Fresh Produce | Five Ten Freerider Pro

Overview

Five Ten have been making shoes almost as long as mountain biking has existed. They started out in California making rock climbing shoes in the 1980’s, and quickly became known for their sticky “Stealth Rubber” soles.

Jump forward to the early 2000’s when mountain biking was really taking off, FiveTen dipped their toes in with the Impact Pro model. These downhill shoes quickly became the stuff of legend, and were the first flat pedal shoe worn to a World Championship victory by none other than Sam Hill. They haven’t put a foot wrong since, and continued to support the sport in its early years, with Australian riders Nathan Rennie and Chris Kovarik also having signature model shoes. Ah the glory days!

After being acquired by Adidas in 2020, FiveTen MTB shoes became more difficult to find, and we were a bit worried they would lose their legendary status. Thankfully they’ve stepped back into the limelight with a modern flat pedal shoe, the new Freerider Pro. We’ve got our hands (or feet?) on a pair, so let’s slip them on and see what they’re all about.

Tech Features

These sleek Five Tens are reasonably lightweight at 378g per shoe. Despite the name, the new Freerider Pros are probably best suited for the modern trail rider.

A key feature being the sturdy reinforced toe box, designed to keep your toes safe should you kick any foreign objects out on the trail. The outer sole of the shoe utilises FiveTen’s Stealth S1 rubber, which aims to provide the best combination of durability and grip. The upper part of the shoe is constructed with a recycled synthetic material that’s designed to protect your feet from the weather, while offering ample breathability.

The quality of the materials used are of a high standard, which is something we’ve come to expect from Five Ten. However for a shoe labeled “Pro” we were hoping to see a few more features like a pull tag at the heel, and a more refined pocket to tuck the laces into. It may sound like a minor detail, but there’s nothing worse than getting your shoelaces stuck in your chainring!

Comfort & Fit

The fit is immediately comfortable, there is no doubt Adidas know their way around a shoe! We’d say the sizing is on the roomy side, the spacious toe box exaggerates this feel. However the heel cup provided a snug and secure hold.

If you are between sizes, we’d recommend sizing down. This will not only improve the overall comfort but also help to get a more direct feel on the pedals. This reduces any float within the shoe. We’d love to see a lace-free version using a system similar to BOA. These securing systems can often help to dial in the fit that little bit better. They’re also neater and faster to tighten compared with regular laces.

The soles are quite stiff, which provides excellent power transfer to the pedals, but can make them slightly awkward to walk around in. This is only really an issue if you’re doing push runs or long hike-a-bikes.

Overall the Freerider Pros were comfortable, but we’d say the sizing is on the roomy side of things.

Out on the Trail, Our Impressions

Now, time to get a grip! Pun very much intended, we had to get one in there! The S1 rubber impressed us during testing, it’s like having a MaxxGrip Assegai on the bottom of your shoe!

There’s plenty of grip, in fact, that we found ourselves having to lift up and reposition our foot if it did move out of place. For riders coming from SPD pedals, you’ll feel immediately at home as the reset motion is similar to clipping in. For flat pedal riders that usually run less gripping shoes, this may take some getting used to. They’ll just keep hanging on even if you’ve only got a few pins engaged with the shoe.

We expect this very sticky sole may come at the cost of some durability, so stay tuned for our long term test.

The S1 rubber really locks the shoe into place on the pedal. Durability may be a concern in the long run with such a soft and sticky compound.

Flow’s Verdict

Our primary tester for this article has been riding SPD shoes for many years now. However he was pleasantly surprised at how easy the transition back to flats has been. This can be attributed to the sure-footedness of the Freerider Pros. They are confidence inspiring, which makes the idea of riding flats more appealing.

So who would we recommend these shoes to? If you want to hit jumps and throw down mean no-footers, these may not be the shoes for you. We’d say they’re more suited to flat pedal riders who are afraid of slipping a pedal and want maximum grip. Or potentially, SPD riders who like to run flats when trail conditions are slick.