By Ryan Olson

Route setters depend on a variety of tools everyday in order to get the job done. Some of these are obvious: walls, holds, bolts, wrenches, ladders, etc.

However, there are other very important tools that sometimes get overlooked. For example, the right pair of shoes can change a slow and tiring day of setting into a more efficient and pleasant experience.

Few people would enjoy spending all day setting in their climbing shoes, but there are often times when you want to try a move while building your creation. The right pair of shoes can let you feel out a move without the hassle of changing into climbing shoes.

There are a number of sticky rubber approach shoes currently on the market, but one in particular stands out from the rest.

The new Five Ten D’aescent is a great hybrid, combining the performance of a climbing shoe with the comfort of an approach shoe. It was originally designed by Charles Cole as an extremely lightweight mountaineering shoe, but it works just as well if not better as a setting shoe.

Carlo Traversi, a full time setter at the Spot Bouldering gym in Boulder, Colorado, claims, “The D’aescents perform remarkably well in the route setting world. I’ve worn either flip-flops or normal approach shoes in the past, but the D’aescents take my setting to a new level. I can set and run without having to switch between sets of shoes. These shoes provide a certain cohesiveness and flow to my setting that allows me to get my job done in an efficient and comfortable manner.”

What makes the D’aescent perfect for route setters is the flat piece of Stealth Mystique rubber on the bottom of the toe. This allows the shoe to perform more like a climbing shoe and doesn’t let traction get in the way of friction.

The shoe has a great stiff outside edge that allows you to stand on small footholds while the flat bottom makes smearing effortless. The famous Five Ten sticky rubber extends over the heel making it possible to do tricky heel hooks as well. You can forerun fairly close to your limit in these shoes, although you may want to throw on your climbing shoes for the really hard stuff.

And for those setters that usually set in flip-flops to avoid sweaty feet, the mesh upper of the D’aescent makes the shoe very breathable and keeps your feet cool as you go up and down the ladder. Furthermore, these kicks only tip the scales at 1.1 pounds, which is about as light as any sandal on the market.

While the D’aescent is a great shoe for setting, it isn’t necessarily an all around street or trail shoe. The lack of tread on the bottom can make snowy or icy conditions especially slippery. Also, trails with loose sand or gravel can be a little tough to navigate.

This may sound trivial, but one problem I ran into while setting with the D’aescent is that tape sticks extremely well to the flat sole.

Of course every setter has had this problem before, but since there is no tread on the Five Ten it can be harder to remove the tape, and a larger area of sticky residue will be left over. But then again that tell-tale piece of tape stuck to the bottom of your shoe is the universal sign that you’re a route setter.

Despite Five Ten’s old reputation for shaky quality control, the D’aescents have held up very well so far. After about two months of full time abuse, the shoes still look good and there are no signs of weak spots or improper wear and tear.

One thing worth mentioning is that these shoes are sized a bit on the snug side. If you size them like a normal street shoe, they will fit a little tight (more like a climbing shoe). So if you’d like a little more comfort, bump it up a size or so.

The D’aescents retail for $89 (http://www.fiveten.com) or cheaper if you can pro deal them through your gym, so you won’t have to break the bank. All in all they are a great buy, especially for setters and forerunners.

Ryan Olsen sets at the Spot Bouldering Gym in Boulder, Colorado where he makes the other setters look good at what they do.

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