Tester: Rosaleen Sullivan
Age: 55 years
Gender: Female
Height: 5’ 9’’ (1.75 m)
Weight: 180 lb (82 kg)
E-mail: rosaleen43 (at) msn (dot) com
Home: Eastern Massachusetts, USA
Tester Background/Style
I’ve been backpacking off and on for about 20 years. I’m still in the
process of “lightening up.” Normal gear includes a hammock, down bag and
jacket, hiking poles, and an alcohol or fuel tablet stove, retooling gear for
each trip. I also make some gear, and often nudge myself out of a design
daydream on the trail. Most trips last 3 days, but I have backpacked 10
days straight. While most of my journeys are within New England, I’ve
hiked the length of the Smoky Mountains, the Grand Canyon, and other trails far
from home.
Manufacturer: Five Ten (or 5.10)
URL: http://www.fiveten.com/
Shoe size: (Women’s) 11
Color: Sage Green
Year of Manufacture: 2005
MSRP: $ 95.00 US
Manufacturer’s specified weight: 1.9 lb (.86 kg)
Tester’s measured weight: 1.85 lb (.84 kg)`
Product Specifications: (from the website)
This shoe is versatile, comfortable, cool looking and built tough to handle
dirt, mud, scree, talus, AND steep rock. The Insight incorporates a number of Five Ten rock shoe features for higher performance including Stealth C4/S1 co-molded
soles, slingshot rands, and lace-to-toe styling. Full-grain nubuk leather
uppers with protective toe rands provide excellent abrasion resistance.
Product Description (Abbreviated from my Initial
Report)
I find the 5.10 Insight to be attractive looking sport shoes. My pair is
“sage green.” The sole is made of two separate rubber products. Each has a
slightly different texture, and each is intended to grip surfaces differently.
Stealth C4, located in the toe area, is supposed to give the “ultimate friction
on rock.” Stealth S1, located from the heel to the area of the ball of the foot
is claimed to provide the “highest shock absorption, (and) excellent
friction. The hang tag also states “Stealth is your guarantee of ultimate
rubber performance,” and gives this URL: www.stealthrubber.com.
Field Experiences
I’ve worn the 5.10 Insight shoes nearly daily since their arrival.
This includes many activities from walking in my neighborhood to elementary
school playground duty to local (eastern Massachusetts) trails and a short
section of the Appalachian Trail in New Jersey. I’m pleased with the
protection the stiff soles (compared to soles on running shoes) provide in
preventing my feet from bruising on rocky trails. My feet have been warm
enough at a range of temperatures, down into the lower 20’s F (~-5 C), as long
as I have kept moving. Once in camp and no longer moving fast, my feet
started to feel cold if the temperatures were much below freezing. The
shoes have shrugged off rain and shallow puddles. The mesh-lined cut outs
have allowed for some air circulation, while keeping out most of the powdery
snow I recently hiked through. This was a short, about two hour romp, in
approximately 2 in (~ 5 cm) of snow at 28 F (~ 5 C). These are not
advertised as winter footwear, so I really didn’t see a need to push that envelope
far from any “bailout” options by using them for long distance snow trekking.
I’ve become accustomed to wearing running shoes or other light footwear
on my hikes, so while I did notice that the Insights felt heavier and stiffer
than my normal shoes, they did not cause discomfort. I’ve been happy, so
far, with the way the shoes grip wet rocks, grass and other natural materials,
as well as pavement. A recent visitor wearing common running shoes slid
down the sidewalk in front of my home as if he were on ice skates. I
could not get my test shoes to slide on that particular batch of ice. It
hadn’t yet hardened as it might from a deep freeze or slight thawing and
refreezing. I have discovered that the shoes do not grip on very hard,
glossy or wet ice. My conclusion is that while the Insights do better
than my typical running shoes on ice, I might want to find some ice grippers if
I anticipate a lot of ice walking.
Long Term Test Plan
I plan to continue to use the Insight shoes on day hikes and a minimum of
three overnights nearby in eastern Massachusetts. In most of this area,
we are on a coastal plain with rolling hills and some rocky areas.
Temperatures are likely to vary widely, with some summer or fall-like days
following days with snow squalls and freezing temperatures. This season,
we have had at least three snowfalls already, and December is not quite a week
old. We can expect prolonged periods of below freezing temperatures
by January. I anticipate a wide variety of conditions as I complete the
four month test period.
Things Looked for or Tested
Fit (During use, will
problems emerge?)
So far, I’ve only wished for more toe room, or room for thicker socks. I
have no blisters or lost toenails yet, though.
Comfort/support (Over a
range of temperatures and trail conditions?)
My feet have definitely felt supported and protected from such hazards as
rocks. I’ve been comfortable in fairly warm and below freezing
temperatures.
Wear to soles, uppers, lining
Happily, I see no appreciable wear in spite of 2 months of nearly
continuous wear.
Any peeling or parts coming
loose or off of the shoes
None.
Sole grip on various surfaces,
wet or dry
Wet rocks, grass and other surfaces are easily negotiated in these shoes.
I should have plenty of chances to test the shoes on wet ice, but maybe not on
wet, algae slicked surfaces.
Shoe liner wicking, keeping feet
feeling dry
My feet usually feel damp, but not soggy in these shoes. The shoe
liner feels slightly damp at the end of the day (dry outdoor conditions).
Drying time of shoes after
exposure to rain, puddles, etc.
My test shoes have not actually been soaked, yet.
Any foot/knee problems
(I have chronic problems with plantar fasciitis, and knee
arthritis/tendonitis.)
No flare ups yet. (Happily!)
Thanks for reading my report,
Rosaleen Sullivan
