First Look: Shimano M225 shoes
Farewell my beloved Sidi Dominators.
It has been a 14 year love affair that is about to come to a close. My first pair of bright blue and neon yellow Dominator 2's (which lasted 5 seasons) stayed on a few more years in my closet, even though they were worthless and covered in duct tape. They served me so well from the day I ditched toe clips back in the mid-1990's, that I could not bare to throw them out. They even moved from one closet to another as I moved homes, but finally found the bottom of a waste basket on the 2nd of such moves a few years back.
The latest pair of Sidi Dominator's I owned were ridden hard for 1 season but I had no idea how much power my beat-up soles were giving up until I tried on a new pair last week. Mine were just plain 'ol worked over. I can't see spending $229 (MSRP) each season for new shoes, so I've opted to try a new shoe, the Shimano M225 which is $169 (MSRP).
The silver shoes, garish compared to the black Sidis, feature 2 wide velcro straps for the forefoot wih a ratchet-style buckle and strap across the top of the foot. All 3 straps feel comfortable and most importantly, feel like they do a good job of working independently. Too many shoes on the market offer mulitple straps that when cinched tighter, create slack in the other straps... which leaves me to wonder, what is the point of having so many then?
My first thought was that no mesh/synthetic shoe will fit as well as the Lorica (synthetic leather) Sidi uses. I would size down a 1/2 size with Sidis to allow for stretch and the glove-like fit I grew so familiar with. The M225 seems to have a slightly higher volume toe box than the Dominators, which works well with my flat feet that over-pronate. The heel too feels wide, a problem for me since I have a narrow heel, but I've opted to remove the stock shoe liners (which come impregnated with a minty-fresh smell, nice for those with swampfootitis, or a different unsightly foot ailement. Wash 'yo feet heathen!) from day-1, and use custom molded Sole Ultra insoles. The insoles are thicker than stock, so the overall shoe volume is decreased. I'm also testing a pair of SuperFeet insoles (green) this week to see what feels better. The former offers a more comfortable feel, but the later grants more positive support. Either way, both have iron-clad return policies so I can return whichever one I like less for a full refund. At $30-$40 a pair, these insoles allow me to get a cheap alternative to fully custom orthotics at 1/8th the price and I can trash these in the mud without a 2nd thought.
For the M225, Shimano uses an incredibly stiff carbon-reinforced sole that is almost too stiff for my liking. I know the benifits of this type of sole, but the downside is that it severely mutes the tactile feedback from my pedals... which made the first few clip-ins "blind" and very clumsy. During my first ride with them today I missed pedals a few times, which is a few times too many. The shoes are being used with a pair of Crank Bros. Eggbeater SL pedals, and I think the cleats will need to have 1 shim added to allow for smoother dis/engagement. That gripe aside, holy power-transfer batman! Soles plus the, uhm, Sole [in]soles (3 is the magic number) have created an amazing bike-body interface. I need to ride on these longer to see in my initial impressions fade with break-in.
It has been a 14 year love affair that is about to come to a close. My first pair of bright blue and neon yellow Dominator 2's (which lasted 5 seasons) stayed on a few more years in my closet, even though they were worthless and covered in duct tape. They served me so well from the day I ditched toe clips back in the mid-1990's, that I could not bare to throw them out. They even moved from one closet to another as I moved homes, but finally found the bottom of a waste basket on the 2nd of such moves a few years back.
The latest pair of Sidi Dominator's I owned were ridden hard for 1 season but I had no idea how much power my beat-up soles were giving up until I tried on a new pair last week. Mine were just plain 'ol worked over. I can't see spending $229 (MSRP) each season for new shoes, so I've opted to try a new shoe, the Shimano M225 which is $169 (MSRP).
The silver shoes, garish compared to the black Sidis, feature 2 wide velcro straps for the forefoot wih a ratchet-style buckle and strap across the top of the foot. All 3 straps feel comfortable and most importantly, feel like they do a good job of working independently. Too many shoes on the market offer mulitple straps that when cinched tighter, create slack in the other straps... which leaves me to wonder, what is the point of having so many then?
My first thought was that no mesh/synthetic shoe will fit as well as the Lorica (synthetic leather) Sidi uses. I would size down a 1/2 size with Sidis to allow for stretch and the glove-like fit I grew so familiar with. The M225 seems to have a slightly higher volume toe box than the Dominators, which works well with my flat feet that over-pronate. The heel too feels wide, a problem for me since I have a narrow heel, but I've opted to remove the stock shoe liners (which come impregnated with a minty-fresh smell, nice for those with swampfootitis, or a different unsightly foot ailement. Wash 'yo feet heathen!) from day-1, and use custom molded Sole Ultra insoles. The insoles are thicker than stock, so the overall shoe volume is decreased. I'm also testing a pair of SuperFeet insoles (green) this week to see what feels better. The former offers a more comfortable feel, but the later grants more positive support. Either way, both have iron-clad return policies so I can return whichever one I like less for a full refund. At $30-$40 a pair, these insoles allow me to get a cheap alternative to fully custom orthotics at 1/8th the price and I can trash these in the mud without a 2nd thought.
For the M225, Shimano uses an incredibly stiff carbon-reinforced sole that is almost too stiff for my liking. I know the benifits of this type of sole, but the downside is that it severely mutes the tactile feedback from my pedals... which made the first few clip-ins "blind" and very clumsy. During my first ride with them today I missed pedals a few times, which is a few times too many. The shoes are being used with a pair of Crank Bros. Eggbeater SL pedals, and I think the cleats will need to have 1 shim added to allow for smoother dis/engagement. That gripe aside, holy power-transfer batman! Soles plus the, uhm, Sole [in]soles (3 is the magic number) have created an amazing bike-body interface. I need to ride on these longer to see in my initial impressions fade with break-in.
posted by BubbRubb at
1/16/2006 04:53:00 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home