Lake

CX219 Cycling Shoe - Men's

A less expensive 238 with a few quibbles

Familiarity:

I've used it several times

I've bought quite a few pairs of Lake shoes since buying my first MX176, and finding they fit my feet better than any other shoe I've tried. I don't have an especially wide foot, it's fairly normal, but as most probably know, most cycling shoes are designed for people with skinny little feet. And Lake's Competition last as used on this shoe and the 238 line, fits my foot perfectly. I have a couple pairs of the CX 238 shoes, but when I saw these in red, I had to get a pair. This shoe uses the same Competition last and carbon sole as found on their more expensive 238 line. The cost cutting differences from that more expensive shoe come from the use of only a single Boa dial that only adjusts in one direction, nylon loop lace guides rather than hard plastic, and the use of Clarino synthetic material for the upper instead of real leather. These differences do make for a lighter shoe. But, here come the quibbles. On the bike, and in use, this shoe feels pretty much the same as the more expensive 238. Stiff, great power transfer, lots of wiggle room for the toes. And that's where it counts, right, the performance. However, the Clarino is not as supple feeling as real leather, so the shoe doesn't quite have that slipper-like comfy feeling that the 238 has. Maybe with more use, it'll get there. Likewise, the single Boa dial means there's a lot of wire that dial has to reel in, so the separation of the upper at the tongue area, and the shoe opening, isn't as wide as on the 238. So you can't pull the shoe open as far when slipping it on, which makes it a bit tougher to get in and out of. But also makes for a secure fit. And the tongue material is a bit thicker and spongier than on the 238, so when putting your foot into it, it has a tendency to get stuffed down a bit toward the toe of the shoe, so you have to tug it back up again before tightening. You also have to fiddle with the Boa wires a bit to make sure they cross over on those sewn in Carbotex patches. They have a tendency to get caught up on the edges, so you need to adjust and move them around a bit so they cross over properly before cinching them down. Still, better than the previous version with single Boa and a strap, which I found pretty useless. On my MX176 shoes, I adjusted the strap the first time I put them on, and then never touched it again. No need for adjusting it at all. I applaud Lake for getting rid of it, it makes for a better looking shoe. The 219 now looks more like the higher level 238 line rather than the cheaper 176 line, although the new 177 adopts that styling as well. Fine by me, as I think the 238 is a great looking shoe. So, the quibbles are really pretty minor, in that you get a shoe that performs like the higher level 238, but for $100 less. If your feet like Lake shoes, and that's all the budget allows, you won't be disappointed with these shoes.