![]() But unlike cycling shoes or ski boots, you shouldn’t expect to get three to five years out of this shoe. The company says the Speedland SL:PDX is more like a piece of equipment rather than just a shoe. ![]() If the price is double an average trail running shoe, it’s not a reflection of getting twice the miles out of the outsole. But in reality, the price perhaps reflects the lack of economy of scale - the company says only 1,200 pairs were made - and the use of some obscure components. This fantasy may have been driven by the price tag. I imagined someone sitting in a comfortable chair, working the last by hand, moving to a high powered sewing machine to apply the Dyneema moccasin stitch to attach the upper to the outsole, going over to reams of fabric, selecting a large piece to cut out anatomically specific instep overlays, then threading the Dyneema TX4 textile lace, before finally gluing down the dials. Similar to La Sportiva’s longtime small-factory, made-in-the-Italian-mountains ethic, Speedland’s debut shoe actually struck me as being hand-assembled and sewn with a collection of components by a human, instead of with only machinery or assembly lines. Why use a single dial when you could have two? The dual dials of the BOA Li2 Fit System make the SL:PDX’s upper one of the most remarkable I’ve ever used. The SL:PDX took the Cyklon’s technology and elevated it to a much higher and more successful level. ![]() When La Sportiva introduced the Cyklon in collaboration with BOA to try and create a “super shoe” for trail running, I admired the product and reviewed the La Sportiva Cyklon favorably. The Speedland SL:PDX ($375) is an impressive shoe with some first-of-their-kind components.
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