espirita Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 When I started climbing around a year ago, I was appalled by the reekiness of some people’s feet at the gym. At one point I thought I was going to pass out from the stench, but just put it to poor personal hygiene or maybe some rare disease. But then one of my regular climbing partners (who, by the way, has very good personal hygiene) started to have the same problem, so I just started randomly spraying her foot area with Oust. (And then she got new shoes - but she keeps threatening to resurrect the old ones.) But now I see it (or smell it, rather) starting to happen to me! Horror! I’ve caught enough whiffs of foot to know that this is not just my problem. How do you all curb the gag-inducing stench of foot? Baking soda? Spray-on deodorant? I need to nip this in the bud before I cause myself to pass out… (Anonymity is grand.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dru Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 Spray Lysol in your shoes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill_Simpkins Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 I'm numb to the stench now. Just something that comes with the territory. Chalk over everything and stinky shoes. You can't fight it forever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b-rock Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 Make sure you dry your shoes after each use (don't leave them at the bottom of your pack), even alternate pairs between days if you are climbing a lot. Also, some shoes just stink more than others. My Mythos don't have a stench at all after 4 soles, but a crappy pair of 5.10s I have started stinking a month after I got them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
archenemy Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 If your shoes are already getting stinky, you can kill the bacterial growth in them and get a fresh start. Sounds yucky, but you can put them in a ZipLoc bag and put them in the freezer for a couple of days. Take them out, spray them with antibacterial spray (Lysol, foot spray, whatever) and put them out in the sun. UV rays kill off lots of bad stuff, so open the tongue of the shoes if possible and let the light shine in. Maintain with regular spray and occasional freeze treatments. Advice from your local OCD climber! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espirita Posted June 29, 2005 Author Share Posted June 29, 2005 Hey, I'll have to try that freezer thing. THANKS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill_Simpkins Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 I do something everyone here might kringe over: I put mine in the wash machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griz Posted June 29, 2005 Share Posted June 29, 2005 yeah, i've become so disgusted with my stinkin' hiking and climbing boots/shoes and wet, god awful socks that i keep a can of Oust in my truck to spray'em down for the ride home. I think my breaking point was when my mtn biking shoes were so bad that i strapped them to the roof to save me and fellow passengers from nasal death... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clampooner Posted June 30, 2005 Share Posted June 30, 2005 At one point, my feet had been described as "smelling like death". Looking at the bottom of them, I saw little pockets. After a little searching I found out it was Pitted Keratolysis which is easy to fix in a little over a week. Google pitted keratolysis and you can find a number of sites. The short explanation is this: Symptoms: Your feet smell like death and they have little craters in them Treatment: Over-the-counter topical antibiotic applied to infected area, change shoes and socks often, spray out climbing shoes after every use (the little bacteria that start it can live in the shoes making treatment difficult). Hope that helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espirita Posted June 30, 2005 Author Share Posted June 30, 2005 Actually I was thinking more like cheese than death. Very good, very expensive cheese. Luckily I haven't seen any craters so for now I'll stick with the lysol and freezer/sun treatments (or just get new shoes). Good to know though, thanks!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catbirdseat Posted July 1, 2005 Share Posted July 1, 2005 At one point, my feet had been described as "smelling like death". Looking at the bottom of them, I saw little pockets. After a little searching I found out it was Pitted Keratolysis which is easy to fix in a little over a week. Google pitted keratolysis and you can find a number of sites. The short explanation is this: Symptoms: Your feet smell like death and they have little craters in them Treatment: Over-the-counter topical antibiotic applied to infected area, change shoes and socks often, spray out climbing shoes after every use (the little bacteria that start it can live in the shoes making treatment difficult). Hope that helps I think that is what they used to call "Trench Foot" during WWI. Your feet are literally rotting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
forrest_m Posted July 1, 2005 Share Posted July 1, 2005 CBS wrote I think that is what they used to call "Trench Foot" during WWI. Your feet are literally rotting. No, this is trench foot: from what i can glean from the net, the mechanism of trench foot is more related to frostbite than to the bacterial infection that makes your shoes stink. according to this web site, Pitted keratolysis is related to hot climates and unsanitary feet, rather than cold & wet climates like immersion foot (trench foot) the site goes on to report: No mortality is associated with pitted keratolysis. However, the excessive foot odor from this disorder may be socially unacceptable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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