Please note that some assembly will be required, which we recommend be carried out by an experienced mechanic. She has been writing about Mountain Bike Riding and Racing, and all its weird and wonderful technology for 4 years. Again, this wasn’t an issue while riding (or walking) on roads, but it wasn’t ideal on rough trails. The slightly cushioned insole and die-cut EVA midsole provide enhanced in-step comfort and cushioning, ensuring a pleasant walking or biking experience. The Stealth® Marathon rubber cupsole has outstanding, non-marking traction thanks to its Micro Dotty pattern, gripping you towards the asphalt or your bike’s pedals all the same.

So, there’s a lot to like about the Trailcross LT and I can see lots of riders appreciating the more comfortable and lightweight nature of this shoe. Shoelaces are a pretty minor complaint, and you can easily swap the included laces for a more durable option. When I first saw it, I thought it’d be really heavy, mostly based on handling similarly big-looking shoes like the Five Ten Impact. Given how easily the shoe flexes when walking, I’ve been impressed with how well the upper material is holding up.

On that note about the suede upper, the Sleuth DLX is not a super breathable, water-resistant, or quick-drying shoe. She regularly competes in Enduro at a national level, and has recently competed on the World Stage at a handful of Enduro World Series events. I actually use Xpand laces (lotsa fun colors even though my choice of pink with my brown Roosts is questionable) and made them into slip-ons. The mesh tongue and toe box are right over the top of my foot, and I think they’re a bit part of what makes this shoe breathe / vent better than I’d expect.

While I initially thought it’d be a niche shoe in my quiver, the Powerline has become my go-to for most of my rides. As with everything in gear, there are tradeoffs that make this shoe better for some than others, and vice versa. While I can’t objectively say that the Powerline’s D30 inserts at the ankle were noticeably more protective than a non-D30 material (mostly cause the other shoes I use are all low-cut), I’ve learned to trust that material in other products. This wasn’t all that surprising, given the construction — the Trailcross LT isn’t a magic shoe that is way more breathable than other shoes while also matching their durability. With at least 50% of the upper made from recycled materials, these cycling shoes support the reduction of new plastic waste.The flat outsole design makes it compatible with a wide range of flat bike pedal models, allowing you to focus on honing your technical skills without the fear of hitting the ground. e. to learn to ride flat pedals instead of clipless, I’ve been banging around in the Five Ten Sleuth Mountain Bike Shoes. If I was super cool and tweaking out tables and doing tailwhips, that could actually be pretty nice. Its fairly thick suede upper and pretty small, internal reinforcements at the heel and toe have kept my feet protected for the most part, but I’d opt for the Powerline (or Five Ten’s Freerider collection) if I frequently kicked a lot of rocks.