Pearl Izumi Men’s Tri Fly V Carbon Shoe Review

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Pros of the Pearl Izumi Carbon Triathlon Shoe

• Comfortable liner provides chafe/hot spot free sockless wear
• Ventilation dries your feet quickly out of the water
• The stiffness of the carbon sole provides stiffness for enhanced power transfer without increasing weight

Cons of the Pearl Izumi Carbon Triathlon Shoe

• Euro sizing runs just a tad on the small side; make sure to try them on prior to purchase
• None – it’s a great shoe for the price point.

Triathlon cycling made easy in the Pearl Izumi Men’s Try Fly V Carbon Triathlon Shoe

Okay, not really. Cycling is never easy in a triathlon, or else everyone would do it. It takes a certain breed to suffer in three sports – but when you’re on the second leg, you should give the Pearl Izumi Men’s Tri Fly V Carbon a go. They really have a quite a bit going for them at the price point (try finding carbon soled cycling shoes with comparable features in this range, I dare you), are well constructed, and are comfortable sockless. I meant it above when I said I couldn’t find any real negatives other than the sizing. Pearl Izumi only offers them in Euro sizing, and compared to other brands I found them to run just a bit on the small side – so make sure to try them on at your local Pearl Izumi retailer for a great fit. Once you have the fit dialed in, you’ll have no complaints.

To begin with, the comfort sockless is superb. I actually prefer them to my normal cycling shoes because of just how comfortable you are. If you take a look at power metrics, you’ll find that the philosophy of locking your foot down rigidly and uncomfortably for miles and miles is just absurd. The power transfer in Pearl’s Triathlon gear is great, and the ability to get in and out of the shoes quickly during an event trumps any discussion on whether or not you lose pedaling efficiency at the top of your stroke. The single strap construction holds your foot firmly and eliminates any hot spots or chafing/blistering. This is great when you’re getting out of the swim and hopping on the bike as quickly as possible. The loop on the back is big enough to grab quickly and easily, and is sewn durable enough for pull after pull.

Pearl bills the color palette as “Fashionable” but really, I think it’s quite loud. Don’t get me wrong – some people like loud. This was the intent. I’m just calling it what it is – loud and bright. I guess the drawback could be that now I’m loud AND slow, but I don’t really call that a drawback. I prefer function over color palette any day – so Pearl Izumi, as long as you keep making fantastic tri shoes such as the Pearl Izumi Men’s Try Fly V Carbon shoe, scream away. Head on over to Pearl’s website or www.amazon.com/pearlizumi to check them out for yourself.