I was wondering how much abuse Gravel/XC spd shoes can take without wearing out / breaking too fast.
I’ve bought a pair of specialized recon sl’s for a good price. Love the extra stiffness, as plastic soled shoes usually wear out rather quickly in my experience. Maybe due to my large feet of size 47 EU and the extra leverage.
Now, after 2.5k km on them, they start actually getting down to the carbon (past the coating) on the sole on some spots. Should you reseal those spots or can the soles take that damage without an issue? Impossible to leave them unscratched riding/walking gravel and mud. Since I am a student and can’t replace shoes every year, would be kinda bad if I break them too quickly. I usually expect 2 – 2.5 years from each pair of spd shoes.
Thx for the feedback.
by AntiBoardSlabEnjoyer
3 Comments
You’ll be fine. I’ve had my s-works recons for 3 or 4 years and raced gravel, mtb, and CX in them.
You should be fine. None of this looks that serious. The only issue I’ve ever had with a carbon soled shoe was ripping out the cleat bed. Nothing to do with the carbon.
That said, I do prefer shoes that have some solid mid-sole outsole coverage. Dustin Klein did [a roundup of some shoes](https://youtu.be/6z3irV8qppw?si=etSZyoEDqfPh-d4P&t=176) and makes note of this.
I damaged mine on the 5th ride. Replaced under warranty. Now using DMT KM30’s which have a less stiff sole but maybe better for hike a bike sections.
https://imgur.com/a/ZvIZhDn