This review featured as part of the Kit Essentials grouptest in issue 142 of Singletrack World.
The flattie fan’s winter boot
- Price: £145.00
- From: silverfish-uk.com
- Tested By: Benji
Though I’m loath to say the words ‘Five Ten’ any more than I already have, I have to mention them again here. Five Ten used to make a shoe called the Freerider EPS, which was a hi-top shoe with Primaloft insulated upper. It was something of a cult shoe. It was the flat pedal riders’ winter shoe.
You can’t easily find the Freerider EPS anymore. Step forward, the Ride Concepts TNT. Although this boot may be designed for downhillers, the fact of the matter is that the TNT is far better treated as a winter shoe for flattie fans. Downhillers all run clipless shoes these days anyway (such as Ride Concepts Transition Clip).
Although Ride Concepts makes no explicit claims about weatherproofing, nor insulation, the TNT boots do a great job of keeping the wet out and the warmth in. The sole is made of Ride Concepts’ softest DST 4.0 MAX GRIP rubber compound. Both my on-trail testing and durometer hardness tester tool confirmed that this rubber compound is nigh-on indistinguishable from the Stealth rubber used on the Five Ten Freerider Pro.
Again, like Stealth rubbers, the Ride Concepts rubber has a little bit of slow rebound black magic to it. The rubber isn’t just soft in a dead way with a tendency to ‘bottom out’ like a mega padded saddle. It’s damped. Much like modern Stealth rubber, the DST 4.0 MAX GRIP is decently hard-wearing.
The soft initial touch of the rubber combined with its soaky slow rebound really helps keep your feet in place over chattery ground. Which is just as well because the relatively thick sole (there’s a nice bit of cushy EVA midsole in there too) and general sturdiness of the boot does initially feel somewhat wooden and restrictive. However, this eases up after a few rides, and you learn to adapt and appreciate the other positives on offer.
Review Info
| Brand: | Ride Concepts |
| Product: | TNT Shoe |
| From: | silverfish-uk.com |
| Price: | £145 |
| Tested: | by Benji for |
