A footwear that begs to become ridden long days and maintain the technical terrain arriving!
The Five Ten Freerider EPS High with Primaloft was designed for winter use, protecting you from the elements and delivering the classic performance of the Freerider's Stealth S1 rubber outsole in even the coldest of conditions.
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Compare prices at 3 resellersPros:Unbeatable grip with ability to escape pedals, lightweight
Cons:Questionable sole durability
Manufacturer:Five Ten
By Jason Cronk ⋅ Review Editor ⋅ Dec 19, 2016
OVERALL
SCORE
RANKED
#2 of 7
SCORE
RANKED
#2 of 7
- Comfort and Arch Support - 25%8
- Rigidity and Power Transfer - 20%8
- Breathability - 10%6
- Durability - 10%3
- Weight - 5%6
RELATED:The Best Mountain Bike Flat Pedal Shoes
Our Verdict
TheFreerider Contactis touted as the shoe for 'epic long rides' by Five Ten. After placing these children to the check, that's precisely what we discovered. As our Editors' Selection, the Freerider Contact obtained high scars in nearly every type: grasp, comfort, strength transfer, fat, breathability, and resilience, though much less in the last category. Maintaining you connected to your pedals will be important to a flat bike footwear's achievement and these won't let you down. While Five Ten shoes or boots are well recognized for their Stealth sticky us dot rubber bottoms, the soles are a little bit of a starting from the standard structure with the fresh Stealth Mi6 treadless Get in touch with Outsole. The real decision is definitely whether you should obtain these or the Five Ten Freerider Professional. The pro is certainly more durable, a little stiffer, and appears better around town (we make use of the Professional as our daily shoes). The Get in touch with will be a little stickier and provides better safety net. Both are usually amazing.
The newer Mi6 silicone provides a softer consistency and provides better grasp and cushioning versus the standard Stealth silicone. This does come with some tradeoffs; longevity is not as high as for some other shoes and boots in our test, most especially the Five Ten Influence VXi and Shimano AM7. Sandwiched between the outsole and top is definitely a stiffened midsole with a beefy abrasion-resistant higher.
To support the Freerider Contacts in racking up the mls, Five Ten held the pounds as reduced as the lightest shoe in the famous Freerider line. For a more budget-friendly ($50 savings) and informal option, check out our Best Buy-Winning Five Ten Freerider. There is certainly furthermore the Freerider Professional, which is usually our preferred 'quiver of one footwear', indicating it will simply about everything on the bike and nevertheless looks excellent around town. But, note the neither the Freerider Pro nor the Freerider is certainly as defensive or high-performing as the Freerider Contact.
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This Product Five Ten Freerider Contact | |||||
Awards | |||||
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Price | $105.00at Amazon . com Compare at 3 sellers | $97.50at Competitive Cyclist Review at 2 sellers | $149.90at Competitive Cyclist Do a comparison of at 4 retailers | $103.99at MooseJaw | $90.00at Amazon Compare at 4 sellers |
Overall Score | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Star Rating |
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Pros | Unbeatable grip with ability to escape pedals, lightweight | Super comfortable, good pedal grip, solid durability | Great durability and power transfer, look good on and off the bike | Tenacious pedal grip, durability | Great breathability, excellent pedal grip |
Cons | Questionable sole durability | Less grip than Five Ten's soles | Expensive, not as sticky as the Freerider Contact | Stiff upper material, toe box may be too high volume | Uppers not as durable as on other models, less rigidity and power transfer |
Bottom Line | A shoe that begs to be ridden long days and keep the technical terrain coming! | Solid efficiency in an most of mountain footwear | This was the favorite shoe for some and not others. Overall it has been the most flexible on and off the bicycle. | Light downhill footwear capable of scaling and XC. | A completely capable all-arounder with well-known sticky silicone. |
Rating Categories | Five Ten Freerider Get in touch with | Shimano GR7 | Five Ten Freerider Pro | Five Ten Impact Vxi | Five Ten Freerider |
Grip(30%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Comfort and ease And Arch Support(25%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rigidity And Power Transfer(20%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Breathability(10%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Durability(10%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fat(5%) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Specs | Five Ten Freerider. | Shimano GR7 | Five Ten Freerider. | Five Ten Influence Vxi | Five Ten Freerider |
Rubber Kind | Stealth Mi6 | Michelin | Stealth Beds1 | Stealth Mi6 | Stealth S i90001 |
Plastic Pattern | Half Department of transportation | Total Tread | Full Dot | Sticky Dot | Full Us dot |
Fat in Oz | 13.75 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 14.75 |
Limited or Wide Fit? | Wide | Small | Narrow | Wide | Broad |
Top Materials | Fabric/synthetic leather | Perforated synthetic with mesh | Artificial Leather | Man made Buckskin | Suede/Mesh |
Show full standards informationHide complete specification information
Our Analysis and Test Results
Grasp
Five Ten provides become one of the leaders in the climbing shoe industry with their Stealth sticky plastic for the past three decades. They transitioned into the mountain bike globe in the early 2000s and theFreerider Contacthas further enhanced pedal hold over those very first versions. What began for our testers as an item of skepticism rapidly changed into the focus on shoe, providing an unexpected rating of 10 out of 10. At first peek, a completely smooth bike shoe sole appears absurdly slick and insecure, but that's not really the case at all.
The simple Mi6 plastic simply begs to grab the hooks of any smooth your pedal. While this can be the requirement for Stealth bottoms, the Stealth Mi6 is definitely a trim over. The non-textured single provides outstanding pedal grasp, but also offers features neglected by additional flat shoes or boots: the ability to fine tune feet position and discharge from your your pedal with better simplicity. This is definitely a reduction from theFive Ten Effect VXiandFive Ten Freerider, which need a bit more effort to lift the sole from the pedal hooks. Off the bicycle, theFreerider Get in touch withprovides traction sufficient for most situations but does suffer a bit when the going gets large or moist. It didn't perform simply because properly as theFive Ten Effect VXi, specifically in snowy areas.
The simple Mi6 silicone gives ascending shoe-like grip
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The soft Mi6 silicone gives scaling shoe-like grasp
Comfort and ease
While pedal grasp is definitely the most important feature of a smooth shoe, convenience is usually a close up runner-up and the Freerider Contact ratings high scars here, as well. After miles of driving, both scaling and descending, ease and comfort becomes actually more essential. The Mi6 single not only grips pedal hooks like a champ, it also offers a very first degree of padding and damping. While cushioning is certainly necessary, assistance is furthermore essential and this is certainly offered with a shaped EVA midsole. After multiple hrs in the saddle and on the pedals, the thin protective guard was actually appreciated, stopping pressure points on the driver's ft. While theFive Ten Effect VXialso provides excellent defense and comfort and ease, theFreerider Get in touch withprovides more level of sensitivity and seems much less blocky.
While theFreerider Get in touch withedged out theShimano Have always been7general, theI am7also scored high scars for comfort right out of the container. It had a identical sense, although with a lower quantity front foot that may charm to some. A simple insole supplied enough convenience, but theFreerider Get in touch withmight benefit by the inclusion of your favorite insoles, especially for motorcyclists with higher arches. The mesh top provides a lot of air flow even while cycling long climbs on warm sunny times.
Obviously, with an open mesh upper, wet weather conditions comfort is certainly a tradeoff. When it's time to dismount for hike-a-bike sections, the shoes or boots provide sufficient convenience with good cushioning and the midsole avoiding get in touch with with sharpened rocks and sticks. The abrasion-resistant uppers and a reinforced toecap add a sense of safety for inevitable scrapes and foot stubbing. Fit seems correct to size, although the front foot is usually a little bit increased in quantity than the regular Freerider.
No-slip grip in nearly every traveling problem we put the Contacts through
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No-slip grip in nearly every traveling situation we put the Contacts through
Solidity and Power Exchange
Power transfer is fantastic and the shoe is definitely an efficient climber, offering an effective platform for multi-hour traveling. Also though theFreerider Get in touch with'sprofile appears thinner than Five Ten'beds other solutions, the solidity was related to the even more considerableFive Ten Influence VXi; both offer greater stiffness than theFreerider. Rigidity is usually a great characteristic even though on the pedals but can become too much of a great thing when strolling. This competitor performed well, stunning a good balance between driving effectiveness and strolling ease and comfort.
Stiff but not really too rigid, the Connections are usually a strong choice
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Stiff but not too tough, the Connections are a strong selection
Pounds
TheFreerider Contactis usually Five Ten's lightest shoe in their Freerider series, tipping the range at 13.75 oz each for a males's size 9. This is certainly also the lightest in our selection of mountain bike smooth shoes and boots, although there had been just a complete weight difference of 2.25 oz across all sneakers tested.
Breathability
The mesh higher provides a lot of ventilation, actually while cycling lengthy climbs on cozy sunny days. Like theFive Ten Freeriderin our check, theFreerider Get in touch with'smesh upper is highly breathable. It was also prone to infiltration by great dust particles during past due summer problems. With an open mesh upper, the shoes are mainly open up to moisture. If breathability isn'capital t as very much of a issue and moisture-resistance will be an issue centered on where your riding takes place, a shoe like theShimano Have always been7may end up being the solution.
Durability
When it arrives to rating sturdiness, theFreerider Contactperforms so-so. The beefy abrasion-resistant uppers and protecting cap was upward to a bunch of granite-studded Sierra Nevada hike-a-bike areas without a serious scratch. However, the only durability has been sub-par. This didn'capital t arrive as a shock after we primarily researched our shoe selection, finding this has been a common problem from several other testimonials. After a half dozen rides, we observed some particular wear scars in the treadless portion of the single caused by pedal pins. Sharp granite edges still left some visible scars in the rubber as well.
Although we didn't find the absence of exclusive durability huge, it should certainly matter into your purchasing decisions, specifically with additional solid artists like the Shimano Are7 andFive Ten Influence VXias more durable choices. A decision to spend for efficiency while sacrificing durability is definitely definitely an person option. As this test ran over a span of months and not years, it's difficult to state how much existence you can expect from theFreerider Contact. We put on't possess a shoe life crystal basketball, but our best figure at the longevity of the soles will be two months, depending on the volume of utilization, riding style, and environment.
The bottoms may not really be simply because long lasting as other shoes examined, but they absolutely sure are enjoyment!
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The soles may not be simply because long lasting as other shoes tested, but they sure are enjoyment!
Greatest Makes use of
TheFreerider Get in touch withis usually a excellent all-arounder, executing nicely both uphill and downhill with a self-confidence and security-inspiring ride, experiencing a lot like becoming trimmed in. For riders seeking strong efficiency but with higher strength, theShimano Are7orFive Ten Effect VXimay be better choices. TheFreerider Contactis certainly a shoe for long times in the seat and can handle technical paths with ease, as well as enduro driving and race. For pure downhill use, the shoes or boots provide good protection, believed the Five Ten Impact is more significant, and offers more defense.
While design is definitely a matter of specific taste, it's safe to state theFreerider Contactsaren'testosterone levels heading to win any fashion shows with their somewhat orthopedic-style shoe look. For more style-conscious riders theFive Ten Freerider, or theGiro Jacket, with their skate shoe looks, are more most likely to make sure you. On more casual times and easier lift-served days, the more stylish solutions fromGiro, Zoic, and Five Tenmay become good alternatives to theFreerider Get in touch with. Five 10 also offers the shoe in a women's design.
The Connections connect solidly with flat pedals and give a excellent all mountain ride
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The Contacts connect steadily with toned pedals and provide a excellent all hill ride
Overview
TheFive Ten Freerider Get in touch withis certainly a high-performance enduro-style footwear that begs to become ridden really hard on those long times when you need a shoe that can manage any problems you throw at it. Lightweight and ventilated adequately for lengthy climbs with all downhill efficiency to match, the Freerider Get in touch with can be a best artist.
Movie
Various other Versions
Five Ten Freerider Contact - Females's
- Price - $150 (exact same as males's)
- Women's specific edition of this top of the line shoe
- Obtainable in two colors: Maroon/Grey and Shock Environment friendly/Onix (shown here)
-Jason Cronk
Vendor | Cost |
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Amazon . com | $105.00 - 30% off! |
Competitive Bicyclist | $149.90 |
REI | $150.00 |
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