Lake Cycling Shoes

This cycling shoe is from a small but select group that allow a degree of customisation, by allowing you to mould the carbon sole to the shape of your foot. This of course puts it firmly into the top performance and price bracket for road racing and it's not surprising to find that it has been used by top-class sprinters and stage racers.

The Lake CX 401 has been designed fundamentally from a technological point of view rather than to look pretty. They use kangaroo leather with an Outlast fabric to help move swept away from your feet and the material itself is also soft, supple and comfortable. They come equipped with a BOA closure system which allows you to tighten the shoe evenly all the way along your foot and also to adjust while riding.

They are available in both standard and wide fit versions, in Euro half sizes and weigh around 644g for a pair making them as light as you need for competitive racing.

Sorting out the mouldable carbon sole isn't a difficult process, given a bit of time and patience. Basically you warm it up in your oven for a few minutes and then press the carbon into the right position with your foot inside the shoe. This is likely to take a few attempts to get it right, but the final result gives you a foot hugging shoe which helps greatly to avoid any sore spots during your cycling, as the pressure is distributed more evenly than with a standard shoe fitting.

Reviews of the Lake CX 401 indicate that all the design technology incorporated in this shoe has paid off and it is indeed a highly rated performance cycling shoe.

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This is a popular shoe for mountain bikers and general cycling, particularly because of its wide range of sizes making it easy to fit all sorts of foot shapes. There is plenty of ventilation through mesh panels on the upper part of the shoe which makes it ideal for summer cycling, but somewhat cold in the winter.

They are a very flexible shoe which is ideal if you are mixing walking and cycling, but can be slightly frustrating if you are starting to push hard on any rides.

Reviews of the Lake MX 101 consistently mention its durability, comfort and versatility over all sorts of cycling activities, except competitive racing where a more specialist design is required.

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This is a mid priced Road shoe, particularly suitable for long rides and sportives on account of its high level of comfort. This is partly due to the BOA lacing system used by Lake, which works over the entire shoe to hold your foot into the heel cup as well as tensioning the top of the shoe. The system also makes it very easy to remove the shoe rapidly just by using the dial.

They use a carbon fibre sole which gives good rigidity and power transfer, combined with a leather and mesh upper hand and injection moulded heel counter. There is a three hole cleat pattern that you can use without adapters.

Reviews of the Lake CX236C give this shoe consistently high ratings, particularly mentioning the combination of stiffness, comfort and ease of use.

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