Fizik’s Vento Powerstrap Aeroweave is the model’s lightest, most ventilated efficiency shoe. Save sporting a pair of flip flops, or going barefoot, it’s unlikely your ‘canines’ will ever really feel extra ethereal than they do when biking in a pair of those feather-lights. Which will be distinctly advantageous or downright uncomfortable, relying on the driving circumstances. Extra about that later.
In addition to being lighter than hydrogen and higher ventilated than a gazebo – I exaggerate, however solely barely – these footwear are among the many priciest in Fizik’s vary. Initially launched about 5 years in the past, Fizik lately gave the Powerstrap Aeroweave a modest reboot. The adjustments are slight; the Aeroweave material has a subtly totally different weave, and the R3 outsole, which replaces an R2 unit, now options an extra vent and is marginally lighter.
Fizik merchandise take pleasure in a characteristically minimalist aesthetic, so, true to type, the Powerstrap Aeroweave shows exceptionally clear, uninterrupted traces that move significantly properly within the dazzling white-on-white colourway reviewed right here. If that appears too boring for you, the shoe can be supplied in a few extra ‘out-there’ color choices – coral/orange and lightweight violet/neon inexperienced.
Is it price dipping a toe in? Let’s discover out.
Development
All over the place you look, there’s mesh, apart from the PU tongue.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Even the briefest look reveals how the Powerstrap Aeroweave earned its title. Its most putting options are the 2 vast Velcro ‘energy strap’ fasteners and its mesh-like woven higher. In case you hadn’t already guessed, it is a shoe designed for correctly heat circumstances. Tepid, balmy, or temperate climate received’t reduce it; to put on these, it must be sweltering, scorching, or scorching. Ideally all three.
The higher material has extra holes than a rusty sieve. It’s a really open weave, however one which’s denser in areas requiring extra assist, such because the heel cup and toe field. Within the midfoot and metatarsal areas, the place your ft are extra vulnerable to sweating, the gaps between the threads are simply a millimetre or extra throughout – you’ll be able to fairly actually see straight by means of the material.
The weave is extraordinarily open within the areas the place most airflow is required.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
After all, a loosely woven material isn’t splendid for a race shoe as a result of a stretchy higher that doesn’t securely lock the foot in place will sap watts, which is why you typically see sprinters tighten their footwear instantly earlier than they put the hammer down. Fizik’s Aeroweave could also be open, supple, and comparatively mushy to the contact, however it is usually very taut with little to no noticeable stretch. Fizik achieves this by weaving fine-gauge nylon fibres with filaments of thermoplastic polymer to create an inelastic knit.
The tongue is product of perforated polyurethane (PU), as are the heel cup liner and the modestly padded cuff. As anticipated with such a light-weight, extremely ventilated shoe, the Powerstrap Aeroweave’s inside is spartan. Each the heel space and the toebox are lined and sturdily strengthened, offering construction to an in any other case very open higher, however that’s about it.
The vast Velcro straps present infinite adjustment, however they’re difficult to lock on the transfer.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Fizik says its Powerstrap closure system does greater than merely pull the 2 sides of the higher collectively like a suture. The ahead strap, which zigzags throughout the opposing sides of the shoe, from the MTP joint (huge toe) to the rear of the midfoot, envelopes and helps the whole entrance of the foot. The marginally wider second strap travels from the higher midfoot to only ahead of the heel cup.
The R3 sole, in frequent with its R2 predecessor, is tremendous inflexible, rated 10 out of 10 on Fizik’s stiffness scale. It feels silky easy to the contact, with no seen carbon weave and minimal detailing, aside from a small Fizik emblem.
For apparent causes, bigger, longer soles are inclined to exhibit extra of an inclination to flex than petite sizes. However, there’s no method I can persuade my big measurement 48s to budge a millimetre, torsionally, laterally or vertically.
The carbon sole is tremendous inflexible and intensely mild.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Two massive vents within the metatarsal space, up from one within the R2, direct a considerable move of air to the soles of the ft, protecting them as contemporary as their dorsum counterparts. No exhaust outlet is critical as a result of the airflow readily vents by means of the mesh of the higher.
The recessed three-bolt threaded base plate is about fashionably rearward to scale back stress on the metatarsal space, calves and knees. Moreover, the plate adjusts roughly 10mm fore and aft for fine-tuning your cleat place. The only real, even within the cleat space, could be very low profile.
These should not footwear you’ll wish to spend any time strolling in, however to avoid wasting you the embarrassment of skating throughout tiled café flooring, flat white precariously in hand, Fizik has put in a token rubber heel patch and a slim toe guard/bumper.
The Trip
Two small rubber tread blocks on the heel allow some restricted strolling.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Initially, I used to be involved that the mesh higher would both be too free or too unforgiving, however I needn’t have apprehensive. It seems that stretch and malleability – the propensity for the material to adapt to my ft – are two fully unbiased qualities.
I’ve reviewed Fizik footwear previously and have at all times been impressed with their match, which tends to go well with my massive however usually proportioned ft. The Powerstrap Aeroweaves are barely narrower than my normal go-to pair of Fizik Tempo Decos Carbon footwear, however solely by a millimetre or so. I’ll fortunately go barely wider however refuse to entertain driving with something narrower, as a result of my ft are inclined to swell on longer rides.
As soon as I accepted that adjusting shoe match mid-ride isn’t going to occur, I began to fall in love with Velcro fasteners once more. No, they aren’t as handy or as immediate as Boa dials, and so they don’t look as premium. Nonetheless, they’re infinitely extra adjustable, supplied you’re taking the time to tighten them optimally earlier than you start your experience. Fizik’s implementation of the Powerstrap system actually does an incredible job of cradling and supporting the foot securely. It additionally presents a large opening, making it straightforward to place them on – with some footwear, typically the toughest a part of the experience!
Observe the pair of giant air inlets in entrance of the cleat space.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Discuss of match is, after all, a nonsense as a result of the right shoe for me could be insufferably uncomfortable for the subsequent rider, however I’ve persistently discovered that Fizik’s match is true to measurement. Actually, they’re not a slender shoe by default, which I discover many Sidi and Shimano footwear to be. Fizik presents a very good vary of footwear in a large match as properly, however sadly, the Powerstrap Aeroweave isn’t amongst them.
As anticipated, the only is tremendous stiff, which fits my choice for longer rides that require zero strolling. Not solely do stiffer footwear really feel extra responsive, however so long as my ft are evenly supported, I discover I’m much less vulnerable to hotspots with a inflexible sole. Potential heel raise, which will be a problem with footwear which have very inflexible soles, is successfully prevented by the shoe’s deep heel cup and Fizik’s distinctive silicone micro-dot grippers, which cling tenaciously to the bottom of the Achilles tendon.
They’re superbly mild to put on. Once I first tried them, after snugging down the Velcro, I keep in mind the peculiar sensation of them virtually not being there as I took a number of tentative steps to my bike. As soon as within the saddle, nevertheless, primary physics dictates that any weight saving – Fizik’s least costly shoe, the Vento Omna, solely weighs about 100g extra per pair – will lead to negligible efficiency positive factors.
The footwear are superbly mild to put on.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
To date then, thumbs up from me, I discovered these footwear close to faultless. That’s, supplied I cycled within the blinding white warmth of a sunny mid-summer’s afternoon when each different sane particular person has retreated inside, shades drawn till the cool of the night. I’m exaggerating, however these should not footwear for gentle climate, which poses an issue in temperate areas like northern Europe.
I discover that, beneath about 20°C (68°F), my ft rapidly grow to be miserably chilly as a consequence of wind chill when sporting these footwear. Mid-twenties (77°F) are tolerable, but it surely’s not till the mercury rises to a minimum of 28°C (82°F) that my ft begin to really feel, properly, regular.
So what? Even within the UK, we expertise loads of summer time days that see temperatures above 25°C (77°F). The problem is that, though most morning rides could finally peak underneath the nice and cozy noon solar, the temperature at the beginning is extra more likely to be beneath 15°C (50°F), which is simply too chilly for these footwear.
The heel, and the toebox, are strengthened so as to add construction in addition to some safety.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
As soon as as much as temperature, they work superbly. The open weave across the midfoot and the 2 gaping inlets within the sole excel at cooling the most well liked, sweatiest components of my ft. It’s not that my ft essentially really feel exceptionally snug, however quite that I merely don’t take into consideration them in any respect. The ft, and the fingers for that matter, function key regulators of core physique temperature, which is why it’s necessary to maintain them comfortable.
So, in the event you reside or ceaselessly vacation in sunnier climes, nice – whip out your bank card now. Equally, in the event you’re extra tolerant of the chilly (or much less tolerant of the warmth), they’ll make an incredible buy. However for me, they’ve restricted use throughout our variable and unpredictable summers right here within the UK.
Counter-intuitively, they’re a improbable winter shoe, not for freezing jaunts on icy tarmac however for the extra civilised pursuit of indoor coaching. As we start to progress by means of autumn, my pair of Powerstrap Aeroweave footwear has regained favour, serving to me to energy by means of FTP exams on Zwift whereas attempting to remain cool.
Worth and conclusions
They give the impression of being improbable. Extra vibrant choices can be found too.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Let’s not beat across the bush. If I had to decide on only one pair of biking footwear to put on for the remainder of my life, the Powerstrap Aeroweave could be very close to the underside of a prolonged checklist. This doesn’t make them a nasty shoe, removed from it. For extremely particular purposes – scorching climate driving or as an indoor coaching shoe – they’re onerous to beat.
Match is true to measurement, the supplies used are high price, and so they efficiently shift lots of air to precisely the place it’s wanted. They’re additionally astonishingly mild, however that’s unlikely to supply something however marginal positive factors for many of us.
It is an costly shoe, however compares properly to its rivals.
(Picture credit score: Simon Fellows)
Fizik’s footwear are premium merchandise with costs to match, but the Powerstrap Aeroweave at £334.99/$419.99 compares favourably to its rivals. Trek’s knitted RSL retails at an eye-watering £399.99/$549.99, and the extremely ventilated DMT KR0 is barely costlier within the UK however significantly dearer within the USA at £369.99/$519.99. Nonetheless, in the event you’re working inside a funds, DMT presents a broad collection of footwear with knitted uppers, together with the KR30 at £239.99/$339.99. One other discount, if you could find a pair, is the Specialised S-Works Vent, which is presently £200 within the UK however solely out there in restricted sizes on Specialised’s retailer web site.
If the idea of the Powerstrap Aeroweave appeals to you however the execution is simply too drafty, it’s price contemplating Fizik’s newest street shoe, the Vega Carbon. It encompasses a barely wider match, a decrease drop peak, and is well-ventilated on the forefoot however extra enclosed elsewhere.
In a nutshell, the Vento Powerstrap Aeroweave is unquestionably price contemplating, however provided that the solar’s shining or your indoor coach is fired up and able to go.
Specs
Whereas the revised Powerstrap Aeroweave is accessible in a variety of sizes and three colourways, the unique model can be nonetheless in inventory on Fizik’s web site in black and darkish blue. The worth is identical.
- Worth: £334.99/$419.99
- Sizes: 36 to 48, together with half sizes from 37.5 to 46.5
- Colors: White – White, Gentle Violet-Neon Inexperienced, Coral-Orange
- Higher: Nylon/Thermoplastic
- Sole: Carbon fibre. Stiffness rated 10/10 on Fizik’s scale.
