really hoping to find a Velcro shoe and since I didn’t love the Genius I didn’t want to settle. I was very pleased when I came across the Scarpa Instinct VSR shoes because they were very similar style with soft flexible soul and aggressive toe for small slabs and smears, but fit my feet much better. And I absolutely love the way they mold to your foot like a slipper but then are secured with a nice Velcro strap. They’ve been amazing on the gym walls as well as on my outdoor climbs. It’s a pretty great all around shoe. I have slightly wide feet. I am a size 41.5 EU in most La Sportiva and got size 42 EU in these and they fit perfectly snug. I wear size 9 street shoes but could maybe fit 8.5.

Great shoe!

I bought this a month ago for my son and I’m so happy I did! He was going from a much less aggressive shoe to this one for the first time. Wow, what a difference! He’s so much more confident in the overhangs, and the aggressiveness of the shoe really helps sticks to those chips! The heel is a bit bigger than expected but they fit as expected otherwise! It’s taken a while to break in, due to the amount of rubber - which we all love! So hang in there, they will fit after a while, probably still going to be “climbing comfortable”, not something to wearing around the house on a Sunday morning when not out climbing!

New to Scarpa. Best shoe I’ve worn yet.

Honestly, I was on the fence making the jump from La Sportiva to another brand. After tonnes of research online and looking at reviews, especially looking for a softer shoe, I decided to give the Scarpa Instinct VSRs a try. And boy was I blown away! About a month in, this shoe is just downright awesome. I went 1/2 size below my street shoe size for a good fit. And it doesn’t stretch as much as expected - it more forms to your foot. Took about 2 weeks (climbing 3 times a week) to fully break in. But after that, I have actually forgotten about the other shoes in my closet! They form to your foot, the rubber on the soul is soft enough that it smears well but has some bite when it comes to edging. Feels durable enough to take a bit of a beating. Heel also feels snug and ... MoreHonestly, I was on the fence making the jump from La Sportiva to another brand. After tonnes of research online and looking at reviews, especially looking for a softer shoe, I decided to give the Scarpa Instinct VSRs a try. And boy was I blown away! About a month in, this shoe is just downright awesome. I went 1/2 size below my street shoe size for a good fit. And it doesn’t stretch as much as expected - it more forms to your foot. Took about 2 weeks (climbing 3 times a week) to fully break in. But after that, I have actually forgotten about the other shoes in my closet! They form to your foot, the rubber on the soul is soft enough that it smears well but has some bite when it comes to edging. Feels durable enough to take a bit of a beating. Heel also feels snug and the Velcro system coupled with the elastic upper keep everything stable. Would love to try them more outside but so far inside, it ticks all the boxes for me! Love it! Plus, the color is just down to earth and cool. 😍🙌🏾🔥

Pretty good

Bought this because it was recommended because I have a very small heel and a very wide midfoot and forefoot. Also have flat feet. Getting a shoe that is wide enough but latches to my heel has been an ongoing struggle.Street shoe size 37. Ordered a 36.5 and a 37 to return what didn’t fit. The 37 popped off my heel completely so went with the 36.5. I wanted something less crunchy in the toes than the 36 I have in the scarpa Vapor S Women’s.This worked fairly well; my toes were quite pinched initially and still are during breaking in. It feels like it’ll stretch a little. With the rubber toe it always feels very stiff and tight when cold and better when warmed up. The rubber feels great for toe hooks and double toe hooks better than other rubbers.The heel… is a ... MoreBought this because it was recommended because I have a very small heel and a very wide midfoot and forefoot. Also have flat feet. Getting a shoe that is wide enough but latches to my heel has been an ongoing struggle.Street shoe size 37. Ordered a 36.5 and a 37 to return what didn’t fit. The 37 popped off my heel completely so went with the 36.5. I wanted something less crunchy in the toes than the 36 I have in the scarpa Vapor S Women’s.This worked fairly well; my toes were quite pinched initially and still are during breaking in. It feels like it’ll stretch a little. With the rubber toe it always feels very stiff and tight when cold and better when warmed up. The rubber feels great for toe hooks and double toe hooks better than other rubbers.The heel… is a bit too wide for me. The tension band lands higher on the ankle than the women’s shoes so the heel is deeper. This works pretty well for me; there is a tiny bit of air beneath my heel but the heel doesn’t come out of the shoe. It is still solid for heel hooks, the air is a bit distracting sometimes.Over tensioning the strap just makes circulation go on the feet and not be able to move the foot back to toe hook.The angle of the toe box (slightly centre) takes adjusting to. It directs the big toe “out” a bit. Puts it in a power position; I found it a bit harder to get my toe right to the end and to smear. It did make the toeing precise.The slipper was very nice the elastic sucked in the foot nice pull tabs. The pattern on the toe was a bit of friction on the skin of the foot when breaking in.The grippy rubber was great for a light person. Probably one of the wider shoes with XS Grip 2 rubber. The strap stayed on better than the nano strap on the Scarpa Vapor S.This shoe was a lot wider than the Drago LV and less downturned so it worked better for a flat foot.

Solid all around climbing shoe.

I made the switch from my old leather Vapor Vs to the Instinct VSR in the same size. They were an amazing upgrade. The softer rubber on the VSRs sticks like glue and the sensitivity is unreal. It has great smearing capabilities for having such an aggressive downturn. The heel is snug but not painful. Whereas, the heel in my old Vapor Vs had quite a bit of slop (the newest Vapor V's have an improved heel.) I'm now more confident in my heel hooks. Very little break in stretch, but the shoe has become easier to put on (maybe the layer of chalk helps.) The shoe has great power to the toe.The only place this shoe does not give me confidence is on micro edges. I do not feel locked in and feel more as though I'm smearing on tiny edges. Good thing they make the same shoe ... MoreI made the switch from my old leather Vapor Vs to the Instinct VSR in the same size. They were an amazing upgrade. The softer rubber on the VSRs sticks like glue and the sensitivity is unreal. It has great smearing capabilities for having such an aggressive downturn. The heel is snug but not painful. Whereas, the heel in my old Vapor Vs had quite a bit of slop (the newest Vapor V's have an improved heel.) I'm now more confident in my heel hooks. Very little break in stretch, but the shoe has become easier to put on (maybe the layer of chalk helps.) The shoe has great power to the toe.The only place this shoe does not give me confidence is on micro edges. I do not feel locked in and feel more as though I'm smearing on tiny edges. Good thing they make the same shoe with an edging rubber outsole, the Instinct VS.All around outstanding performance, comfort, and style for people with feet on the wider side.

Volume monsters

I bought these to see how they fared outdoors. But my god are they good on volumes. I recently did a comp where there was multiple instances I thought I was about to slip off a volume and I just stuck! It felt like cheating.Outdoors, they take some getting used to in terms of foot strength and protection. With the minimal amount of rubber, or anything, your foot feels everything. Which is both great for sensitivity with heels, toe hooks and smearing, but can be quite painful if you bang your foot around with poor technique to fight up boulders.10/10 so far. Does exactly what it says on the tin. Supple, sensitive, downturned. Excellent shoe to have in the quiver.