The trend bucking appearance of Adidas' road shoes still manages to surprise. Being a massive, high tech sport shoe manufacturer certainly has advantages when it comes to releasing fashionable performance led designs.
The first thing you notice about the Ultra SLs is the weight, or lack of it. They are built with speed in mind and are certainly more race than winter trainer. However, the Duralite mesh upper is tough, extremely breathable and perfectly married to a thin, flat, wide and extremely stiff Prolite full-carbon outsole. The foot sits very close to the pedal spindle and power transfer is excellent; you literally feel like you are part of the bike.
There's certainly no hiding from the road buzz but big power sprints and fast spinning feel great in these shoes. The soft fit of the upper and moulded plastic combined with Adidas' unique Fast Strap and buckle system feels great and you can really clamp these shoes down. The heel cup is a 3D carbon affair and mirrors the high performance fit of the uppers.