The Velominati would not exist if it weren’t for The Rules. Of the current 79 Rules, only two, Rule #34 and Rule #69 stipulate anything about shoes. Perhaps that is all that is needed. However, I do have a set of personal Rules that I’ve been living by and developing for nearly ten years now. My own personal Rule #1 is No Red Shoes. And as a strict disciple of my own Rules I have no red shoes.
This is partly why I was so relieved that I could title this article The Yellow Princesses and not the Red Princesses. Because if Mavic made the Zxellium in red, I would simply have to break my own rule. These shoes are sublime.
I’ve gone through a few pair of cycle shoes in my relatively short time as a dedicated road cyclist and Velominatus. Nalini 2004’s, Cat-1 Gavias, and an old pair of Frank’s DMT Ultimax’s have all graced my gunboats. I’ve also tried many a pair on in hopes of finding that glass slipper. Sidis heel cup is too narrow, Shimanos toe box is too wide, Pearl Izumis weren’t my cup of tea, and so on and so forth.
That is until I purchased a pair of Mavic Razor mtb shoes for riding my cyclocross bike. The Razors have many miles of gravel under them. They are durable, perform well, are stylish, and easily the most comfortable shoes I’ve worn. I was sold on Mavic shoes since buying them.
So after riding Frank’s retired DMT’s into the road after he made the switch to the much bally-hooed White Ladies this season, it was time for me to go shoe shopping.
At first, the yellow put me off a little bit. I considered if wearing yellow at all would be considered a Rule violation. That, as we all know, only applies to jerseys. Riders regularly wear non-team issue and personalized shoes. The Zxelliums do also come in white but since the White Ladies was taken I had to make a different plan. Then I saw this guy wearing them in this year’s tour.
That did it for me. Being a fan of Chris Horner and seeing how the Zxelliums seemed to at once stand out and tie his kit together riding up the Tourmalet this year made me think I could pull them off too.
Whether or not I can pull them off remains to be seen. But I may not ever want to take them off. Damn if they’re not like bedroom slippers. And light! Oh the lightness. In my hand, not on a scale mind you, they are lighter than the DMTs. And that’s with the cleats on the Mavics and not on the DMTs. The muted sole is also cause for carbone.
At any rate, I’m stoked about the shoes. I thought about filing this article under the Reverence folder but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. There’s no doubt these shoes will be held in reverence one day but I must go put many kilometers on them first.
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Like the Mavics. I've been pleased with their more entry-level shoe (befitting my cycling status): the Avenir. Which is French for "I'll need yellow shoes in the future."
You coulda put up a photo of pretty much anything and I'd have thanked you for getting rid of that photo of Tom and his ageing blue labrador. But (albeit in a slightly garish yellow kinda way) they do look cool. Certainly cooler than the slip-ons Horner appears to have abandoned prior to donning his Princesses. (Hey, Frank - has Horner stolen your casual shoes?)
Can there be a rule about not ever pointing to American cyclists as justifications/references for bike style?
Horner - whilst a fantastic domestique and seemingly all round nice guy (even Cadel used to like him as a teammate for crissake!) - is still an American. In my book that diqualifies him from being used as a style barometer - isn't he a redneck too? Those shoes look hideous Marko.
And before you say it, yes, Aussies are disqualified too (although Phil Anderson's pioneering with Oakley wasn't a bad collaboration between two unstylish countries).
So maybe just exclude all non-europeans?
@Marcus
Wot, you'd rather be assaulted by a picture of Lemelsmurf? Yellow they may be - but at least they don't talk. And talk. And talk.
Marko - Those Mavics are great. I have a humble, silver pair of their Avenirs - dubbed "The Silver Clouds" - and I am very happy with them; but i have to say, the yellow looks really sharp, and I now regret that I didn't splurge and get me-self a pair of those princesses...
You're a brave man, Marko, very, very brave. I mean, to come out in public like that, with no sense of shame, and proudly parade your admiration for something so, well, shit.
But the shoes are ok...
Two years ago I spotted these shoes being paraded around Le Tour by a select few riders and I instantly wanted. A few months later when they were finally released I tried a pair on and they were like slippers and I decided to get matching road and MTB shoes. But I waited for some reason, and waited and now I've gone off the Yellow Shoe. Perhaps I felt my performance was never going to match up to a yellow shoe, I'll get something else when I finally get back on the bike.
@Marcus +1
The back and forth on here cracks me up. It's like that Sex in the City show I've heard about with the shoe fashionistas
@Brett
Yeah, I like Horner, so what. I think his interviews on the little veloTV thing are funny. I like that he doesn't seem to take anything too seriously. I was also happy to see him bury the COTHO on the GC this year.
As for the shoes, they could have Leopard spots and I'd probably still wear them. They're that good. It's got to have a lot to do with the burrito wrap upper, as opposed to a traditional taco. It swaddles the dogs.
@KitCarson
Silver Clouds, it's good. We're starting to compile a long list of shoe nicknames for the Lexicon. I'd have gone with those had I not picked these up for such a fantastic price. There's no way I'd pay $300 for shoes.
Regardless of ones feelings towards Horner, those shoes look awesome. They always catch my eye in the peloton.
About the yellow. Back in my basketball days, if you came on the court wearing some blinged-out Jordans, you had better have a game or face merciless mockery (I stuck to modest white).
Perhaps, then, the shoes are best seen as they are on Markos: from behind, either rapidly disappearing up the road or through the brown-out of ever-increasing lactate levels, optic nerves turning into useless twigs as off the back you go.