5.10 Impact

24/12/23 09:56 Filed in: Gear

Back about 2010 I decided to try flat pedals on my DH bike. I bought a pair of 5.10 Impact shoes as worn by Sam Hill as they seemed the most DH oriented shoe in the range. I wore them for a couple of years before I picked up some Freeriders and then a whole range of other brands. But because the Impact shoe was still the best for the DH bike, I kept my original Impact for riding the DH bike.
Then a couple of years ago I bought a new DH bike, the Canyon Sender CFR. Which gave me plenty of opportunities to wear the Impact shoes again. The shoes started to show their age and in addition to heavily worn soles (the pins had carved out lots of holes), the sole was beginning to peel off from the shoe.

Black Friday sale I picked up a pair of prior year (how many years prior I'm not sure) Impact shoes for $100. Superficially they look like the same shoe I was replacing, but in detail comparison they had nothing in common, except for looking like plain black orthopaedic shoes - the Impact has never been about style.

The sole is different - sewn to the shoe in places instead of simply glued on. The older 5.10 shoe had a cat incorporated in the tread pattern of dots which was a weak point (the thin outline of the cat tore off quite quickly) and was absent from the newer shoe. The tongue is different. The padding is different. The lacing is different.

What remains the same is the feeling of protection for the feet and the secure connection to the pedals. After a 5-day visit to Thredbo using the lifts every day and the Impact shoes every day I can say they are still good.

I can't see the Impact in the current Adidas 5.10 catalogue, which suggests they've discontinued them. So there won't be a replacement for these shoes when the time comes. That seems typical of the way Adidas has treated 5.10 since purchasing them, and a bit sad. For now, the chunky black shoes will remain my go-to pick for lift-served riding.

Michael Hanslip Coaching

If you want to go faster, you have to pedal harder

5.10 Impact