I’ve always had a lot of time for Sidi. When all around were losing their heads chasing sub-200g shoes and coining terms like ‘toe-box’, Sidi steadfastly stuck to making the sort of shoes that would outlive a titanium cockroach. Testament to this is the plethora of spare parts it has always offered, the kind of inventory that has helped keep my ancient pair of Sidi road shoes going for nearly a decade, from new insoles and heel pads to a recent cord replacement for all the dials.
However, these days merely being a dependable performer isn’t enough. We’re in the age of the £400 shoe, and the consumer expects more fandangos. And Sidi, well, it clearly felt it needed to move with the changes. Cue last year’s overhaul of its entire range, right down to a futuristic new logo. It even succumbed to the arbitrary stiffness index phenomenon, because look here, these Aeron gravel shoes go up to 11. That’s one louder.
Sidi Aeron design
Joseph Branston
The Aerons are described by Sidi as ‘redefining XC performance’ and when I quizzed Marcello Muratore, Sidi’s merchandising manager, about what that might mean, the reply came, ‘The shoe is designed primarily for intense activities that require high performance,’ which I think translates to these shoes are made for racing off-road.
I think that because, despite the replaceable front studs and generous rubber tread – which commendably runs under the instep to protect the sole from gravelly car parks – the Aerons are redoubtably stiff, meaning they’re not very good for walking in, which feels like a common aspect of gravel. How else do you get to the bar?
Joseph Branston
They also feature ripstop uppers, which Muratore says are for breathability as much as light weight, which all points towards the Aerons being best suited to fast, good weather off-roading. Not the shoes you’d want to see you through a muddy, hike-a-bike British winter. But luckily it’s summer, it’s been even hotter than in Italy – where of course these Sidis, like all Sidis, are made – and so the Aeron’s breezy nature was a happy feature on my test rides, and that all-important stiff-sole power transfer felt simply superb.
Joseph Branston
This pair of size 45 weighed in at 438g a shoe, which I’d say puts them in the ‘sensibly light’ category. After all, too light and you lose the protection and robustness gravel shoes need and upon which Sidi built its reputation. That’s arguably the thing that still shines brightest here, the build quality. From the stitching of the TPU heels to the ripstop uppers, to the welded seams of the toe bumpers to the moulding and gluing of the carbon soles, the Aerons look and feel every bit the handmade quality that made Sidi famous. Still, there are a few questionable aspects.
Fit, potential issues and Sidi Aeron review verdict
First, the heel retention device. It has long been a feature of Sidi shoes and is supposed to help tighten the area around your achilles for maximum foot stability, but I’ve never really noticed the benefit. It doesn’t seem to affect the fit all that much, and here the previously used tightening screws have been replaced with tiny metal wheels. The idea is tool-less adjustment, but I struggled to turn the wheels when the shoes were unused, so I shudder to think how difficult it would be once any dirt gets in there.
That said, fit is excellent – for me. Each to their own, but the Sidi overhaul has seen it adopt the ‘Millennium’ fit, which is basically in keeping with every other brands’ drive to widen the toe area, Sidi finally recognising that not everyone has the racing feet of an Italian fawn.
Joseph Branston
My second gripe is Sidi’s proprietary NUUN dials. They’re good but they’re just not as good as Boa dials. Muratore says, ‘We use them as they are more compact and more durable,’ and indeed they are aluminium, not plastic like Boas. But their one great flaw is you can only dial the tension in, click-by-click, one way. To release you press the side button, at which point the cord goes slack as the ratchet is let off entirely. Boa’s great strength is you can release the tension in incremental clicks too, which is incredibly useful on hot days when feet expand, or cold days where blood flow is easily impeded or soggy socks start to take up more room.
Lastly there is the whopping price. But like I say, the £400 shoe, like the £12,000 bike, looks here to stay, and if you can afford to look beyond it, I don’t think you’ll find a better-made gravel race shoe.
Sidi Aeron gravel shoes spec
Weight: 438g per shoe
Sizes: 38-47 inc half sizes; 48
Price: £399
Colours: Black, Ice white, Jojoba (tested)