As far as I’m concerned, GORE’s Xenon socks are the socks for summer. Though they’re barely even mentioned on the company’s website, the $18 socks go a long way toward keeping my feet happy- and if my feet aren’t happy, I’m not happy.
The high-end Xenons are made of a lightweight synthetic interwoven (X-Static style) with funk-fighting silver threads. 
A bit of padding under the ball of the foot seems to help keep hotspots away while looking cool and the 1.5in cuff height keeps twigs or dirt from dropping down that channel formed between the my bony ankle and Achilles’s tendon. The side-specific knit helps to minimize bunching around the little toes and lets you know that these are nice socks.
The Xenons are available in 3-packs, which seem to be readily available for less than MSRP. Due to near-constant on- and off-road use, my pair are showing a bit of pilling around the logo but are otherwise in good shape. If it’s going to be rainy, I tend to stick with wool, but for any other long rides in warm weather, these are the socks to beat. If and when they wear out, I won’t think twice about buying another pair.
marc
