Team Tested: Mavic Alpine XL Clipless Shoes
If you attend any races or look at what the pros are riding this year, you cannot fail to be impressed with how well the new range of Mavic shoes have been adopted. The sharp looking white and yellow shoes are everywhere! There are two models available, the full race yellow Crossmax with ratchet style buckle, and the cheaper Alpine XL’s with a lace up retention system. Shoes are probably one of the most underrated considerations when buying gear, they influence our main connection to the bike, and any compromise here could compromise the entire riding style.
We do a fair bit of hike-a-bike in Scotland so it is important that shoes offer not only a good grip on the pedals, but also to the ground when pushing. I was keen to try out the new Alpine XL’s as they are touted as the ‘all mountain’shoe in the range. Aggressive enough for the toughest enduro stages, while being comfortable enough for all day rides. Even before fitting, I was very impressed with the styling and design. Both the Crossmax and the Alpine XL are certainly eye catching and they seem very well put together, and at only 460g (8.5) are lightweight when compared with their competition.
The Contagrip outsole provides plenty of grip when pushing in the mud or over wet rock, they are slightly too stiff to be comfortable for very long walks, but they are certainly not the worst, and make up for it with performance on the pedals. The fit of the shoe is very comfortable, much more anatomically fitted to the shape of the foot than most, but you will probably have to size up as they are quite snug. The thin laces and sliding toggle allow for precise adjustment of the fit, and it is easy to make sure that there are no pressure spots. The band allows the top of the shoe to be cinched down snugly, and is more crash resistant than the more expensive Crossmax model.
The stiffness of the sole unit is about right and provides a very sensitive and accurate feel on the pedals, the lightweight shoe and stiff fitted shape allow you to really dance the bike down the trail. The addition of a neoprene cuff is a nice touch, sitting around the top of the heel it helps to keep gravel and grime out when things are getting rowdy, and also provides a much closer fit at the ankle.
Another nice design feature eliminates one of my pet hates, the provision of cleat channels that are too short, and that prevent you from getting the cleats far enough back. If you enjoy aggressive riding, then a ‘heels down’ approach is essential, and you simply cannot do this if your cleats are too far forward as it creates too much tension in your calves. If you are currently running your cleats ‘roadie’ style right under your forefoot, try moving them back 1cm towards your heel and enjoy the immediate improvement in control. Many SPD riders exhibit very poor footwork, and a lot of this is due to poor cleat placement. I have heard of many EWS riders getting dremels out to extend their SPD channels, but with the Mavics this is not needed. They have good long channels allowing perfect control over the cleat placement, and the spacious clear zone around the cleat is also well designed, guiding the cleat to the pedal with ease when you are getting out of shape!
We have been impressed with how fast the shoes dry, a very important factor in our Scottish climate, and they have not seemed to suffer with any odour issues. The only negative points that I can find with the shoe are minor. The white colour is not the most hard-wearing and soon turns into a light brown with repeated muddy use. I have heard of the top band snapping in extreme use, but this was from a rider that has lived for a whole year in his!
Bottom Line
The Alpine XL is a comfortable, durable and high performance shoe, offering a very sensitive connection to the pedals that helps on challenging terrain. The shoes strike a good balance between stiffness and hike-a-bike comfort and deserve their popularity. Retailing at £109.99 it is an expensive shoe, but after over 100 rides they are still going strong!
For more information check out the Mavic website.
Words and photos: Trev Worsey