Scott is well known for making quality bikes across the MTB spectrum, from Nino Schurter’s multiple World Championship wining Scale to Brendan Fairclough’s Gambler. However, the Swiss brand may not be as well known for producing a wide range of biking accessories and clothing too. Recently we’ve had two of Scotts’ 49(!) different pairs of shoes on test, and here Ant runs us through the MTB Comp Lace. Over to Ant.
With its smart and sleek black appearance, the MTB Comp Lace could almost pass for something from Clarks if it wasn’t for the fluorescent yellow laces. At £79.99 the Comp sits at the bottom of the Scott’s huge XC range.
Scott MTB Comp Lace Shoes
Don’t let the XC put you off, this is a shoe for general riding and not just race whippets. On the bike, the injection-moulded composite shank means the Comp is plenty stiff enough to feel you’re getting your power to the pedal, but not so stiff it’s difficult to walk or your feet ache after several hours in the saddle. That’ll make them appealing to cyclocrossers and gravel riders, and I happily wore these for big days out trail riding without any discomfort.
In fact, if you were wanting something for pure XC racing, you might actually want to go for something stiffer.
The MTB Comp Lace has the a ‘Stiki Rubber’ sole shared by many of Scott’s shoes, including its trail shoes. The sole has a rugged toothy tread that gives loads of grip in the mud or on the rocks.
There are also two low profile studs at the front of each shoe but I didn’t find they added much more grip. As the studs are fixed using a standard screw thread you can easily swap them to a proper football stud in muddier conditions for additional bite.
Unusually for an XC shoe the Comp Lace has a long cleat box so you can run your cleats much further back to weight more through your heels. This is pretty useful if you want to ride steep and techy terrain as you can help stop your weight pitching forward. It’s also pretty good if you simply like to have your cleats further back than many shoes allow.
The Comps, like the rest of the XC range, aren’t designed to be as robust as some of Scott’s trail shoes. Nevertheless they still feature a sturdy toe box which has done an excellent job of protecting the shoe and my toes alike, and is a big improvement on my usual XC shoes which really suffer through repeated rock-kicking. The Scott’s synthetic upper has stood up well against the trails too and its perforated design means that your feet stay nicely vented even if it does little to keep the water out.
On the downside, the slots for the cleats aren’t sealed so you get the wet in from the bottom. A bit of gaffer tape does a pretty good job on this front but you’ll still want waterproof socks if you’re going to be traipsing through lots of puddles.
It’s fairly rare to see shoelaces on cleated bike shoes but as they’re infinity adjustable they remain one of the best ways of getting your shoes to fit exactly as you want. They have the added bonus of being easy to manufacture so keep the price of the shoes down too. On the Comps they look pretty cool and a bit hipster too (if fluorescent can be hipster).
Despite the good fit and looks I wasn’t a big fan of the laces. Mainly this is because I’m lazy and Velcro or BOAs are far easier to adjust, but also because I have a bit of a fear of getting a lace wrapped round my chainring, even though there is an elastic loop for grasping the loose ends of the laces. If you’re like me then the Comp is also available with Velcro (same price) or BOA (£99.99) closures as well as in a women’s fit.
The shoes we had on test weighed in at 796g for the pair (size 45, no cleats). We tested the Comps alongside a pair of Scott’s trail AR shoes and found the slimmer design of the Comps made them feel a little smaller than their burlier brothers. On this basis it’s worth checking the fit before you buy, even if you’ve worn Scott shoes in the past.
Overall
The Scott Comp Lace shoe is well suited to long pedally days in the saddle and is robust enough to cope with trekking and rock kicking without a huge weight penalty. If fluorescent laces aren’t for you, there are several different closure options available. For those who might want something stiffer for XC racing, have a gander at Scott’s higher-end MTB RC Lace Shoe, which comes with a full carbon fibre sole.
Review Info
| Brand: | Scott Sports |
| Product: | MTB Comp Lace Shoe |
| From: | Scott Sports, scott-sports.com |
| Price: | £79.99 |
| Tested: | by Ant Jordan for 4 months |
