First Impressions

Ah, the Guide Tennie from 510 or 5.10 or FiveTen. Or with the Adidas acquisition, is it Five Ten (with the space between the two words)? And wait a minute, is Adidas with a capital or lower case “a”? Heck, I don’t know how the company wants their name shown in print these days. What I do know is the company — still based in Redlands California — continues to crank out innovative mountain biking, rock climbing and hiking shoes incorporating proprietary rubber compounds optimized for sport. The Guide Tennie remains a stalwart of the line with some minor refreshes this year. Ours arrived at GearGuide HQ in a black/asphalt color combo from one of our favorite retailers Campsaver a while back. They also carry colors like caribbean sea (blue), interlude (red) and california sun (golden).

Features

GearGuide originally took a look at the Guide Tennie back in 2013. We tried the womens version and liked it a lot. So much so that it made our Best of 2013 list in the approach shoe category.

How has it changed? Not radically. The Guide Tennie has had a good thing going for a while now and nothing really needs massive tweaking.

The upper is a nubuck leather with contrasting criss-cross stitching that provides the Guide Tennie with its signature look and aids in durability. The collar is synthetic and provides a very wide opening for getting your foot in the shoe. Five Ten engineered a nice deep heel notch and padded that area nicely for comfort. The company also provides a rear pull tab to help you slide your foot up inside the shoe.

The lacing system includes seven grommets per side that go all the way to above the toes. The system cinches well and allows for a very customized fit. The laces are a bit of a disappointment however. Five Ten switched this season to a thin paracord style lace. It feels almost like a waxed cotton when new with a very slick finish. Initially, these laces don’t hold knots well and often come undone. Not ideal when scrambling and hiking. They do wear in after a while but I’d still like to see a thicker lace.

Specs
Weight: 32.75 oz. per pair (men’s 11)
Upper: Nubuck leather upper
Outsole: Stealth C4 outsole

Underfoot is where Five Ten applies their own technology. The company’s Stealth Rubber and dot-patterned outsole grip and smear very well on almost any surface. The rubber wraps the toe for more protection and getting vertical.

Around back of the Guide Tennie, Five Ten hits the shoe with a heavy weight heel counter for additional stability and protection.

Fit

The Guide Tennie fits very true to size. I normally wear a size 11 athletic shoe and the Guide Tennie in mens size 11 fit me quite nicely. The toe section is a touch narrow but nothing to be concerned about. The shoe feels very light weight and comfortable. However, the collar and heel are quite wide and cannot be adjusted much. I found the heel didn’t provide enough hold-down for my taste and would like to see that much tighter.

Final Verdict

We heard tell that some people are having issues with the Guide Tennie’s reliability. At GearGuide, we experienced no issues. The pair we tested back in 2013 also held up well. In other words, we have no issues recommending the Guide Tennie. The shoe has great grip and the fit — although it could use some tweaking — still works in the vast majority of situations.

Thanks for reading another outdoor gear review from GearGuide.