Van Rysel RCR road cycling shoes review

Van Rysel’s RCR shoes promise pro-level performance at a punter-friendly price of only £169.99 / $162.94 / €169.99.

On paper, they have all the hallmarks of top-end road cycling shoes, with a full-carbon sole, a sleek design and a twin rotary dial closure system.

In use, Van Rysel’s RCR road cycling shoes live up to their billing, with stiff soles, comfortable uppers and high-quality rotary dials.

The only caveat is the fit is relatively narrow in the forefoot and therefore they may not suit everyone’s feet.

Van Rysel RCR specification and details

As part of its return to the WorldTour with Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, Decathlon (which owns the Van Rysel brand) has spent a lot of time and effort bringing its bikes and kit up to scratch.

The RCR shoes sit at the top of Van Rysel’s road cycling shoe range, with a spec designed to live up to the demands of racing at the highest level.

Perhaps the most notable spec is the RCR’s full-carbon fibre sole, which receives a full 12 out 12 stiffness rating – a rare thing at this price (albeit with the caveat that such unitless scales are completely arbitrary).

The uppers are constructed from a mix of polyurethane and polyester, with a twin set of habu-branded rotary dials taking care of lace tension.

Branding aside, the dials are physically and functionally identical to Boa’s premium Li2 dials. This means they feature multidirectional micro-adjustment and can be popped up to fully release the lace tension in an instant.

The uppers are relatively thick, with a small number of perforations to improve breathability.

More attention is paid to ventilation on the sole, however, with a large cut-out in the mid-foot section and a smaller vent positioned ahead of the cleat bolt holes.

The RCR shoes feature generously sized heel and toe bumpers, although neither is replaceable.

Handily, though, Van Rysel has included adjustable cleat bolt holes, with a relatively generous range.

On my scales, the RCR shoes weigh 313g each in a size EU45. It’s fair to say this isn’t super-light, but it’s in step with similarly priced competitors.

The Trek Velocis road cycling shoes (£229.99 / $249.99 / €249.99) weigh only 244g per shoe (in the same size), although these are among the lightest in their class.

Specialized’s recently revamped Torch 3.0 shoes (£210 / $250 / €250) are heavier at 337g per shoe, while Shimano’s RC7 shoes (£189.99 / €199.99 / $240) weigh 290g per shoe, both in a size EU45.

The Van Rysel RCR shoes are available from size EU36 to EU47, in a single width.

I found I needed to size down from my usual size EU45 (which I typically wear with Shimano, Specialized and Bont shoes) to a size EU44. However, the fit still wasn’t quite perfect.

Fortunately, Van Rysel provides recommended foot-length measurements for each size, so if you’re not sure which size will suit you best it’s worth getting your feet measured or visiting a Decathlon store to try a pair on.

Van Rysel RCR performance

On the bike, the Van Rysel RCR shoes belie their low price with excellent performance, bar a couple of niggles.

As promised, the soles are very stiff – as stiff as some high-end road cycling shoes costing twice as much as the RCRs.

The habu rotary dials both work without fault – as mentioned earlier, they’re functionally identical to Boa Li2 dials, so will likely be familiar to many riders.

Comfort was something of a mixed bag, although that may have stemmed from the fact my feet seem to be between sizes.

Having first tried a size EU45 pair, I found they were too big.

Based on the measurements of my feet, Van Rysel’s online fit calculator recommended an EU44 / UK 9.5 instead. These were better in terms of length, although they were narrower in the forefoot than I’d prefer.

In an ideal world, a size EU44.5 / UK10 may have been perfect, but unfortunately there’s no such size in the RCR shoes range.

Beyond that, though, comfort was good. There’s a welcome amount of arch support from the uppers hugging your foot, and I didn’t experience any pressure points or hotspots.

It’s also fantastic to see adjustable cleat bolt holes on the RCR shoes.

Being able to achieve your preferred cleat position can be critical to comfort and performance on the bike, and it’s a shame not every brand includes them at all price points (they’re notably absent from Specialized’s Torch 3.0 shoes, for example).

The Van Rysel RCRs are also decently ventilated, with my feet feeling perfectly comfortable in temperatures just below 20ºC.

Van Rysel RCR bottom line

If you’re looking for a good-value shoe for racing or fast road riding, then Van Rysel’s RCR shoes certainly fit the bill.

Alhough they’re not the lightest in their class, the stiff soles, comfortable uppers and habu Li2 rotary dials are stand-out features at this price.

The only obvious downside is that the fit is relatively narrow in the forefoot, which left my feet feeling somewhat cramped.

For those with slim feet, though, there’s much to like here.