Profile: slightly asymmetric, slightly downturned
Rubber: Vibram’s XS Grip2; 2mm
Best for: indoor gym crushers
Pros
Exceptionally soft and lightweight
Great for indoor bouldering
Large toe patch
Very sensitive
Cons
Takes time getting used to the No-Edge technology
Not suited for those who prefer stiffer shoes
Slippers don’t allow any adjustments in fit
Summary
One of the lightest and most sensitive shoes on the market. This is one of the best shoes available for flowing through modern boulder problems. Thanks to its pliable softness, it’s comfortable and fits around your foot like a sock.
Performance
There are few shoes that feel quite like the La Sportiva Mantra. With many climbers seemingly pining for softer and softer shoes, the Mantra’s super soft and ultralight design fills that gap.
It’s been designed with indoor gym crushers in mind; those who love to dash across volumes with coordinated moves involving many steps before leaping athletically to a dyno. Certainly, smearing is a key strength of the Mantra. The soft midsole coupled with Vibram’s XS Grip2 gives you plenty of confidence to smear and smedge your way up any problem.
This may sound like edging is a problem in the Mantra, but they hold up surprisingly well. This is thanks to La Sportiva’s No-Edge technology which allows you to precisely toe into tiny holds.
The toe patch is massive and very grippy while the heel provides plenty of protection to crank on those gnarly heel hooks.
I wouldn’t really recommend the Mantra for outdoor climbing. It lacks the support for tiny crystal edges and isn’t aggressively downturned for hooking onto holds on steep overhangs.
Edging
Soft, pliable climbing shoes tend to be weaker at edging in favour of gripper smears, and that’s certainly the case for the La Sportiva Mantra. But that doesn’t mean it can’t edge at all.
On the contrary, I’ve yet to find an indoor foothold that I can’t use with an inside or outside edge. This is thanks to the No-Edge technology that La Sportiva employs on the Mantra. This means the sole of the shoe wraps around and conforms to your foot. The result is the lack of sharp edges, and in theory, a foot that can press more closely into divots and edges.
This is why the Mantra is quite adept at edging. But when climbing on tiny crystals outdoors, most climbers will appreciate a sharp edge on their shoe. Furthermore, you’ll need strong toes when using small chips as the soft midsole provides very little support.
Smearing
As you may have guessed by now, there are few shoes that smear as competently as the Mantra. The combination of the Vibram XS Grip2 and the shoe’s overall softness means it can easily flex and apply maximum contact on smears.
Yet, despite these qualities, the Mantras are surprisingly durable. The No-Edge wraps around the toe certainly helps protect the rand from wear. After similar mileage, the Mantra is showing far fewer signs of wear compared to my Scarpa Instinct VSR (both use the same rubber).
Fit
For reference, these are the details about my feet.
- Roman-Egyptian toes
- Wide forefoot
- Medium heel
- Medium arch
- UK 9 / EU 43.5
The La Sportiva Mantra is a slipper-type shoe. This means it may need a slightly tighter fit compared to shoes with lace or velcro closures. La Sportivas tend to run one UK shoe size smaller than Scarpa and that’s certainly been the case for me, so I have these in UK 8 / EU 42.
The comfort of these shoes is a little inconsistent for me. Sometimes, they feel great, and for the right foot shape, these will be exceptionally comfortable shoes. But they are just a tad too narrow for me. Despite that, I still have a great time climbing in them and would highly recommend these for anyone looking for an alternative to super soft shoes like the Scarpa Dragos.