Northwave Veloce Extreme Shoes review

The Veloce Extreme is Northwave’s latest flagship road cycling shoe.

Developed in partnership with Filippo Ganna, one of the sport’s most decorated riders across road and track, the Veloce Extreme shoes are claimed to help maximise power transfer to the pedals.

In the hand, the Veloce Extreme shoes feel masterfully constructed and befitting of their high price.

Likewise, in use, comfort and heel retention are excellent, and the carbon soles don’t show any signs of flex.

Only the portly weight and proprietary rotary dials let them down slightly.

Northwave Veloce Extreme specification

Built using a unidirectional carbon fibre sole and high-quality faux leather uppers, the Northwave Veloce Extreme shoes feel beautifully crafted and look very sleek.

Northwave claims the PowerShape HT carbon sole has a stiffness rating of 15 (the highest possible on its internal scale), but says the updated shape – which wraps asymmetrically around the heel and instep – contributes to tangible performance gains.

The sole also includes adjustable cleat bolt holes for three-bolt cycling cleats.

The sole is vented along the midfoot and at the toes to improve cooling, although I taped them over (one of our favourite cheap hacks to keep your feet warm while riding) because I was testing in the middle of winter.

The uppers are also perforated to improve breathability, though, again, this had me reaching for my favourite overshoes (the Van Rysel 2mm RoadR 500 Overshoes) when not riding indoors on a smart trainer.

In place of the usually seen Boa rotary dials, Northwave specs its own X-Dial SLW3 closure system.

These function in a similar manner to standard rotary dials, with a clockwise turn tightening the lace.

Instead of being able to rotate them anti-clockwise (or pull them up for quick releasing), however, releasing tension from the laces requires repeatedly pressing the little silver button on each dial.

On the scales, my test pair of size EU45 shoes weighed 673g.

That’s on the heavy side for a flagship set of road cycling shoes.

Shimano’s S-Phyre RC902 shoes weigh 538g, for example, while Specialized’s S-Works 7 Lace come in at 494g (both in EU45).

That said, the Ganna partnership makes clear this isn’t a pair of shoes aimed at climbers or weight weenies, like the Giro Empire SLX or Specialized S-Works Exos.

Instead, they’re focused on power transfer and comfort.

The Veloce Extreme shoes cost £359.99 / $429 / €399.99. This puts them among the most expensive cycling shoes currently available.

As a point of comparison, Specialized’s top-of-the-range S-Works Torch shoes cost £385 / $450 / €440, while Shimano’s latest S-Phyre RC903 shoes are priced at £349.99 / $450 / €359.99.

Two sets of good-quality inner soles are included (a 3mm- and 5mm-thick set) to help customise the fit slightly, as is a zippered shoe bag for transporting them safely.

In terms of colour options, though, there are only two options available – black or white.

Northwave Veloce Extreme performance claims

Although the Ganna connection is notable, the performance claims accompanying the Veloce Extreme are even more eyebrow-raising.

Specifically, a report produced by MCP Sports Engineering (an Italian firm specialising in bike fitting and biomechanics), and commissioned by Northwave, claims significant performance gains arising from the Veloce Extreme’s new PowerShape HT carbon sole.

According to this report, which involved 30 cyclists performing a series of tests on an Elite Drivo 2 smart trainer, riders saw a reduction in their rating of perceived exertion of 15 per cent, and an increase in maximum power output of 4.8 per cent, when using the 'new shoe' instead of an 'old shoe'.

What’s more, the report states foot 'stability' was improved by nine per cent (which presumably contributed to the reduction in RPE).

For context, the 'old shoe' is likely the Extreme Pro 3, Northwave’s previous flagship road cycling shoe, although the report doesn’t specify this.

According to the report, the performance improvements “probably” stem from the Veloce Extreme’s improved ability to minimise “force wasted”.

It’s wise to take performance claims such as this with a pinch of salt; especially since there’s also research that suggests cycling shoe stiffness doesn’t make much difference beyond a certain point.

Northwave, though, at least deserves credit for providing the full report from MCP Sports Engineering.

When Specialized launched its S-Works Ares shoes, for example, it claimed they were “1 per cent faster than any shoe we’ve ever made” and they could improve your power output by seven watts, making you 14 seconds faster over 10km.

Unfortunately, Specialized didn’t provide any details of its testing protocol, so we were left in the dark as to how those figures were obtained.

Northwave Veloce Extreme performance

Perhaps unsurprisingly, I wasn’t able to detect a 15 per cent decrease in RPE or a 4.8 per cent improvement in maximum power output while using the Veloce Extreme shoes.

That’s not to say those gains aren’t possible, simply that I don’t have a set of the 'old shoes' to pit them against.

Compared to other high-end road cycling shoes, such as the Specialized S-Works 7 Lace, I couldn’t detect any appreciable differences, either in terms of power transfer or weight.

That’s no bad thing, however, because those are my current favourite cycling shoes.

All things considered, Northwave’s Veloce Extreme shoes offer excellent performance on the bike. The soles are very stiff, the uppers are comfortable and heel retention is excellent.

I’d have no trouble recommending them from a performance perspective, then. The X-Dial SLW3 retention system is slightly less impressive, though.

The rotary dial part makes tightening the lace easy, but releasing the tension is done by a small additional tab on each dial.

You can press it down to release a small amount of tension or lift it to relax the lace completely in an instant. It works fine, though I prefer the Boa Li2 dials that feature on many high-end road cycling shoes, because they're simpler and less fiddly.

Boa’s Li2 can be rotated in both directions for micro-adjustments to lace tension, for example, or popped up to instantly release all tension. It’s a superior system, especially if you're wearing thick winter cycling gloves.

Fortunately, this doesn’t spoil the ride experience – it’s only noticeable when it comes to getting the Veloce Extremes on or off – but at this price it’s a mildly frustrating feature.

Northwave Veloce Extreme bottom line

If you’re the kind of cyclist who favours power over low weight, the Veloce Extreme’s stiff carbon soles, excellent heel retention and comfortable uppers tick all the right boxes.

The proprietary rotary dials aren’t as good as the best available, but are nevertheless a minor frustration on a pair of shoes that otherwise offer fantastic all-round performance.

If you’re not a weight weenie and can live with taking a little longer to put on or take off your shoes, there’s a lot to like here.