We have just finished up our long term testing on A�pair of Five Ten Impact VXIs and we want to share our impressions with you. First off, if you’re new to the sport and haven’t heard of Five Ten then expect to hear a lot more about them, it is fair to say they revolutionised the flat pedal (more about that later) shoe market when they burst onto the scene. Initially known for their rock climbing shoes, it was this technology that when applied to the mountain bike world really got people talking.
Looking at this shoe in particular we tested the flat pedal model, there is a clipless version also available if that is your thing. With help from the most famous flat pedal rider in the world, Sam Hill, as well as his friend Brook MacDonald, Five Ten went about designing something that was even more improved from the previous highly regarded Impact shoe. The first thing you notice when you take them out of the box (we got the black and red model as the pictures show) is their lighter weight, coming in at approximately 400 grams per shoe you notice the reduction straight away.
How did they feel? Great, there was no issue with strange sizing or anything along those lines and they felt good from the first wear. We wore these all day long (sometimes on the bike sometimes off climbing mountains taking photos, etc.) and they didn’t become any less comfortable.
The next question is; how did they grip? Fantastic! A reworked version of the rubber Five Ten used ensures these pedals stick like nothing else. Furthermore the dampening/rebound has been improved so you feel less of the bumps/fatigued, now we know that sounds like a long stretch and we couldn’t experience this first hand when it comes down to those tiny percentages they all count. With any Five Ten shoe you need to make sure your foot is in the right place as your feet grip so well it can be challenging to readjust your position (some might consider this a negative but the extreme grip far out weighs the negative if you ask us). The sole was quite stiff meaning optimum power transfer, some people might like a slightly more flexible shoe so they can ‘wrap’ their foot around the pedal but that is personal preference.
It’s cool to see the front area of the shoe receive some reinforcing to help stop any damage if you get rocks flicking up or stub your foot. It’s worth mentioning the Impact XVIs are constructed from a material that is supposed to help wick water away super fast so you don’t have to ride in wet shoes the next day (nobody enjoys that!).
We have been downhilling, enduro/Trail riding, heck we have even commuted on them! There are no signs of wear or signs to say that longevity is going to be an issue. We have seen plenty of pairs of Five Tens that go for years, one common issue on older models was the glue holding the sole on coming loose but the sole now looks more integrated so we think this will be even less of an issue.
It may have been us imagining it but ankle support seemed marginally lower than the older model but a visual inspection shows this may not be true, that was the only real issue to note over the months we tested the show.
In Australia these retail for $234.95 whilst that is a large amount when you see it if you think about how good these shoes are and how long they last the price tag becomes justified. The distributor is Lusty Industries so find them at your local bike shop or hit up their website at;A�www.lustyindustries.com
Overall the Five Ten Impact XVI would be at the top of our list for a new riding shoe, light weight and grippy whilst still maintaining comfort these are a winner.
Images: www.kaneophoto.com.au A�www.fiveten.comA�and stock images.
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