If Rouler does not do reviews, we don’t do reviews. Think of this as a commentary on Bont’s Vaypor+ road shoe. Any discussion of points-of-contact will generate a storm of comments ending in why Sidi shoes and Fizik saddles are the best. They may be the best for you but not for me. Everyone’s feet and everyone’s butt has different needs.
I bring up form versus function too often here and being a user of SMP saddles and now Bont shoes I’m obviously way over there on the function-over-form end of the spectrum. Bont shoes are not as weird looking as SMP saddles are but visually both of these immediately tell you that these point-of-contact designs are different.
Frank is a big fan of Bont and he landed me a free pair with no discussion of a quid pro quo of anything for Bont. The timing was good as I had forked over some money for the second generation of Fizik R3 shoes. These were lighter and cooler, as advertised, but also more narrow and with less arch support, not advertised. Luckily, I collect aftermarket insoles like I collect base layers so I could overcome the lack of arch support but long into a ride my toes would remind me why these new Fizik shoes were trouble.
The two things I like the most about Bonts are the roomier forefoot and the well engineered arch support. Toes can roam unfettered in this shoe. This is a revelation for a person who has always erred toward the very snug fitting cycling shoe. The moldable carbon rim surrounds the whole foot, resulting in a well secured fit that does not hassle the toes. My new Bonts fit nicely right out of the box. I did one heating and minor remolding of one shoe rim, but the option of potentially accommodating a person’s bunions, bone spurs or freakishly long toes (Marko) is appealing.
If a foot’s arch collapses under load the tibia rotates and becomes potentially injurious to the knee. Believe me, having spent too much time riding in front of a mirror testing out custom orthodics, shims and wedges; getting the foot, knee and leg aligned can be important, expensive and tedious. If the arch is truly well supported it prevents the rotation and misalignment. I immediately ditched my expensive custom orthodics because they were correcting what the Bonts were already designed to prevent. Sometimes standing in shoes with good arch support feels like too much support, like standing in a well fitting kit feels weird until actually on the bike and in the position the kit was designed to be in.
The Vaypor+ is a redesign of the Vaypor model with a boa lacing system instead of the velcro and buckle. I would say the tongue on the Vaypor+ could use some redesign. It’s padded and pliable so when the boa wires are constricted, the tongue squishes together instead of sliding under the uppers, so getting the perfect tension on these shoes is compromised. That is my only complaint. I’m a big fan of the boa lacing but this set up needs improvement, in my opinion.
These shoes are expensive but to date, with almost a year of riding, they look to be indestructible. True, our dog has not her way with them yet and she had better not but I am very impressed with the materials, design and construction.
The true point-of-contact test is the long day out. The imperfections and incompatibilities will be discovered 100 kms into it. If I don’t think much about my feet in my shoes, my butt on the saddle or my hands on the bars, it’s a good sign. All I’m saying is, if your present shoes are not passing this test, Bonts are a very good shoe to try next. My advice it so find a retailer to make sure you get exactly the shoe size you need. Buying cycling shoes online is rubbish.
I’ve paired my Bonts up with some heat moldable insoles from yoursole. They are thin, firm and have good arch support.
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Hello, intersting to read about these Bont shoes. Couple of guys I ride with got Vaypor models recently and swear by them. The Vaypor+ look good as well, if pricey. The red and white ones look like Specialized no (as per Niballi pic)?
Got my first pair of Sidi genius recently, first 2 or 3 rides I thought they were a bit narrow but they're now super comfortable (and so light). Bit of a lightweight though, before that I only had some old Shimanos since 2008 :)
@Beers
I've just ordered a pair which should be here by the end of the week, so I'll let you know how I get on.
The local Bont importer has given up on his business, so I'm stuck mail-ordering. Has any of the Velominati ordered a Bont using their sizing instructions? The results I've got seem plausible, but there's a +/- 5mm measurement error which is about half a shoe-size.
I'm quite certain Bonts will have all the width I need, but I'm trying to figure out the crucial longitudinal dimension. I'm a size 45 in Shimano and 44 in Mavics, if that's any help. Loved the Mavics, but I'm slowly realizing their narrowness is a bit more than I'd like when approaching the 150km mark.
@tessar
I have. I ordered according to the Bont sizing/measuring instructions and erred on the side of the next half size up because I was within a few mm in length from the upper limit of the recommendation. They fit, however its still a close one and if I were to do it again I probably would even go one half size up from what I ordered. That said, due to the way the forefoot of the shoe is designed, you can get away with your toes being closer to the front of the Bont than with shoes built on a traditional last with a more pointed toe box.
@tessar
If it helps, my Fizik R3s which I find fit perfectly are a size 44 and the Bont's I ordered were a 44.5. My Mavic Pulse MTB shoes are a size 10.5 (I'm not sure what that translates into in Euros according to Mavic). I too find the Mavics quite narrow.
@VeloVita
I went a full size up from Fizik and that worked out OK. They might be larger then optimum but there is no penalty to them being slightly too long, so if in doubt, I'd round up. And I'd get the regular Vaypor over the Vaypor +.
I was so bully on Bont that I ordered a pair for my wife, a yellow Mavic shoe owner. So first you pay a lot in shipping from China, then they were too short so we paid another $15 to return them to the US supplier. At that point we were looking at more shipping for the next size up which might not have been perfect which would be two more shipping fees...so we stopped. Hence my warning about buying online. Maybe buying from a bike shop online is better if they will help on the shipping. It's very frustrating as I would like to give them more business but can't.
Sorry to resurrect oldness but can anyone compare bont to sidi or specialized? I was a 45 in sidi and a 44.5 in the pre-2013 specialized last (the current specialized 45 seems too tight). I ordered a 46.5 based on their mm chart but it has been stuck at a post office in Richmond ca for 3 weeks... So maybe it's not an issue at all anyway.
So my 46.5 showed up today. Wayyyyy too big. With my foot in the shoe I can stick a finger in the back easily. So I guess I'm a 45 in bont too. Great to know. Anyone want a 46.5?
Has anyone worn the original Vaypors and the Vaypor+? Is the latter any better ventilated? I have the Vaypors and love them, but now that it's July here in the lower Midwest, they get really hot. I'm wondering if the Vaypor+ breath any better. Anyone have experience with both shoes? Or maybe the new Vaypor S?
Article from CyclingTips on updated Vaypor+
http://cyclingtips.com/2016/05/bont-cycling-the-story-of-a-small-aussie-brand-taking-on-the-cycling-shoe-industry/