Time Equipe Cx Shoe and Equipe Pro Titan Magnesium Pedals

Reviewers include:

First, the shoes, which were brightly, colored yellow, red, and black. Although flashy in color with the Time web address printed on the toe area, I was concerned about comfort. With my foot, most European shoes are too narrow for me. The Equipe Cx was snug, but comfortable. However, the long and narrow toe area made me think they weren't the correct size. The shoes never created any hot spots for me, nor did they feel tight on my instep. My American shoe size is 9 ½ and the 43 ½ were a good match.

Construction features of the shoes included CoolMax lining, padded tongue, mesh ventilation, 3 adjustment straps, leather upper, and a reflectorized heal. The padded tongue was not bulky and didn't put any pressure on my instep. The adjustment straps have wider ends on them so they don't pull out of the metal loops. The mesh portions were on the lower part of the shoe and did provide adequate ventilation. My feet still got hot and sweaty but they always do, even when riding in cooler weather. The drawback of the mesh is that they allow plenty of water to come in so count on totally wet socks if it rains or if you hit a lot of puddles! I liked the large reflectorized area on the heal portion of the shoe and it did not make the heel feel too stiff.

You never have to worry about cleat system compatibility because Time makes this shoe 100% compatible with Look, Speedplay, Campy, and Shimano SPD/SPD-R. There is a plate that mounts to the bottom of the shoe that you can mount different cleats to. There are "hash marks" that allow you to judge how much rotation you have in your cleat. With an average weight of 630 grams per pair, I didn't think they were the lightest shoes I have worn.

The two-piece Time cleat system was simple enough to mount with 2 screws holding each cleat. They heal is very low on the shoe so when you walk it really seems as though you are digging your heals in the ground. Locking into the Titan Magnesium pedals was effortless. It was so easy just to put the front lip of the cleat under the front "wing" of the pedal let your body weight push your foot down and lock into the rear bar on the pedal. I never once slipped off the pedal while trying to lock in as I have done with metal to metal cleats and pedals on other systems. One of my concerns is the plastic front potion of the cleat. Over time, this will wear and obviously affect the ability of the rider to stay locked in. I thought the "older" Time cleats were all metal.

The sleek, low profile of the pedals seemed to blend with the bright racy colors of the shoe. I realize float is a matter of personal preference but I didn't mind the 5 mm of lateral and 5 degree angular float. Sometimes, the loose feel of the pedal made me think I was pulling out of the pedal but this never happened unless I was actually releasing. The rotation while pedaling always felt smooth with no feeling of tight spots from the axle. At 170 grams, they are in the lightweight category.

Of course, Time Equipe shoes and pedals mated very well. The important thing was comfort and function. Other than when I got wet, there was no discomfort. The float that was allowed with the pedals was less strain on my knees and ankles. Again, my personal preference is for float, as I almost feel claustrophobic without float.

Time is certainly a name brand when considering cycling products. I certainly give them a very positive rating in the shoe and pedal department. Now, about those forks...!