Submitted by
Mark Lyndon
a Weekend Warrior
from New Zealand, Auckland
Date Reviewed: March 12, 2008
Strengths: Comfortable, long lasting, has laces and straps
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
Great shoe, I love to upgrade stuff but shoes have never entered my head to upgrade. I ride allyear round, mud, rain, sand etc and they good as new. Stiff sole is great fro ridn but not for climbing up long clay tracks, but thats not what they designed for .
Submitted by
casey mccarthy
a Weekend Warrior
from clemson, sc
Date Reviewed: January 10, 2008
Strengths: fit really well on my foot,great value, plenty of grip off the bike, and for some reason i like the look.
Weaknesses: laces too long and can be difficult to tie but easily fixed(work fine w/o laces), slight pain after long ride but this is my first clipless shoe it may just be my feet gettin use to it.
Bottom Line:
great shoe for the price. would like to try a higher end shoe but would deffiently buy another set. buy these.
Submitted by
Andy
a Weekend Warrior
from Horsetooth Mountain Colorado
Date Reviewed: July 18, 2007
Strengths: Great fit with SPD pedals, lots of protection on side of foot, comfy hiker, gripy tread, super adjustable, accurate sizing, and they look good too!
Weaknesses: Can't think of any... excellent "all mountain" shoe - not a racer boy shoe.
Bottom Line:
I have been using these shoes since they were introduced. I wear 'em out annually. I must be on my 6th or 7th pair. This year's model (black and silver w/ reverse strap) is, by far, the best yet. The reversed middle strap and tighter fit thru the midsection work perfectly for me. I rate these superior to the higher end Shimano shoes which offer very little outside edge protection and cost at least twice as much. I will continue to buy these as long as they are made.
Bike Setup: Running these on Shimano 959's on a Nomad XO AM
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Chris Lee
a Cross Country Rider
from Winnipeg, Mb, Canada
Date Reviewed: June 13, 2006
Strengths: Price
Weaknesses: Combo lace and velcro closure...who uses both ??
Bottom Line:
My second pair of shoes after my shimano's blew up after a couple of yrs. Bought these in the spring and they never quite fit me properly...my quest continues
Bike Setup: Gary Fisher Big Sur, XT,LX,Manitou Black fork,WTB saddle
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Jeff
a Cross Country Rider
from San Jose, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: January 4, 2006
Strengths: price, fit, grippy sole
Weaknesses: toe stitching, soft sole, complicated lace/flap/strap combination
Bottom Line:
This is a review for the newer, grey, 3 strap version. I bought them just over a year ago for the upcoming cross racing season and daily commuting use. I got them with Crank Bothers Egg Beater S pedals from bikenashbar.com for a steal.
Bottom Line: good value if they don't fall apart on you like mine did. grippy and comfortable sole wears pretty quickly.
They fit well, had a grippy and soft sole which was great for wet rocks/sidewalks/etc. The combination of laces, a velcro flap and 3 velcro straps is not the quickest, simplest, most effecient or most adjustable fastening setup. My other shoes with 3 straps stayed on just as well. My shoes with two straps and one ratched strap stayed on great and allowed a quick, on-bike adjustment to the ratcheded strap.
About 9 months into their use, the stitching connecting the mesh on the top of my toes to the leather like material that is also attached to the front of the sole started to come out. It has gotten worse over the past few months, to the point where my big toe was visible, and I just replaced them with some Specialized shoes.
For the price I wasn't too surprised as it seems I got what I paid for - but still - a bit disappointing as they worked well enough otherwise. When I went to swap out my cleats I realized the sole on the heels had almost worn out completely - so there was very little life left in them.
I didn't walk a lot in them - just through the train station and the office during my daily commute. I did race about 2/3 of a cross season on them but honestly that's not much abuse.
Strengths: Solid construction. Good walking platform.
Weaknesses: Not the best for wide feet
Bottom Line:
Good shoes. These are the newer model unlike the ones in the pic above. There are black and grey. I ordered a pair for my friend and was really impressed with the quality so I ordred one for myself. Comparable to shoes costing a good bit more. Really snug fit with the laces and velcro closure but fits well enough w/o the laces. Solid sole for good power transfer but comfy enough to walk in. I actually use them for my road bike as well during tours b/c of the walking stability. Sole stands up really well to asphalt as well as the rocks on the trail. The only problem is I have wide feet and there are wider shoes out there. I tried a pair of wides and they are the only thing really comfy. My friend doesn't have the same problem and heis in love with his shoes. So much he is ordering another pair. We have no problem with the sole as some previous posters mentioned.
Similar Products Used: Gaerne Vertical Diadora Gecko
Bike Setup: SC Heckler, DEAN Ace
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Ray
a Cross Country Rider
from Phoenix
Date Reviewed: June 8, 2005
Strengths: Fits well, laces and velco straps i like, works well with all the SPD pedals I have had.
Weaknesses: They are Ugly looking, Not the best if you need to dismount and climb a rocky Mountain.
Bottom Line:
Best shoe I have found, got a great deal on them, and they have worn extremely well. Would look for another pair of answers whenever I may need another pair.
Submitted by
adam trammell
a Weekend Warrior
from killeen, tx
Date Reviewed: September 1, 2004
Strengths: good grip stiff sole keeps foot snug last forever
Weaknesses: laces are a bit long
Bottom Line:
these shoes have done so much more than expected i rarely walk in them any more but the rubber's there when i need it i have no issues with these and after maybe this season i will get some new shoes and guess what they will be impacts also
Submitted by
Matt miller
a Racer
from nazareth, PA
Date Reviewed: January 12, 2004
Strengths: look cool, inexpensive,
Weaknesses: i dont really like the lace/flap/strap combo
Bottom Line:
not once did i have a gripe about my shoes. ive had them for a year and i've used them just about every day and they're just starting to self-destruct. if these were lighter, i'd get a pair for next season. hey, they carried me through the sport class..
Submitted by
Randy
a Weekend Warrior
from Wisconsin
Date Reviewed: October 26, 2003
Strengths: Looks, Price, Versatility (will work well with all types of pedals), and Rigidity
Weaknesses: These shoes were designed for someone with a very narrow foot. My feet Are an EE width and these shoes were uncomfortably tight from day one. After about 9 weeks of use the sole began to separate from the upper. I have had the same problem (initial tightness) with other shoes, but they all stretched enough to accomodate my feet. As others have said, the laces on these things are waaaaay too long.
Bottom Line:
These would be a nice low end shoe if they were a bit wider. The width is the only real problem that I've had with them but it was severe enough to prevent me from ever buying another pair.
Purchased At: I don't recall which web site it was
Similar Products Used: Northwave Fuel, Pearl Izumi Vagabond
Bike Setup: Trek 6700 Factory Setup
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Matt
a Weekend Warrior
from Annandale
Date Reviewed: April 22, 2003
Strengths: Good grip in wet and muddy hills off the bike. I haven't had the problems others have reported with the cleats.
Weaknesses: Lacing is a pain. Laces get caught on velcro and are too long. Shoes show a lot of wear after just a few months of light usage. They also seem to have shrunk a lot after getting wet. Started out a perfect fit, but now are uncomfortably tight (hasn't happened with other shoes, so I don't think it's my feet).
Similar Products Used: Even cheaper pair of generic mtb shoes. Time now for Sidi!
Bike Setup: Proflex 856
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Jim.
a Cross Country Rider
from Cranberry Twp. PA
Date Reviewed: February 15, 2003
Strengths: The rubber grips well and the fit is surprisingly comfortable. The velcro/lace combo works.
Weaknesses: The laces are way too long, and the shoes feel heavy when you first start using them.
Bottom Line:
Great deal for the bucks but these take forever to lace. The laces catch on the Velcro strips. The Sidi ratcheting system spoiled me with it's quickness and ease of use. These shoes grip on wet rocks and logs is way better than the Sidis I had before. Cover the Impact with booties and they make excellent winter riding shoes. So far they are untested in summer heat. The bottom line is that I couldn't imagine a better shoe for the dollar.
Similar Products Used: Gaerne unknown model - dismantled in less than a year, Sidi Dominator - lasted 3 years,
Bike Setup: irrelevant in this discussion.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Chris H
a Cross Country Rider
from Greer, SC, 29650
Date Reviewed: February 11, 2003
Strengths: stiffness, traction, looks
Weaknesses: the two front cleats tend to come out, sometimes its a pain to get the shoe laced up and stuff.
Bottom Line:
If you dont really care about the two front cleats coming out, i havent found much to be wrong with these shoes. I dont really have anything to compare these shoes too, so take what you will from this review.
Strengths: Affordability, I only paid $65.00 for these puppies. Not a bad shoe for the price overall. Decent looking shoe for the money, and they have held up pretty well. I am retiring from adventure racing, and my Sidi Dominators were history after 2 good years of hard riding in very tough conditions. I was low on cash so I bought these Answers, and I have not been disappointed but still they are no comparison to the Sidi's which are the gold standard of bike shoes, by which all other bike shoes are compared.
Weaknesses: Lacing system is sort of contrived and not very easy to manage. Even though the laces are covered by a 2-strap velcro system, this tends to loosen up after a number of dismounts to hike-a-bike until you can ride again. It's frustrating to have to stop and retie your bike shoes. After a couple of months, the shoe began to feel sloppy on my feet, like they were stretching or something. I ride through lots of creeks and muddy slop, and these shoes may not be designed with that sort of condition in mind. Also, the screw-in cleats at the toe are handy for diggin in as you climb up the really steep stuff, but the cleats will back out of the threads unless you re-tighten them every ride. I've lost 4 cleats in a year just from riding what I would call moderately hard, certainly not at a race pace, but on pretty technical stuff.
Bottom Line:
Pretty good shoe for the money. If you don't have the money to buy a top-tier shoe like a Sidi, the Answer's will do you fine. But remember that you are only paying $70 or so, and this shoe is not designed to hold up to rough conditions for more than a year or so. I rated the value at 4 steamin' turds because these shoes are a good buy. I gave the overall rating 3 steamin' turds cause the shoe tends to get sloppy on your feet after some amount of wear.
Submitted by
Joel
a Cross Country Rider
from Lancaster, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: October 8, 2002
Strengths: Got them on closeout, so I have got say the "the price". Replaceable cleats
Weaknesses: none so far
Bottom Line:
Pretty decent for the $40 I spent on them. I had to retire my old Sidi's, and was short on cash at the time, so i didn't really have much of a choice. So far, they are working out pretty good, although I sure do miss the cam-lock buckle of my old sidi's!!!
