Fizik Vento Powerstrap Aeroweave

The Fizik Vento Powerstrap Aeroweave is a lightweight, ultra-breathable road shoe with an incredibly stiff carbon fibre sole – everything the racer wants for those hard rides on very hot days. The airflow on offer is excellent, as is the comfort from the woven, durable upper, but they do make you realise why Velcro straps are no longer the go-to option for foot retention. And as for the price... just, wow!

For more options, including cheaper ones if £300+ is beyond your limit, check out our guide to the best road cycling shoes.

The Vento Powerstrap Aeroweave shoes are, for our country's climate anyway, rather a niche option. We've probably got three months of the year where the airflow on offer here is of benefit. But if you have the cash...

The design of the upper material, a woven blend of nylon fibres with filaments of thermoplastic polymers, means it is basically a mesh panel that allows loads of air to pass through all around your feet, keeping things feeling fresh and dry, especially if you are wearing some high-quality cycling-specific socks.

The material also has a decent amount of flex and give, so comfort is good, and as your feet can swell in the heat the upper can absorb this without them feeling tight.

As you can see from the pictures, these use Velcro straps for retention, which has obviously been done for weight saving, but if like me you are used to wearing shoes that use systems like a BOA dial, you can feel how the Velcro straps don't spread the pressure as equally, and you lose the micro-adjustment in tension.

The bottom strap on each shoe does criss-cross its way from the bottom towards the top, so any pressure points are kept to a minimum. I never had any full-on hot spots when wearing them, but I do prefer the more uniform spread of pressure from cable systems.

The rest of the upper is very comfortable. As I said, your foot is allowed some movement, but the toe box and heel use a closer weave, which makes it strong and more rigid. These keep your foot in position when really getting the power down and look to be resilient from scuffs from the ground or the front tyre.

Inside you have a relatively thin insole which I like, as it doesn't mute feedback from the pedals, and a bit of padding around the heel. There is also a grippy material that keeps your heel in position on the upstroke.

The tongue is thin, so no bulk to cause any pressure points, but it does have just enough padding to minimise the pressure from the straps on your instep.

Virtually all shoe brands provide a stiffness index rating, but as there is no single standard for this it's kind of irrelevant. That doesn't stop Fizik rating these as a 10. Basically, the carbon fibre R3 outsole is bloody stiff! In fact these are some of the stiffest shoes I have worn, with absolutely zero flex along the sole.

If you aren't used to shoes like this, coming from a nylon/carbon mix, for instance, you might get some hot-spots on the bottom of your feet when riding hard, though it should pass as you use them more.

I found their shape ideal, with an arch that's supportive without being too extreme. Fizik doesn't include any different insoles with the shoes should you need a higher instep, though.

The sole is compatible with any pedal cleat which uses a three-bolt design, like Shimano SPD-SL, Look Keo/Delta and so on, and you get markings for positioning.

Bumpers protect the front and the rear of the sole.

Size-wise, the Powerstraps tally with the guide on Fizik's site. I'm a UK 10 which, depending on the brand, corelates to a EUR 44 to 45. These are a 45 which Fizik says is a UK 10.5 and I have a bit of room to spare in the toe box; I could probably go down to the 44.5/UK10 without issue.

Weight & value

The Powerstraps are light at 470g, even compared with other knitted shoes at the same sort of price: the DMT KR SLs are £369.99 and weigh 492g (size 45). I really loved their soft upper and super-stiff sole. They use laces, though, as opposed to Velcro straps.

Trek's RSL Knit shoes are a lot more expensive at £399.99, are heavier at 557g (size 46) and aren't that easy to get on according to Jez. He was impressed with their foot retention, though, and their comfort.

If you want some knitted shoes for warm conditions but don't want to go dishing out more than 300 quid, FLR offers the F-XX Knit for £199.99. They weigh 482g per pair.

Conclusion

Though the Vento Powerstrap Aeroweaves are a lot of money (if not as much as some), they're very comfortable, and you can't argue with the performance on offer. The cooling effect from the design is very impressive too, so if you do a lot of riding in a hot climate then the benefits might justify the outlay.

Verdict

The combination of super-stiff sole and soft, breathable upper creates a high-performance hot-weather shoe