Giant Line Trail Shoes
Giant is a huge brand within the mountain bike industry, well known for there great bikes that they have available to the consumer. More recently they have been turning there hand to soft goods, from gloves to jerseys and they also have a selection of shoes available for various disciplines. In this article, I will be giving my first impressions on Giants Line trail shoes. These shoes are gravity focussed so are perfect for trail and enduro riders that like to be clipped in.
The upper construction of Giant’s Line trail shoe is a one-piece synthetic leather featuring ventilation holes and varying thicknesses, depending on stress in different areas. The shoe does offer extra strength and protection in the areas that are needed, like the heel and the toe areas. They also feature the TransTextura Plus insole that helps to stop bacteria build up within the shoe, helpful when you consider the muck we have to ride through as mountain bikers.
The Line offers a great range of adjustability for your cleats so that you can get the shoe aligned on the pedal perfectly to your preference. The sole offers full support on both sides of the cleats so that all of your effort is put through to the pedals which in turn helps propels you forward with minimal energy wastage. However, I did find that the sole was slightly too thick for my cleats even with the thicker shim placed underneath. This may be because of the Mallet DH pedals having a slightly bigger platform to most SPD pedals, I got around this by placing a washer in between the cleat and shim to make the channel shallower so that I could clip in. I am hoping with some ride time the sole wears down and I can discard the washers.
Giant Line Key Features:
- Sole: MES (motion efficiency system), nylon ExoBeam™
- Tread: Full-coverage rubber tread with ExoFlex zone clip-in pedals
- Footbed: TransTextura Plus™ antibacterial footbed
- Ventilation: Seamless hydrophobic material provides protection and ventilation
- Upper: ExoWrap™ independent arch wrap
- Closure: Fast ratchet buckle + 2 Velcro® straps
- Extra: ExoFlex™, a flexible toe box
- Sizes: EU 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47,48
- Colour: Blue/Black and Grey/Black
Fit is adjusted with the ratchet system on the top of the shoe along with a couple of Velcro straps opposing each other. The shoes come in Giants famous blue colour and also Grey/Black. Sizes start at 40 and end at 48 European with no mid-sizes. Giants Line trail shoes will cost you £119.99 in the UK
Giant Line First Impressions
My first impressions of the Line trail shoe is from the moment I removed them from the box they are of good build quality. They felt well made and sturdy which is something you would like to expect for the cost and is seen across the Giant range. The Line has plenty of holes in the upper part of the shoe to aid breathability for your foot which is great to see especially as the weather is currently in the high 20’s here in the UK.
I put the shoe on for the first time and was pleasantly surprised with the fit. I’m not usually a great fan of how SPD shoes fit on my feet but these provided plenty of space with a trainer like feel. Once Strapped in using the ratchet strap and the two velcro straps your foot feels like it is going nowhere. The tongue of the shoe is designed to allow that tight fit and not have too much pressure applied to your ankles.
I went about attaching the cleats and this is where I was made aware of the issue that I mentioned above which is the channel on the sole of the shoe where the cleats sit is slightly too deep to allow the cleat to mate to the clipping system on my pedals, I have had to add some washers to make the channel shallower. I feel this would not be a problem after a couple of riders and some wear applied to the sole.
I noticed whilst walking about that the sole is very thick and sturdy but allows just enough flexibility to be comfortable to walk in.
Once clipped in, the Line shoes proved to have a soft sole that gripped the pins on my SPD pedals really well. The stiffness of the midsole was perfect for my larger platformed pedals, and they also allowed plenty of movement on the pedals. My feet were kept nice and cool through the ride which confirms that the holes in the upper part of the shoe are adequate and that the Line has a great ergonomic fit to them.
I will be putting these shoes to the test over the coming weeks through different styles of riding, terrain and different weather conditions to see how they last and will report back.
