SHOES
REVIEWED:
Cannondale Arago
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Nike Cairns
Nike Yuha Plus
Northwave Compact 5
Northwave Freeride
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Sidi Bullet
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Nike Cairns

Nike has obviously put some high performance effort into this shoe. Its orange, plastic, outer 360-degree thermoplastic shell is downright freaky. The name Cairns (as in where the O-lympics are gonna be BABY...duh!) and the rainbow-colored band across the strap (as in the World Championship rainbow) makes you feel elite. The burly, unforgiving width and sole of the shoe, the angled straps, the orange shell... it’s all kinda new school. You guessed it, this shoe is one big, heavy mutha. The full wrap of rubber meat around my toes made me wanna kick bricks. Not like literally, but they gave me confidence to stick my feet out there whenever and wherever necessary. The sole is the burliest thing this side of Cairns and the heel cup is the tallest in the land - not always a good thing and these were a bit too tall for me.

The fit had me a bit perplexed, though. I was making lots of readjustments from the start, but thought I'd see how they felt when broken in. The fact is, the strange all-encompassing plastic wrap has its limits. The angled straps pull unevenly from the front strap, leaving the backside lifted off the heel. This led to hot spots under the strap. Also, the buckle is so thick and burly, I felt the plastic against the side of my foot - not something you want to notice.

I liked the way the full mesh ventilation allowed full flex in the front of the upper when I had to get my fat ass off the saddle and walk (a feeble attempt to keep up with the local shop crew). It kept my toes happy too.

Who The Shoe Fits: A racer more concerned with foot protection and durability than weight or comfort. Or a racer who is pissed off with girly-man slipper shoes and wants a powerful swoosh (like our beloved Lance Armstrong) to kick rocks into rubble.

Setback: ~$210

Features: That plastic housing pretty much dominates the design, but the sole sets it apart as well. If you're wide-hoofed, ckeck this shoe out, the sole is as wide as any I’ve ever seen. We found some interesting comments about the lugs while we were trolling Nike's website:

"Bi-directional lugs: guys Madonna hangs with. Just kidding. These are much more useful. Lugs are traction devices on an outsole. By arranging them in alternating directions, we generate maximum grab in wet, sloppy conditions."

Isn't that special? I also found that this gem of advertising is actually true.

Factors: The shoe is as tough as nails. The complete protection promoted fearless riding. The fit, however, left much to be desired. I think two Velcro straps separate from the superplastic-thermoplastics would straighten out the pull...maybe.

Tongue 'n Groove: Nike’s advertising has lured us into a false sense of security with their website techno-babble:

"Shank plate: Sometimes the forefoot and heel don't want to go in the same direction, which can cause a problem if they're on the same foot. A shank plate, usually in the midfoot area, keeps the forefoot and heel working together to provide more force and stability when you make a cut."

We passed this one around the office a couple times before deeming it over-analysis of a stinky foot.