Yes, truely awful! 🙄

lol@etnies being worse pmsl 🙂

I love my five ten freerides, great grip and I agree can be very grippy. Miles better than the skate shoes I have used and haven't fallen apart.

Shoes are very personal, buy what feels best and suits your style, if you like to move around a lot get something with moderate grip levels. If your a peddler, then grippy is the best.

Worth the money? Well, they're certainly not good value, the standard of construction is about equal to a £25 supermarket trainer. You're paying far too much for the sticky sole and the name IMO. I really liked mine while they lasted but they started falling apart in about 4 different ways after one scottish winter- not helped by the fact that they take so long to dry out I'm sure. No matter what else you can say about them there's no way you should find a carbon insole in a £75 shoe…

Now, AM40s… Better made, better materials, better weather resistance… And you have the option of adjusting the sole stiffness too. Also the insole and footbed are properly removable to help dry them out when they're wet, which is a bonus. Less clumpy than Impacts. Every bit as hideous, just in a different way. Cheaper too. But, I have to give in to the fanboys on one point, they don't have the same grip, but that doesn't mean they lack grip at all of course- 5 10s have far more than you need, AM40s just have much more than you need.

I ride a lot in an ancient pair of Vans too, and they're excellent riding shoes, but they're a bit flexier than I like and they don't have any toe protection or similiar. They seem to last forever too, these ones were too clapped out to wear to the pub so I retired them onto bike duties, they've seen more miles than my 5 10s managed since despite being halfway worn out before they ever touched a pedal, and they're still not dead. Fab.

Bottom line is, if there was no AM40 I'd be perfectly happy with 5 10s. If there was no AM40 or 5 10s I'd be perfectly happy with my Vans. But I ride in Caterpillar trailboots sometimes and those work fine too so, I don't get too hung up on it.

i've got a pair of the original impacts, they've lasted so long the soles are starting to get a bit thin. they do soak up water like a sponge but I've been really impressed. never sure why people get funny about the insoles as mine have never caused a problem.

got a pair of their approach shoes. seem to be lasting/wearing really well.

probably get some impact 2's when the originals finally give up the ghost.

510's are very good, insnaely gripy, I dont have any issues with the card getting wet despite a 3 hour bike hike through 2ft of snow at inerleithan last october, they stayed dry and toasty all day. They are awkward to adjust on the pedels, and a little warm in the summer, if not complete overkill for my local pub crawl ride.

I also have a pair of Animal Herston skate shoes which are more apropriate for less agressive riding. If I didnt own a pair of 510's id use them quite happily for everything. They come with some hideous bright yellow laces too, if I should ever feel the need to look like even more of fashon disaster! lol

and the thing with the 5:10 soles is that they are made from the same rubber as climbing shoes, so when you first place your foot you can quickly readjust your foot position, but after a while they take purchase and grip much more to the pedal, I don't know how that relates to the durometer figures given, it may just be the way different rubber consistencies work or if there is more clever science going on.

I am thinking about these Shimano MP66s, but actually for SPDs:

excuse spelling as i may have had a pint 🙂

There are a lot of opinions of 5:10s from people that have never tried them. They are the best bit of bike kit I ever bought. My original impacts are on their 4th year of year round Scottish and Welsh riding and refuse to fall apart. I wish they would because then I could bring out the blingier black and white ones I bought in a sale last year to replace them. As for drying out – a disposable nappy or puppy pad inside for about 8 hours and then next to the radiator or in the conservatory and they are dry in a day. Simples. In snow, merino sealskinz and 5:10s is the toastiest bestest option ever! I've got Vans and DCs and they just don't come close. The grip is no where near, especially in the wet, they flex too much and the soles are too thin. On big days you really feel the pedal pins on the soles of your feet. You do look cooler, however, but then again wearing some clogs or clowns feet would be cooler than the original impacts.

my am40 soles are knackered and i only use em for proper riding (not commuting liek all my other shoes i have had) – lasted 1 winter and the uppers are coming unstitched – i dont even ride that much any more. but i move my feet about alot which doesnt help. thinking about getting em re-soled as i quite like em but hte price of re-soles is fairly prohibitively expensive.

Cheers for looking Jedi, I still have 3 pairs in various states of wear and saw other Etnies with the same sole so I'l just need to see if any of them come stealth enough for my taste 😉 failing that I can always order custom, my daughter has been pestering me for custom (probably as tasteless as MrNutts DCs) calicuts for ages so I better get her some anyway

Had my 5:10s for a couple of winters – good bit of kit, nice and warm when combined with sealskins – I always hose them down after a winter ride, just pop them on a radiator and they're dry in no time!

yeah, the world's full of "special" people

Grubscrews in the shin hurt no matter what kind of rider you are. Do people who used to ride DH races get better plasters for the cuts too?