Rock Climbing: Weekly Climb

Climbing as usual last night, did quite a bit of roped climbing this week, taking turns with Marcus belaying and climbing. I managed a few 5a routes that I didn’t think I’d get up, but with a few encouraging words and a bit of grit I somehow crawled my way to the top.
I’m sure you don’t want to hear about this but my climbing shoes have been getting worse lately, the aroma that is! It was recommended to me to try them with socks, something I wasn’t really very keen on as I thought that I’d have less control if my feet started skidding tround inside. My climbing shoes were quite a squeeze to get into and bit quite badly at first, but after a bit of adjustment they were not so bad. I have to say that the pain was worth it as they didn’t stink quite as bad as usual! I’m told that they will smell less and less as time passes, and with the help of some antibacterial climbing shoe spray.
For the climbers among you… Have you tried washing your climbing shoes? I’m tempted to try, but hear reports of shrunken shoes and lost grip.