Endura are getting into the mountain bike shoe market. Their new shoe range comprises of three models. Two for flat pedals (MT500 Burner Flat and Hummvee Flat) and one for clipless (MT500 Burner Clipless).
You may have spotted the Athertons wearing them in their team launch photos recently.
Broadly speakling, the MT500 Burner models are the premium performance shoes and the Hummvee is the more affordable part-casual shoe.
Having said that, the Humvee is more like a classic Five Ten Freerider than a Five Ten Sleuth; it’s very much a shoe for biking first and pubbing second.
The MT500 Burner models arguably don’t really correlate to a Five Ten model (like it or not, Five Ten are the go-to MTB shoe brand these days so comparisons are valid and useful).
he MT500 Burners’ nearest rival would arguably be Specialized and certain models in their 2FO range. Or perhaps Bontrager shoe range. Whatever. It’s just good to have more choice in decent shoes for mountain biking these days.
MT500 Burner Flat
- ‘Technical trail performance’ shoe
- Tough upper
- EVA midsole for shock absorption
- Low-absorbency wipe clean materials
- Uppers: welded panels and reinforced stitching
- Slightly stiffer than the Hummvee Flat
- Multi-compound StickyFoot Grip & Dura rubber sole
- EGM insole
- Rounded heel cup with a grippy sharkskin fabric lining to reduce heel lift
- SRP £119.99
MT500 Burner Clipless
- ‘Performance clipless’ shoe
- Engineered flex profile (for ‘support and control’)
- Tough upper
- EVA midsole
- Low-absorbency wipe clean materials
- Uppers: welded panels and reinforced stitching
- Reinforced nylon shank to house the cleat and provide stiffness
- Cleat box features extra-long rails to allow for a large range of mounting positions
- Multi-compound StickyFoot Grip & Dura rubber sole
- EGM insole
- Rounded heel cup with a grippy sharkskin fabric lining to reduce heel lift
- SRP £129.99
Hummvee Flat Pedal
- Bike specific, skate styled shoe
- Designed to balance walkability and pedalling comfort.
- StickyFoot Grip rubber compound
- Internal lining and padding as light and quick drying as possible
- SRP £89.99
Durometer tho
The shoes use a combination of Endura’s proprietary ‘StickyFoot’ rubber compounds. There are two rubbers: StickyFoot Grip and StickyFoot Dura.
The Grip rubber is for, er grip (softer). This rubber is used on the areas where the pedal contacts the shoe. The Dura rubber is longer-lasting (harder). This rubber is used elsewhere ie. the toe and heel ends of the sole.
Let’s get to the point. How sticky are the new Endura mountain bike shoes?
The answer is: very.
We’ve had a pair of the MT500 Burner Flat shoes on test for a few weeks now and can testify to their grip. We’re publishing a full review in the next issue of the magazine. For now, here are some details of our durometer testing…
The stickiest part of the MT500 Burner Flat shoe sole is around 40a. A Five Ten Freerider Pro sole is around 50a. Durometer is not everything. There is a whole science of rubber and how it rebounds etc but all info is useful.
By the way, the whole sole of the Hummvee Flat shoe is made from StickyFoot Grip rubber.
On to the rest of the shoe construction, they are similarly performance-minded. And wet-weather minded too. Low absorbency, wipe clean materials to the fore. Laces for reliability and adjustability, combined with a top Velcro strap (on the MT500 Burners) for cinching down and optional lace secrurity if so desired.
The sizing range is decent. UK 5/EU38 up to UK 12/EU47, with half sizes for the most part.
EGM in it init
Inside the MT500 Burners is another bit of tech. Called the ‘EGM Insole’. Basically, it’s a fancy footbed designed by people who wear white coats and wear spectacles. People liked Phil Burt, who is the clever bod Endura have used to help design the insole.
Metatarsal Button: raised button helps spread your big toe from the rest, “greatly improving your forefoot function and comfort -vital in cycling – while preventing the unwanted scrunching of the toes.”
Sole Stimulant: “small raised soft tactile dots are strategically placed to improve your foots proprioception, greatly improving its ability to soften and stiffen through co-ordinated muscular contractions.”
Power Arch – “contoured support … better power transfer and improved comfort.”
We’ll have review of the MT500 Burner Flat in the next issue of SingletrackWorld Magazine and a review of the MT500 Burner Clipless going online soon.
