Gaerne G.Motion cycling shoes review

Italian shoe brand Gaerne makes quite a range of road cycling shoes. Founded in 1962, it’s the brand of choice for a lot of pros including André Greipel and many of the Lotto Soudal team. It makes a range of five different summer and two winter road shoes, with the G.Motion being next to lowest spec of its summer road shoes. There are also two women’s designs.

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Italian shoes have a reputation for being narrow. The lower spec G.Record comes in a wide version as well as the standard width, but despite the G.Motion coming in one width only I found the volume was fine for my wideish British feet. There was plenty of room when wearing a standard weight cycling sock and perhaps a little too much with the thinnest ones.

The G.Motion’s uppers are made of laser perforated microfiber and there are areas of venting mesh to supplement the airflow. Closure is via two Velcro straps and a ratcheted buckle. The latter is quite wide over the top of the foot and has aluminium hinged sections, so that it fits really well and also distributes pressure from the strap.

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Velcro straps can loosen while riding and become less effective over time as they start to attract fluff and the loopy bits get less tight. But Gaerne builds small tabs with interlocking grippers into the shoes’ uppers and the underside of the straps. They are rather like those which the ratchet engages with in the top strap. The tabs mesh with each other and help keep the straps tight – a clever and effective addition.

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The tongue is well padded and I found that I was able to ride with the buckle tightened up, without experiencing discomfort. The ratcheted part of the strap can be replaced without needing to scrap the whole thing.

The plastic heel cup comes quite a long way forward on the upper, so that I found that my foot was well secured. The footbed is also well structured to keep the heel in place.

Although the G.Motion’s sole is not full carbon, the nylon is reinforced with carbon fibre. It’s rigid enough for most riders and thin enough for good power transfer.

As a mid-priced cycling shoe, I was impressed with the G.Motion’s quality fit and comfort. It’s a shoe which provides good pedalling dynamics too. As well as the orange which we’ve tested, the G.Motion is available in black, white, silver or green.