Leatt 5.5 GPX Boots 3rd off at DirtbikeXpress (UK)

[Cerbera]

Just upgraded to a pair of these, for a nice tidy 270 quid as opposed to regular 389.

https://www.dirtbikexpress.co.uk/product/leatt_gpx_5.5_flexlock_white_black_boots

 

They look excellent, and will go nicely with the dual axis guards and the 5.5 body protector.

They are nice and strong / flat / grippy on the inside leg which is going which is going to be helpful in those moments where we need to grip the wheel, and it comes with a couple of different angle plate inserts to change the stiffness there. I also went for this boot because the tread isn't too severe and deeply grooved, which should mean we grip the studs when we need to but yet can more easily reposition as we ride without having to entirely lift a foot.

Not sure if I need the neck brace to complete the set, which looks like a bit of a faff, and is the same price as the boots !

Edited November 4, 2022 by Cerbera

[Cerbera]

Well these have arrived, and in the first 5 minutes I've had an absolute revelation !! I don't need Third Party Pads on the master !!! These ARE the pads !!

Yes, by luck alone I have taken a punt, and tried a boot that is so brilliant at what it does and serendipitously just happens to EXACTLY fit the gaps in the Master stock pads, so wearing these gives me the locked-in feeling that 150 quid's worth of pads would otherwise have to provide ! For the first time I feel like I have full, permanent access to the power of the Master, and instead of sliding my legs backwards and forwards to the pad limits for braking and acceleration I now can do so only with the limits of my boots, which is so much more comfortable, and easy to do (less travel, more padded) and should result in less wear and tear on the Master's own padding. So I have constant contact between back and front pad bumps all the time, which is making me very very happy  Even the toe fits exactly under the toe bumper, being massive, like it is, so even jumping could now be a possibility where it wasn't before !

And look how nice and flat  the inside is - absolutely perfect for gripping wheel if you have to...

 

That marvelous fact aside, here's my first impressions of the boots themselves in other aspects.

1. They are fucking heavy !! That is a testament to their immense build quality, and ridiculous protection levels.

2. You cannot get your feet in them AT ALL without unbuckling all the buckles, because the ankle reinforcement is so good you simply can't get past it without the boot fully open !

3. The leather work, plastic work, metal work and materials are the best quality I have ever seen, and unbelievably robust in all aspects. The clamps are incredibly firm and solid and made of metal.

4. Very very comfortable when you are in them.

5. Walking, not so much (!), at least when they are new ! I'm sure they will bed in, but these boots significantly alter my walking gait at the moment - not in a way I couldn't get used to or that looks too ridiculous, but some adaption will have to happen !

6. I am 100% convinced that no damage to my feet is possible whilst wearing these, no matter how many dogs are latched on to them, or how many rocks or cars I am pinned under ! I have never seen ankle protection like it !!

7. The support is so good that if I plant my feet flat, I can lean a full 10 degrees back or forwards (legs / back straight) and they hold me !!

Just wow, in summary. To get this much boot for 270 pounds is a total steal. If you have a Begode Master, doubly so ! Go buy them while they are on offer !

Only thing is I really can't see how seated riding could work with these on - the lack of flex in the soles is probably going to prevent it.

Edited November 6, 2022 by Cerbera

[Cerbera]

Update: Not as great as first hoped...

Have had a couple of rides on these now, and it has to be said - they take a fair bit of getting used to, and significantly alter both your previous riding techniques, and the feedback you get through your feet during a ride. Initially, this is a very disconcerting feeling - on a Master you are raised up EVEN HIGHER than its already very high pedals, which leads to greater climb-up distance, which, combined with heavy upper body armour, makes a surprising amount of difference to how much effort this takes and how much more skill is required to be able to do this and correctly centre yourself at the same time. And you do it with little to no feedback from your mounted foot because a) there is a whacking great steel bar going through the centre of the sole (designed for strength and rotation around MC footpeg), and b) the stiffness of the boot and intense grippiness of the Master's pedal studs, and tight proximity of the boots to the pads on the wheel means it is very difficult to adjust your foot position once you have any weight at all on the foot plates. It can be done with practice, but all the time you can't do it you feel locked in in a 'wrong' way that leaves you feeling quite uncertain and vulnerable to tipping, which is something the stock tyre on the Master is renowned for being bad at anyway. I have never yet fallen while hard cornering, but constantly feel like I might !

And then there's the issue of pad contact, and how much there is, and if we need more. I had an over-lean / over-balance crash the other day, caused primarily by these boots making me think I was transmitting enough forward authority to the wheel up a small slope from a standing start. I was doing this with a straight lean, which was too much with not enough command being issued to the wheel, so over the front I went. Yes the boots saved my ankles, and considerably lessened the lower leg twist I should have got from the subsequent fall, but this is of not much use if it's also the main cause of the problem ! I have since learned that I need to exert pressure with bent knees and shins on the forward pads whilst keeping my upper body relatively centred, and today I was finally getting more like the acceleration I needed, though it is harder to control a wheel of that weight and momentum with bent knees, so I don't like the general ride feeling I am getting at the moment. It could be because the boots are so new, and haven't worn in yet, or just because it takes a while to get used to totally different get-up and foot feel to what I have been used to.

Lastly there is a small problem with wheel stability and trolleying it around in these boots. The Master, being only 10Kg lighter than I am is at constant risk of pulling me to one side if I don't keep it centred while trolleying it. Because the boots are so good at isolating your foot from the feeling of the ground, or anything else it is touching, dismounts, and just walking around become considerably less stable without constant concentration, and the weighty wheel-pull situation is made notably more sketchy by this fact ! I had to balance my various limbs , the wheel, and a shopping basket very carefully as I navigated the aisles today, reminding me just how much we take footwear stability for granted !

So, initially it is looking like these MC boots are perhaps NOT right, or at least ideal for EUC riding. But they are very protecting, very comfortable when riding if you can just get used to the way you have to communicate input to the wheel. I am still not sure if I can, but am going to spend a whole month trying.

 

[Tawpie]

49 minutes ago, Cerbera said:

if you can just get used to the way you have to communicate input to the wheel. I am still not sure if I can, but am going to spend a whole month trying.

At first it seems a bit odd that footwear can make that much difference... but it really does.

I am 'forcing' myself to stick with my very expensive Forma Extera low boots but it is necessary to re-teach yourself a lot of the basics. I too lost most of the 'in-touch' feeling with the pedals even though my Merrel hiking boots have heavy lug soles and it does seem much more difficult to move my feet around on the pedals. It's difficult to 'feel' how far forward I am on the pedal… actually, I'd say it's impossible. Keep in mind I've not yet used any sort of jump pad so my feet are totally free to wander about, but the moto boots definitely change things up.

Another surprise was I have to relearn how to sit down! The Formas are quite stiff—fine for dorsiflexion but when I sit I've always had my foot bent. Not happening with moto boots so the posture is entirely different. I'm getting a handle on it, but it's another thing that requires re-education.

I suppose I could switch boots depending on my ride intent, but would rather tough it out with the motos so I gain the additional protection when I'm on the street too. Unplanned dismounts happen on pavement as well as dirt, and the oompaloompa allows me to go much faster on pavement than I would have gone before so the consequences of a fall have the potential to be much greater.

It's good to hear you're going to give it some time—a footwear change this significant simply means it's back-to-school.

Edited November 13, 2022 by Tawpie

[Tawpie]

On 11/5/2022 at 11:46 AM, Cerbera said:

Only thing is I really can't see how seated riding could work with these on - the lack of flex in the soles is probably going to prevent it.

Toes out, heels in is working for me. Awkward at first but I'm adapting.

[Cerbera]

Lols - I can't do toes out, otherwise the front of my boots don't make contact with the Master's front pads enough to give it enough beans... but yes, you are right - just have to find a long isolated winding country road and nail down the techniques that work instead, then do them often enough to make them comfortable and written into muscle memory. I don't like going from being very good at something to what I would call moderately shit at the same thing in different boots on a new wheel, but in a way I actually enjoy the re-learning almost as much as I did the first time.

[Paul A]

Maybe try these. 

Much more comfortable.

 

 

[Cerbera]

58 minutes ago, Paul A said:

Maybe try these. 

Much more comfortable.

Lunatic  that guy'll only need the one lesson... that's a 100 lb, mostly metal wheel that will be crushing his ankles to a bloody pulp when it all goes tits up...

I have just tried 10 minutes of mounting my wheel with the GPX boots, and then did 10 mins of the same with the old boots I bought them to replace. It was chalk and cheese.

SO much easier with the old boots, which are about half the physical volume of the new ones, easier (by which I mean possible) to shift about on the plates, and getting up is a much more reliably successful process. I think I may go back to those for a while - they still have a few months life in them yet.

I can't quite work out WHY there is a such a vast difference between them. My whole pre-mount stance has to change because of the inflexibility of that boot, and I wonder if that will ever stop being as awkward as it feels now...

Edited November 14, 2022 by Cerbera

[Funky]

31 minutes ago, Paul A said:

Maybe try these. 

Much more comfortable.

 

 

My kind of a guy. I prefer regular sneakers.

[Paul A]

48 minutes ago, Cerbera said:

I wonder if that will ever stop being as awkward as it feels now...

 

Maybe wear them around the house for a few hours.

Could try inserting some gel insoles.

[Cerbera]

OK, time for another update about these. I have been loathed to sell them, simply because I like to look at them - they are a work of art, especially when clean and new and shiny  But I haven't been wearing them on the wheel - I just bought new versions of my old boots again instead, and they are working just fine. So, in summary don't spend 400 quid on MX boots - these 60 quid ones are much more suitable for EUC, being lighter, more flexible, less bulky, and easier to walk in. Oh, and unlike the GPX's they don't creak as you walk like you're in an all-in-1 rubber gimp suit.

Some much better boots for EUCing, yesterday.

But these big buggers are gonna stay, because if I can make them ridable at some point they will protect my ankles and lower legs from the worst a British Winter can dish out - perhaps I will restrict their use to the worst of snowy or icy days when the risk of falling is a bit greater and my feet need additional warming so they don't freeze on the way round the lake. As we can see the ankle protection on the lighter ones pales into insignificance next to the GPXs, which would let a tree fall on your foot without you noticing. But it is there, and I haven't damaged my ankles in the lighter ones either. More importantly, they haven't caused a fall by getting stuck on pedal studs !

Edited December 22, 2022 by Cerbera