La Sportiva Discontinued The Hyper Mid GTX March 2016
REASONS TO BUY
Snug fitting
Breathable
Eats rock for breakfast
REASONS TO AVOID
Poor mud traction
Sole wears quickly
La Sportiva Hyper Mid GTX Review
Credit: La Sportiva
Our Verdict
Our Analysis and Test Results
Light, comfortable, and snug fitting, the La Sportiva Hyper Mid GTX is the boot we choose for talus hopping and rock scrambles. Sort of a mid-cut approach shoe, with foot support rivaling boots, it's a great off-width climbing boot as well! La Sportiva products generally fit an average to narrow foot well, and this snug fitting specialty boot might not be a good choice for those with wide feet. Individuals with wide feet who are in search of a waterproof scrambling boot may want to check out Scarpa's similarly designed Tech Ascent GTX.
Performance Comparison
If you want to climb this terrain in hiking boots, you want the La Sportiva Hyper.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Comfort
This lightweight hiking boot fits like a glove. With its hybrid boot/approach shoe design, we were surprised how comfortable it was for long miles on the trail. It fits the best with a thinner sock. Eight lower eyelets and one upper allow you to cinch this boot down as tight as you desire, all the way down to the toe. Folks who haven't worn climbing shoes before might find it a bit puzzling how closely it wraps the toe and forefoot. Additionally, the Hyper breathed well, and kept our feet cooler than most of the waterproof models we tested.
If you love the fit of La Sportiva boots, but don't need a specialized model like the Hyper, we highly recommend checking out the La Sportiva FC ECO 3.0, a lightweight hiker that earned high scores in all our metrics.
The La Sportiva Hyper's toe design and lacing make an excellent climbing boot.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Stability
The La Sportiva Hyper Mid GTX's ankle collar is relatively low cut, but because it fits so snugly, it provides ankle stability on par with or better than most lightweight hikers. As you would suspect, the snug fitting boot has a relatively narrow sole.
Torsional stability is where the Hyper excels. Its forefoot and arch area are more supportive than the other lightweight hikers we tested. When standing on a 1/2 inch rock edge, this is really nice. Our feet appreciated this added support on long alpine approaches.
The Hyper sole design has a toe area designed for standing on rock edges. We really appreciated its stability, especially its torsional stability.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Traction
Hands down, this product provided the best performance on rock slabs. Climbing and approach shoes use softer rubber formulations for the sole to make them “sticky.” The trade-off here is most definitely durability, since the softer rubber wears more quickly. Unfortunately, the Hyper was a rather poor performer in the mud, and so-so when moving over loose gravel. However, this product gets the job done like no other for what it was designed for: sticking to rock.
The Idro-Grip Vibram X-Traction sole is a softer formulation, and provides excellent friction. It stuck like glue to dry rock, and was one of the better performers on wet rock as well.
The La Sportiva Hyper both edges and crack climbs well. Here, Brandon just sticks to the rock!
Credit: Caitlin Philp
Weight
The La Sportiva Hyper Mid GTX is light. It landed right about in the middle of our selection of lightweight hikers. The heavier uppers of the Hyper are more substantial and durable than most of the other lightweight options, and account for this added weight.
Not too heavy, not too light. The Hyper earned middle-of-the-road scores in our weight metric.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Water Resistance
With a low cut ankle collar, this is not the boot you want for wading streams. But the waterproofing performs very well, and kept our feet dry during our lake edge test. It's notable that the Hyper breathed better than most of the boots we tested with a waterproof GORE-TEX membrane.
This product has a mid-height shaft and a Gore-Tex liner to protect you from the elements.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Durability
This is a burly boot for a lightweight hiker. The uppers are well-built and will stand up to lots of abuse. While the sole wears more quickly than most other boots, that is a reasonable trade-off for the great traction they provide. We should note, though that if you have a good relationship with a climbing shoe resoler, you may be able to get this product resoled with sticky rubber.
You'll want to keep using this boot for years, so do yourself a favor and don't wear them around town! Sidewalks and everyday wear will use up the sole quickly. Save these for your scrambling adventures.
The La Sportiva Hyper has the best traction for climbing rock. Unfortunately, though, its soles wear out somewhat quickly.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Best Applications
One of the most specialized hiking boots we reviewed, this model is designed for rocky scrambles and mountain summits. It's comfy and supportive enough to keep your feet happy on long approaches, and absolutely slays rock scrambles. It's pretty nice for off-widths and squeeze chimneys too! This product would also work well as a big wall climbing boot; however, we recommend coating the leather on the outside of the forefoot with a shoe goo or seam sealer to protect it from excessive wear and tear.
Our Top Pick for Scrambling and Climbing was a favorite among testers. This is an awesome choice if you often scamper over rocks, but want more than an approach shoe.
Credit: Brandon Lampley
Value
If this type of specialized boot is what you're after, 180 bucks is reasonable. That said, most folks will find better all-around hiking performance and value elsewhere.
Conclusion
Buy these hiking boots and then head out to climb. Go on a long summer road trip, climb the Third Flatiron and Longs Peak, stop in Vedauwoo for the wide cracks, then head up to the Tetons and the Wind River Range. These hiking boots will take you places!
—
Brandon Lampley
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