I was recently looking at leather mountaineering boots, and was wondering if anyone has used the Super Mountain 9's for climbing ice. I know the Super Mountain 9 Guides are supposed to be excellent for all types of ice, rock, mixed climbing, however I have not heard of anyone using the Super Mountain 9's for ice. When looking at them they appear to have a slightly more flexible sole (however when trying them on I had a hard time getting them to flex at all), and are cut slightly lower than the Super Mountain 9 Guides. I figured with a rigid crampon these boot would be extremely light and quite well suited for all but the steepest lines. Is this assumption correct, and if so why dohave I not heard of anyone climbing in these?

-- Mike MacCoss (mmaccos@zoo.uvm.edu), July 12, 1998

Answers

The Super Mountain 9 is actually virtually identical to the guide. The outsole/midsole is identical - they are both very stiff to rigid boots. The Guide's upper is made out of thicker leather (about 3mm versus 2.8mm in the non-Guide, I think), so it has a substantially stiffer ankle area. This also makes the sole _seem_ stiffer when flexing it in your hands, because the upper offers more support. The Guide also has an internal lacing system, rather than the elastic featured in the non-Guide. Either boot will climb steep ice very well, and be a fairly light option.

However, the plastic frame to the boot and its overall design make it feel rather "clunky" on the foot. Basically, it is the most "plastic boot-feeling" of the very stiff/rigid leathers out there. The La Sportiva Nepal Top(or N.T. Extreme), and the Scarpa Assault and Cervino (both hard to find in stores) all would climb ice well and feel much less bulky. So all in all, the Salomon boots would climb pretty well, but there are probably better options out there, depending on what fits your foot.

--Steve --http://weber.u.washington.edu/~waydo

-- Steve Waydo (waydo@u.washington.edu), September 16, 1998.

I have used a pair of the Super Mountain 9s for about a year. They are a bit bulky in the toe, but they are an excellent all around boot. They can be very comfortable, or very tight and rigid depending on how you lace them. So far they have worked well with French tech. (of course), verticle ice, and up to 5.6 rock. Again, the toes get in the way on rock, but what boots don't. I have been using Gravel Rambo rigid crampons with them and haven't had any problems with boot rigidity.

-- David Burdick (dbb@u.washington.edu), October 28, 1999.

I use the Super Mountain 9 Guides alot and I have found them to be suited for all round use. However the sole is quick to ware, i think i got 7 months out of my pair before I bought another, but please note i am an outdoor instructor and I give them alot of abuse.

Ice climbing wise they have never let me down, (Scotland, France) One thing i would also say, when they get wet, they stay wet.

-- Data (Data_Fox@btinternet.com), January 11, 2001.

I have also looked into buying the Super Mountain 9's for ice climbing and general mountaineering, but wasn't too sure. I am planning no climbing Mt. Hood this summer, as my first climb on a mountain, but I hope to climb more later on and want boots to work then too. I have ice climbed before and would like boots that work moderately well for that too, nothing too technical yet, but again I would like something that will still work as my skills get better. I have also looked at the Super Mountain 8's for these same purposes, but wasn't sure which boots to get (especially since I can be the 9's really cheap), I just want to make sure that they are comfortable when walking (with and without crampons) and decent on vertical ice. I would really be grateful for a response on this, I am kind of lost.

-- Gregg Couch (CouchG@Culver.org), April 04, 2002.

I just bought some Super Mountain 9 Guides ready for an Ice climbing trip this coming Jan in Switzerland. I'm confident that they will do the job, but I will post a reply on how they perform. I should also be talking them on a few Scotish mixed routes before then.

-- Aries Janssens (aj@mountain-man.fsnet.co.uk), December 04, 2002.

I have been using the mountain 9's for over a year and am very satisfied. The weight to stiffness ratio is perfect and they are not too bulky. I bought two pair because I found them at a great price ($109.) I haven't found a more comfortable boot that performs nearly this well. If you can find them - get them!

-- Larry Horton (gforce99_dcompany@yahoo.com), May 02, 2003.

I have heard good things about the Super 9's for vertical ice, I just picked some up for a great price as many did this summer (I guess the model is closed out...), I am wondering specifically if anyone has used these for general mountaineering as well, and how they did.....

-- Jeff Gertsch (jeffgertsch@hotmail.com), September 28, 2003.

I've been using SM9's for about two years now. I have found them comfortable (ish) for walking and fine on snow and ice. I have done a (Scottish) Grade 2 ice climb in them and they were absolutely great

-- Jay Russell (trekfoot@blueyonder.co.uk), December 05, 2003.

Good, reliable, strong and give excellent performance on ice and mixed routes. I've been using them since my last post and I love them.

-- Aries Janssens (aj@mountain-man.fsnet.co.uk), January 19, 2004.

Message to Erik Daenitz Sorry, I tried emailing you, but for some reason the email could not be delivered to your return address. Anyways, here is what I was going to email to you:

You'll be fine running the boots as they are from new. They will be waterproof enough for ice and even slushy British winter climbs. The Super Mountains are made from good thick leather, so you won't need to worry about proofing them untill they have had a good amount of use. I use traditional NikWax around the seams and grooves to stop water from getting into the stitching areas and NikWax spray proofing on the rest of the swade boot, but I only do this after heavy use and I've never had any kind of leak in them.

-- Aries Janssens (aj@mountain-man.fsnet.co.uk), January 22, 2004.