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Iāll have to keep this in mind if anything happens to my RX8s, they look amazing.
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Iām sold on bothā¦ While I donāt love the color ways of the ADV, I bet theyāre great for their intended use.
I went all in on Specialized shoes last year after 8 years in Giroās and Iām really happy with the move. The Torch are my favorite, and the new Recon is just a Torch with some lugsā¦ Perfect!!!
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These are nice. Look like a good gravelfocused shoe butā¦$450. Lol. I know everyone has different thoughts on whatās worth it but I just canāt see a tangible benefit to spending that kind of money on a shoe. Especially a white one that will look like crap after an actual season of gravel.
Those green and brown ones look 
though.
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I clicked on their instagram link - $600, then I realized that was Canadianaian. Theyāre only $450 hereā¦ for shoes, that clearly donāt cost $280 more than their Recon 3, which are usually available for $170. Also, the last model looked a LOT better than the new one and the special colors arenāt desirable.
Their only saving grace is that the competition is dropping the ball on the CX/XC/Gravel shoes. No toe flex, boring looking, or bad color schemes.
They look really good, but I got the RX8s recently as well, and I am really happy with them. Super light, stiff, and fit me well (with Spesh insoles).
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Agreed. They look amazing but if I buy them it will have to be once theyāve been out a while and show up with a hefty discount on Black Friday or something.
Iām also way too happy with my RX8s to spend money trying something else just now (actually went and bought my next set of RX8s on clearance when the model was updated recently in case the fit changes donāt suit me)
Not sure if this is a UK-only colourway since I donāt actually see the white ones available on our Spesh site, but the cactus orange/purple looks fun and bold for a āstatementā shoe!
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+1 While I could be wrong, itās hard to swallow an extra $200+ from RX-8 to these. That said until one rides really great shoes, the prices look crazy. Now about those Bont customsā¦
Hah Iām other way round. My backup RX8 insoles are in my SW7 road shoes!
Unfortunately the lack of toe spikes is a hard no for me. I get they want to make them light but thatās a must have.
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Yes I expect there must be a further XC release incoming. If not for MTB season then maybe come autumn for CX?
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The insoles of the RX8 were surprisingly good (which is a shame, that 300 to 500 dollar shoes usually come with that sh*tty of insoles, that you need to buy $15 insoles, which are always a huge upgrade). I just put the Spesh, because I have them in everyone of my shoes and like how they all feel the exact same.
I have the Spesh insoles in all my shoes as well to keep the feel the same.
I hear you there - itās a shame Shimano wonāt sell those RX8 insoles aftermarket (I think the same ones come in the S-Phyre shoes too but Iāve only ever tried them on, not owned a pair). Theyāre incredibly effective for how simple they are. Giro sell something similar aftermarket but theyāre not quite the same. Spesh again offer a great fitting product but itās a wee bit different too.
It definitely seems like the curse of using shoes this stiff is that our feet make pretty strong adaptations to whatever little shape irregularities are in an insole. My SW7 shoes objectively fit me really well, but after all the hundreds of hours Iād done in RX8s I ended up going through a succession of different insoles to get the SW7s to feel right. Even with RX8 insoles theyāre still just different enough that I sometimes cramp on the outside of my right foot. Have even tried a valgus wedge to undo the inbuilt varus. Got into it with the bike fitter and he reached a similar conclusion. Gave me some PT āfoot strengtheningā exercises to try but Iām ashamed to say Iāve never done them 
In an attempt to come vaguely back on topic: I guess thatās one of the things thatās exciting to me about the Recon SLs - a more direct competitor to the RX8 than the previous Recons means I could potentially get myself all locked into a single brand after a while. (That or I switch to RC902s on road 
)
$450 is certainly a hefty price tag, and it was a tough pill to swallow, especially seeing as I then was selling my backup NIB Giro Empires for $150ā¦ But with that said, Iād rather have a $450 pair of shoes, and a crappy pair of aluminum shallow wheels versus some $100 shoes and $1000 carbon wheels. Theyāre often overlooked, but a good fitting shoe/insole/pedal setup is more important than any aero frame or deep wheels.
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The whole varus wedge may be sending me away from Specialized for good. I have used their shoes for 2 years, but have been dealing with knee pain on and off that entire time. After trying many different things, I think this built in āfeatureā may be doing me in. A shame because i would be snagging these shoes for sure
Has anybody been riding these for a while? How have you been liking them?
Specialized is one of the few places that make a 49 ( 
) and Iāve been feeling a little cramped during hot rides in my current shoes. Iām a medium width in every non-cycling shoe though. Seems like a bit of extra room with the new last might be the trick.
I could justify the cost if theyāre the right shoes I guess.
Thanks!!
Why no toe spikes!?
Iām guessing these are marketed more as gravel/XC than cross?
Do you really want to get $425 white shoes dirty? 
Iāll follow upā¦ Iāve been running a pair of the S-Works Recon SL for a while now, and love them. Prior to these, I was riding road pedals on my Crux, so that I could use some SW7 shoes or my Torchās. These are as good as any road shoe as far as comfort, and they interact really nicely with my XTR pedals. It makes for a stable and solid platform, much more than Iāve ever encountered on a MTB pedals/shoe system.
And for what its worth, I only run white shoes, cause #proā¦ I race ultras/bikepacking stuff, and have a pair of the Recon Laceās in white that Iāve put over 1,000 miles on, including a 5 mile hike a bike through mud and snow on the two most recent ones, and multiple times during and after each event, I get questions about how my shoes are still so whiteā¦ Specializedās materials are pretty bomber and clean up really nicely.
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