Long Term Report - Five.Ten Insight
February 7, 2006
Name: David Sowards-Emmerd
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Height: 5' 8'' (1.73 m)
Weight: 155 lb (70 kg)
Shoe size: 9-10 US
Email Address: drunken_marmotATyahooDOTcom
Los Altos, California, USA
Backpacking Background:
I began backpacking semi-frequently about six years ago, soon
after moving to California. I generally take weekend (1 night)
trips, and occasionally take 3-4 day trips. Most of my
backpacking experience is at moderate altitude, 6,000'-12,000'
(1,800-3,650 m), in conditions ranging from dry desert to hail/heavy
snow in the mountains. In winter and spring I split time between
Southern California (SoCal) deserts and snowshoeing/skiing/snowcamping in
the Sierra/Cascades. Summer and fall I tend to stick to the high country.
I have reduced my packweight, including food and water down to less than
50 lb (23 kg) for snow camping and mountaineering and under 30 lb (14 kg)
for 3-season camping with temperatures down to freezing. I'm trying to
include more mountaineering, climbing and bouldering in my trips.
Product Description:
Manufacturer's Website: www.fiveten.com
MSRP: $95 US
Manufacturer's Description:
US Men's 7-13
Nubuck leather upper
Co-molded Stealth C4 and Stealth S1 Sole
Color: Charcoal/Yellow
Weight: 32 oz (910 g) (size not specified)
Specifications (as measured by tester):
Size: 9 US Men's
Weight (pair): 29.7 oz (841 g)
Product Description:
The Insights are a lightweight cross-trainer with a sticky-rubber sole. For a detailed description of the shoes, see my Initial Report. For details on my first two months of use, see my Field Report.
Continued Use:
Since my Field Report, I've continued to wear the Insights almost every day, with the exception of a 3-week holiday trip to Michigan where I packed boots instead of shoes. In addition to wearing the Insights while biking and hiking around town and on my exceedingly complicated commute to work, I wore them on a local overnight backpack and a few geocaching dayhikes with considerable elevation gain (>2000' (600 m)) and one involving a lot of muddy trail. Details of the overnighter follow:
January 14-15, 2006
Kelly Lake from Hunting Hollow, Henry Coe State Park, CA
Elevation: 850' - 2650' (260 m - 800 m)
Conditions: Cool and rainy, then cool and sunny
The hike was a loop trail of about 17 mi (27 km) with a total elevation gain of about 3000' (900 m). During the first day, wave after wave of rain blew in during the hike. We saw several trail crews, who were doing their best to divert the 'river' off of the trail we were hiking in on. I wore shorts and the Insights without gaiters (I brought them along, but didn't end up wearing them), and carried an umbrella to try to stay dry. I packed in several pairs of socks, so that I'd always have a dry pair, including a pair of Seirus Stormsocks to wear on the hike out since I was anticipating wet shoes. Through some fancy footwork and careful umbrella positioning (to block out the rain that was blowing sideways), I managed to keep my socks completely dry on all but the last half hour of the hike in. The rain continued off and on through dinner and stopped shortly after sunset. I kept my wet, muddy shoes in the tent that night. The next morning, I set them in the sun to dry and before long I had the luxury of hiking out in dry shoes. However, I still had to be careful stepping around the residual rainfall.
Overall Impressions:
Traction:
Traction has been excellent on various types of rock, pavement, and typical trail surfaces. I've also gotten good traction on slick mud due to the lug pattern and deep tread.
Stability and Stiffness:
The Insights definitely flex more that I'd like, but I've found it to be adequate for anything short of talus.
Wear and Tear:
These have held up very well, and aside from the loss of cushioning, there's little sign of non-cosmetic wear and tear. The main noticeable wear is still the trim near the ankle (see Photo), which is now wearing away on both sides of the shoes. The uppers still haven't delaminated at all and none of the stitching has come loose. The cushioning is definitely disappearing, but the tread depth on the soles is still excellent (see Photo).
Ventilation:
These shoes get a decent draft though the yellow mesh slits on the sides of the shoes when there's a good breeze. In cooler conditions, I believe this has helped in leading to colder feet, but overall, I'm happy with the ventilation and would rather have it than not.
Comfort:
These are a very comfortable pair of shoes. I haven't gotten any serious blisters during the testing period, and this is a common occurrence for me since my feet tend to sweat a lot. However, I still feel the padding isn't quite enough for carrying a heavy pack on rocky terrain.
Shrinkage/Stretching:
As of the end of the testing period, I haven't noticed any change in the fit of the shoe that I haven't been able to compensate for with the lacing system.
Future Use:
I will continue to wear the Insights until I feel either the padding or the soles have worn out. Once I deem them 'worn out', I probably won't replace them with another pair of Insights, but this is really because I'm constantly in search of the perfect pair of scramblers and there's always something new to try.
Read more reviews of Five Ten gear
Read more gear reviews by David Sowards-Emmerd
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