Dainese Torque Boots Review

[Smithers]

I've always like Dainese riding gear but I've never had the money to afford such swanky gear. Enter Cycle Gear. I was pretty shocked when I first walked into the new Cycle Gear store in San Luis Obispo.... even more shocked when I saw all the Dainese leather gear on the wall! What a sight to behold. All the jackets, suits, boots and gloves you could want! They really are the kings of leather riding gear to me and their website and technology proves it. Check it out and you will be impressed.

Dainese Home Page (http://www.dainese.com/eng/home.asp?f=ko)

Ahh well in the last few months I have been losing sleep over which boots to buy! Well today I bit the bullet. I phoned up my military buddy Gregg and we drove out to the local Cycle Gear store. They are kinda spendy but the $280 price falls right smack in the middle of the high and low ends of the motorcycle boot price spectrum. To tip the scales in my favor even more my friend used his military discount since he owes me money anyway.

http://www.fourwheelperformance.com/streetbikestuff/dainese_torque_boots01.jpg

http://www.fourwheelperformance.com/streetbikestuff/dainese_torque_boots02.jpg

The best boots ever!! They fit my feet perfect which is rare. I have a pronounced bone in my right foot and it really gets irritated by the characteristically slim Sidi line of boots and other brands. The Dainese just have one zipper that goes from top to bottom in the rear and that's all you need to do to slip them on and off. Try that with any other high-end streetbike boot. Of course the sides have adjustable velcro to adjust for calf sized but unlike other boots you don't have to use them every time you put them on! Hard-Earned money WELL SPENT. I feel guilty buying such nice boots...

[Smithers]

Coincidence??

http://www.fourwheelperformance.com/streetbikestuff/dainese_nike-air-flightposite.jpg

In my Streetbike Boot Shootout the Nike Hyperdunk McFly model almost swept the competition. Like my friends said, "get out your hoverboard". They were very unpredictable and were much lighter feeling than I was used to. This upset the handling of the motorcycle and the learning curve is much too steep so I can't recommend them.

http://www.fourwheelperformance.com/streetbikestuff/dainese_nike-hyperdunk.jpg

[Smithers]

Yes, I used them this weekend and they are absolutely perfect. The Sidi boots are much more narrow so these boots are much more forgiving on my foot bones. They don't breath all that much but they don't need to since I made sure to get boots that I could run loose. The heat shielding they provide is soooo nice. The thin wall titanium exhaust on the bike lets the heat go right through so the right side of my bike is damn hot on the leg. If the weather is cool then it's not bad at all but when the temp rides up to the top 80's and 90's boots are a must. I'm in heaven with these things. Worth every penny and I'm glad they exist because my search for boots just wasn't going all that well in the beginning. I wanted the Sidi boots but they hurt my foot just walking around. Not that I want walking shoes but because they were very slim and clamped too hard on my feet. With the Dainese one zipper up the back of the boot is all... no stupid velcro straps, or wire adjusters or plastic cam buckles... they just work easily. And of course if you want to expand the boot for larger calves of a riding suit you can open the velcro sides and close them wherever you want. The difference is that you don't have to open and close those velcro sides every time you put on the boots.

[Smithers]

Well the newness has definitely wore off by now. These boots are freakin awesome. They did break in a bit more than I would have liked but they are so comfortable still that it's not a big deal. The loose fit is the way to go for the shape of my toes anyhow. If I want tight race boots I'll have to buy another pair... and I've been thinking of the Puma's but that's down the road.

http://www.fourwheelperformance.com/streetbikestuff/vstrom_dec08_02.jpg

I have been wearing my new Tourmaster waterproof pants for a few days now and they are finally breaking in and loosening up. I rode a whole day in them over my jeans and they were totally warm but I could open the vents when the sun came out. The reason I bring the pants up is because I put my jeans inside the boots and the waterproof pants over the boots. This worked perfect and with the availible adjust ments on the Dainese boots I could easily put the jeans inside without even noticing.

I was also riding a Vstrom at a much more sporty pace than the bike was intended for. The Dainese toe sliders received a lot of testing as a result and you can tell from the picture just how well they worked. Still an A+ boot in my book. They simply work so well for day to day running around and still perform during sportbike rides.