Five Ten Dragon

Closure

For a closure system, Five Ten chose to use a full lace-up design. For the most part, I find this to be a great attribute, as it allows me to cinch down the shoe, eliminating all dead space and giving me a tight and secure fit. This is especially helpful on climbs with extremely powerful heel hooks, as the laces completely eliminate the possibility of one’s heel pulling out of the shoe. And while the laces do take some time to tie, the large opening created by the full lace-up design makes the Dragon easy to get in to. This ease of entry is a nice feature when compared to other aggressive shoes that have a slipper design, such as the Team 5.10s, which can often be quite frustrating and difficult to put on.

While the laces are great for climbing performance, they can be a bit annoying and time consuming when working a boulder problem and removing the shoes between attempts. Ultimately, this constant tying and untying is only a minor issue when climbing outside, but is something to consider if you are thinking about using the Dragon primarily as a gym shoe where the number of attempts will be even greater.

The only other drawback of the laces is that the laces themselves tend to wear out and break long before the shoe itself is ready for retirement. I have never had a problem with the eyelets themselves tearing, so all that is required is a fresh set of laces. Not a big deal, but I have found myself out climbing when a lace breaks and have had to use other shoes as a result. I now always carry and extra pair of shoes laces with me when I head.

Fit

As stated above, the Dragons definitely have a narrow profile from the toe-box to the heel. I have fairly average sized feet that are slightly on the narrower side, and the Dragons fit my feet extremely well. However, climbers with wider feet or those who are looking for a roomier shoe should consider other options.

In sizing the Dragons, I downsized a full size from my street shoes to an 8 ½. Going down a full shoe size definitely creates an aggressive, snug fit. In my opinion, this is perfect for bouldering. I have absolutely no dead space in the Dragons when I tighten them down, and they perform like I demand for the short periods of time I have them on my feet while bouldering. However, when I have used the Dragons on anything but the shortest of sport routes, they quickly become uncomfortable, and I cannot get them off my feet fast enough when I get back to the ground. If you are looking for a high-performance bouldering shoe, I wouldn’t shy away from downsizing as much as a full size, but if you intend to use the Dragons primarily for sport climbing I would recommend not downsizing any more than a half a size from your street shoe.

In general, I find that Five Ten shoes run closer to normal street shoe sizing than La Sportiva, and run about the same size as Evolv.  For example, in sizing my La Sportiva Speedsters, I went all the way down to a size 7 and have a roomier fit than I do in the Dragon.  As far as Evolv is concerned, I chose a size 9 in my Shamans because I wanted a more comfortable fit for sport climbing, but could have easily downsized to an 8 ½ if I wanted a more aggressive bouldering fit.

Rubber/Sensitivity

The Dragons also feature Five Ten’s Stealth HF™ rubber, which they assert is designed specifically for overhanging rock and to ensure that climbers can pull in with their feet no matter how small the footholds. While I can’t say I have noticed a specific difference on steeper climbs, I have found the rubber on the Dragons to work extremely well. Whether the footholds are recessed pockets, dime sized edges, or delicate smears, the Stealth rubber has provided the necessary friction to get the job done.

Furthermore, I have found that the Dragons provide an optimal mix between stiffness and sensitivity. For me, this is important in a bouldering shoe, as a shoe that is too stiff does not allow you to fully feel the foot holds, while a shoe that is too soft does not provide the necessary power. Ultimately, this is a result of Five Ten using a 4mm rand while shoes like the Evolv Shamans, which I find slightly too stiff for bouldering, have a 4.2mm rand and shoes like the La Sportiva Speedsters, which I find too soft, have a 3mm rand. Essentially, with the Dragons, I feel Five Ten has found the perfect middle ground for bouldering performance.

In terms of durability, the Dragons hold up very well, and I have been able to get multiple seasons out of every pair I have owned. In fact, I have only been forced to retire pairs when the very point of the shoe, the highest impact area, wears through completely to the rand after these extended periods of use.

Cons

The only glaring drawback of the Dragons as a bouldering shoe is their inability to toe hook. Because the laces extend down to the toe box, there is no room for any substantial rubber on top of the toes. This combined with the drastic downturn of the toe box make anything but the most basic toe hooks on large flakes feel insecure and more difficult. To mitigate this problem, I often use either the Five Ten Teams or the Evolv Shamans on problems that require toe hooks and will even mix and match a single one of these shoes with one Dragon if the problem only requires toe hooking with a single foot.

Bottom Line

The Dragon is an aggressive shoe specifically designed to excel on high-level boulder problems that also delivers performance across the board for bouldering to sport climbing (but not across the board from boulder to trad climbing).

Any intermediate or advanced boulder looking for a powerful and aggressive shoe would do well to consider the Dragon.