Feeling the rush of the excited crowds I wondered into the shoe and pedal side of the TIME booth for a first-hand peek at the new iCLIC pedals I had been hearing about. I wasn’t expecting a to run into a pro team mechanical manager, but that’s what I got. Straight from the drenched countryside of Northern France was Time’s Product Manager, Dominique Faure. His strong French accent made me sure of two things, I wasn’t about to beat him in a 200M sprint or in a fight for the ladies.  But that’s the magic of Interbike and I didn’t hold the language barrier between us to keep us from coming together as cyclists at heart. I came for the pedals but stayed for the conversation no matter how muddy it got.

THERMO MOLDING: INNOVATIVE RACING CONCEPTS

Dominique started by giving me a tour of Time’s pedals and the customizable shoes he’s been putting through the ringer for over a year just to get them ready for weekend warriors.  Most of the lessons he’s learned arrived from his personal experiences in the field supporting young-professional French racers on the Bbox Bouygues Telecom development team Vendée U.

Vendée U probably stands for Vendée University, as a place for the new crop of France’s next generation of racers to be cultivated in the Vendée region.  Northern France is known for having extremely wet and windy Spring seasons and the racing is notoriously uncomfortable. It doesn’t matter how fast you are the cold wind is going to make your ride miserable. That kind of Spring weather is something known to American Pro Tour racers as “getting Franced on” when referring to riding on an incredibly cold, windy and wet weather. The kind of day so wretched that staying inside on a set of rollers might actually seem attractive.

Dominique recalled one dreadful, wicked day when some of the young bucks on Vendée U came back after a harsh flooded ride and instinctively put their soaked Time shoes on top of the clothes dryer to dry them out and warm them up. Not long after their shoes had dried, the unattended kicks lost their custom fitting due to the extended exposure to the dryer’s heat. The racers called Dominique fearing the worst, that their premium shoes were probably ruined and worthless. But unlike some shoes that require a specific temperature process to mold from Dominique instructed the racers to refit the shoes themselves as they were without the need of driving into a big city bike shop.

To custom fit a pair of 2010 Time cycling shoes it doesn’t take a big production. The Time ULTEAM RS CARBON shoes have a THERMO SHAPE membrane (or TS SYSTEM) inside the upper. All you need is a hairdryer and four minutes to bring the shoes up to temperature and ready for fitting.

Hold a hairdryer at 45 degrees and 15cm from the entrance of the shoe for four minutes and then put the shoe on while wearing a pair of cycling socks. Then sit on a bike held by a rear-wheel trainer and clip in. Don’t pedal, just sit normally and patiently let the shoes cool. This idle position is beneficial because as Dominique notes, “your foot on a bike is not the same as it is walking or standing.”

After the shoe cools, the TS System has retained the shape of your foot and custom molding is complete. As for the racers Vendée U found out, these new Time shoes can be remolded and fitted repeatedly over and over. Dominique told me he molded his own pair every day for over a year while the Ulteam RS Carbon was in its developing process, “I’ve molded my own shoes well over 200 times,” he said.

And in case you forget, each pair of shoes comes with a nice instructional card inside each box. This can also be passed along with the shoes if you ever sell them or give them away giving new meaning to customization. “With the TS System you can feel the difference instantly,” Dominique added.

The TS membrane also helps with problem feet. The shoes don’t come in different widths yet, but the membrane is able to conform to almost any problem. Dominique told me one story of how he helped a racer finish an important stage race. The rider had fallen and had a severe foot injury that made pedaling very difficult and painful. Dominique went to work and after some bandage adjustments with foam and gauze he remolded his shoe using the same process allowing him to ride and finish the race for team Vendée U. Then as the rider’s foot healed they molded the shoes as the swollen foot went back down to its normal health and size.

Dominique has also learned a thing or two from triathletes like Cedric Fleureton. The lessons he has learned might help any racer ride survive a difficult effort when equipment not only needs to not just be working but performing outright.

Take for instance the external toe box on Time’s New ULTEAM TRI CARBON. Dominique noted how Cedric Fleureton once came out of the water only seconds behind the leaders and needed to keep his pace to stay in reach with them. Cedric’s weakest leg is on the bike and after he had a poor transition he couldn’t quite take the time to get his foot in his shoe. The only thing he could think about was pedaling so he rode with his foot on top of his shoe and kept his foot out for the first 10km. Because his Time shoe has a hard external toe box Cedric’s powerful legs didn’t crush the toe completely and when he had a chance he was able to slip his foot inside without being dropped or losing any time.

Listening to Dominique made me feel like I had been there myself and it was reassuring to know that most of the developments came directly from the frontlines of a pro team racing on the rainy roads of France by a product developer who has seen what it means to be race ready.

There is more to tell about Time’s shoes and pedal systems. Stay tuned and we’ll bring you more details from Time’s Interbike booth in part two of my discussion with Dominique.

Time Ulteam shoe sizes: 36 to 47 (half-sizes 40.5 to 45.5)

colors: Shiny White and Red (red sizes 39 to 47 and half sizes)

weight (size 42): 658 grams

[View with PicLens]

Even though Sidi premiered the Ergo 2 in 2007 its update for 2009 is still the most comprehensive performer on the market today.

When Shimano introduced its fully customizable top of the line SH-R300, the Italians at Sidi didn’t seem to care because 2009’s version of the Sidi Ergo 2 almost identical to the version debuted in 2007.

Most riders all over the world feel the same way – even the Pro’s tend to use Sidi’s more than all other shoes combined. And as testament to it’s quality Sidi is the most popular selling shoemaker in the United States despite its price tag.

Fit

I’ve had my personal pair of Ergo 2’s for two years. When I first tried them on I thought they were nice, but I actually didn’t think they were as special as most people proclaimed. However, I got more excited about them while I was on the bike – for me they make riding more fun.

Even two years down the road I love climbing in them, my heel doesn’t lift out and they are so stiff I feel like the carbon sole engages into the pedals. Sometimes I feel like my feet are on autopilot and hard to believe that I have thousands of miles on them.  When I’m wearing them I feel like I could ride all day, even though I’m an out of shape couch potato.

I think my perceptions of the shoes come from the craftsmanship and construction that I want to highlight next.

The only complaint in the general peloton is the assumption that a Sidi’s fit too narrow for many riders. But in fact, Sidi makes a wide range of sizes including three different widths up to EE for larger feet.

Construction

The heart and soul of the shoe comes from the carbon sole and a Lorica upper.

The top of the shoe is not leather, but a microfiber material fabricated by DuPont. Lorica doesn’t come from cows, but it’s softer than leather, won’t stretch like leather, hold odor like leather or hold water like leather. Using this material creates a stiff, comfortable, long lasting, breathable and very durable shoe.

You can see true craftsmanship from the hole drillings for the cleats. The patented full carbon sole is thinner at the toe than at the heel allowing for minimum stack height at the pedal and maximum stiffness without discomfort.  But the carbon is reinforced around the cleat area stabilizing it against the added stresses of pedaling. The stiffness of the carbon sole is also dampened by a thin layer of cork between the carbon sole and the insole acting as a thin shock absorber using natural material. This interior keeps your blood circulation undeterred to prevent hot spots during longer rides.

While there is a lot of mesh for ventilation allover this shoe, there are also two vents in the hard outer heel cup shell. This kind of venting in the heel is uncommon but very welcome.  The heel cup also sports two reflectors in the base and two more on each side above the HCS, something other performance shoes sometimes overlook despite their necessity.

Enclosure and Tunability Features

At the top of the heel Sidi developed an adjustable heel cup system (the HCS) that wraps around the Achilles tendon keeping the heel from moving around and lifting. The “HCS” can be adjusted to suit any rider by turning the screws on the rear of the shoe to keep the heel stable even while sprinting.

Like the brakes on your bike you can adjust this more on one side or another to help customize it to your foot. This type of adjustable heel cup is a rare feature, one that is unlikely to be found on any other shoe. No more need for duct tape.

Furthering the snug fit are Sidi’s famous Techno II buckles, and the firm SL ratcheting buckle. The main strap can be tightened with a simple tug on the inside SL lever. This is lockdown is far more resistant to clogging with mud and dirt than some buckles on the market.

The release is on the sides of the buckle away from the tightening mechanism so it isn’t confusing between the two. The benefit of the release is how you can loosen the strap tension in very short increments to dial in the fit – an upgrade requested by Gilberto Simoni.

The Techno II buckle is an iconic mechanism that has made Sidi an unmistakable sight. Near the toe of the shoe a line retention system wraps the shoe around your foot volume. It was also designed to relieve pressure points working in tandem with the thin padded tongue creating a “custom fit” every time you put on the shoe. To adjust the Techno II buckle you flip up and twist the circular wheel.

My one and only problem with these shoes is how the Techno II buckle can fall apart and disappear on you. The fastening rod that so elegantly makes the line system so light and highly adjustable can also slide off and cause you to loose the buckle if left unchecked.

On one of my first rides I noticed the rod slipping but couldn’t fix it until the next regroup and when I looked down it had already come apart leaving the pieces on the roadside somewhere behind my group. And as bike shops go, they did not have these small parts on hand. I had to order them but was saved because Sidi’s are rebuildable in this manner.

A nice touch is added to the Velcro strap at the toe. Inside is an indexed strip of teeth that once snug won’t shift or slip making it more secure than any other.

Colors

For 2009 Sidi Ergo 2’s are more polished with a Vernice finish. They come in black, white and red.

But you might be able to still find some of the fancy steel-lux from 2008 on sale.

Sidi is always coming out with limited editions of this shoe for a little more bling.

Serviceability

Like all other Sidi shoes, just about every enclosure piece is replaceable and rebuildable. The Techno II buckle, the SL strap, the heel cup and the heel on the bottom of the shoe can all be replaced. Now many shoe companies build their shoes to be maintained like this, but Sidi was a pioneer in this level of durability and shoes that were serviceable.

The option to refurbish shoes like this will allow you to enjoy these shoes for a very long time. It is not out of reach to imagine using these shoes for even ten years with good care.

Verdict

While custom builds and sizing is loudest buzzword at the bike shops, Sidi offers convention and provides the most ultimate riding experience you can find.

Sizes: 39-48 (half sizes 39.5 – 46.5)
Weight: 642 g
Price: $499 (2008′s might be on clearance online)

At $170 the Shimano SH-R132L may not seem like a bargain but it actually is the least expensive race shoe that includes a micro-adjusting buckle on the upper strap.

And the R132 also comes with a full carbon sole – something not found on any other road shoe for less than $200 that’s for sure.

The only reason upgrade from here is the heat moldable custom fitting available in the higher models. Still it’s nice that Shimano offers three more racing shoes to help find one for your budget.

But at this expert-level the SH-R132L’s are all about the ratchet closure and carbon sole keeping them from being a slouch in the performance market. That combined with Shimano’s consistency for stability, rigidity and lightweight make them a remarkable choice.

Sizes:  36 to 48 in whole sizes
Weight:  564 grams per pair
Price:  $170