Shimano MW81 cycling shoes review

As mentioned a week or so ago, the Lake MXZ302 winter cycling shoes, err boots, have earned a place in my closet for 4 years now and have been excellent in terms of warmth and durability.

I’ve recently purchased a set of Shimano MW81’s to supplement the cycling footware quiver however.  As noted above, the Lakes are really more of a boot than a shoe - true winter boots, warm and sturdy.  The Shimano’s are often labelled as a winter shoe, but I’d suggest that one looks at where they live first and judge what “winter” really is for a given locale.  For Calgary, I’d call the Shimano’s a shoulder season shoe – spring and fall – more than a “winter” shoe.  It’s a true shoe rather than a boot, fits more like a racing shoe, and, commensurate with overall size and insulation content, is a full 250g lighter PER SHOE than the Lakes!  Off season riding isn’t about speed maximization, but taking a pound of weight off the reciprocating mass of one’s feet sure feels nice.

This is qualified so far by only owning them for one weekend, so a long term review this is not.  Having said that, the weekend comprised 211km of riding Saturday and 4h of local pathway stuff Sunday.  On the big Saturday ride the only thoughts I had all day relating to feet were “I’m comfortable and my feet feel good”.  Temperatures ranged from 0C at the start to perhaps +10C during the warmer parts of the day.  It was cooler again as the ride came to an end.  Feet were warm, but not roasting.  The shoes seem to breathe enough to keep foot perspiration from getting the shoe too damp.  No hotspots under the balls of my feet.  The Velcro provides comfortable, distributed pressure on closure.  In and around the city, their lack of weight, racing style fit, and more trim profile felt great for coffee shop entry and exit.  Just a one day true endurance test so far… but at least supported by years of cooler weather riding.

They’re tighter to slip on than the Lake boots.  I’m not betting against Shimano quality, but pulling them on with the heel strap and overlapping neoprene doesn’t feel like it’d last 4 years of daily wear without starting to pull some seams.  Time will tell.  I’m sure these would work on duty below 0C, but perhaps not too much colder.  They seem like an ideal -4 to +12 shoe if I had to guess, then above that just a summer mountain or road shoe would suffice.