Author of Blog Mentioned in Mountain Project Journal Article
About a month ago I was riding my bike home along the Goose Creek path in Boulder, pondering the little split I was starting to see along the soles of my climbing shoes when I looked up and saw the sign for “Rock and Resole” right across the street. I had heard about Rock and Resole last autumn when I succeeded in blowing straight through the toe of my right climbing shoe in Leavenworth, WA. It was a terribly sad day. I am not one to simply throw “away” a pair of shoes simply because of a little hole. I did my research and found Rock and Resole at the top of the Google search list. I spent this past winter knowing R&R was in Boulder, but not ever really taking the time to go find them. I had purchased a new pair of climbing shoes, but even those were beginning to show wear and I thought it might be time to bring them in.
And then there it was, suddenly right in front of me.
So I crossed the street, parked my bike outside the door, and walked on in, greeted by dogs and smiles. I spoke with one of the employees about taking care of my shoes and learned that I am not supposed to stand and belay in them, that I should instead take them off anytime I am not actually climbing in them. The sweat from my feet soften the leather, and the weight of standing on them stretches the rubber out. So. I had been doing it all wrong.
I want to make my shoes last as long as possible, not only because they were a significant financial investment, but because there is currently no way to up- or re-cycle climbing shoes. It seems a little silly to contribute to waste and eventual environmental degradation through a sport that depends so much on the environment. I believe we call that “shooting oneself in the foot.”
I liked the aura of R&R and so I started just hanging out there, petting the dogs and checking out the gear. A young woman was sitting on one of their couches and started asking me about my choice to get my shoes resoled and the story behind my shoes. Turns out that she was writing an article for the Mountain Project Journal about resoling in climbing culture. She just published her article with MPJ yesterday and I encourage you to check it out. Her name is Amelia and I really enjoyed talking with her. Check out her article HERE to learn more.
From your newly famous blog writer,
Cheers,
Molly
P.S. I had promised last week to write more about GMOs, but I decided to post pone to bring you this super-important breaking news. Our regular programs will resume next week.
Recieving Time 