Faster transitions in your triathlon and no loss of power

Snellere wissels tijdens je triathlon en geen verlies van vermogen tijdens het fietsen ?

Faster changes during your triathlon and no loss of power while cycling?

January 11 2023, by Ronald de Graaf, 7 min reading time

At TriathlonWorld we get extra excited about some products. Meet the new Cadomtus triathlon cycling shoes.

A triathlon shoe that you can effortlessly put on and take off during your transitions, that provides optimal power transmission and that also allows you to run better: Cadomotus developed a truly groundbreaking cycling shoe in an intensive collaboration between top athletes, scientists and developers. Top triathletes Donald Hillebregt, Simon den Braber and Victor Groené worked on the development for over a year and now wouldn't want anything else.

“I definitely think it will be one of the best shoes on the market, I wouldn't want to race without it,” says Dutch triathlon champion and World Cup athlete Donald Hillebregt with conviction. “At the moment I see no disadvantages, only advantages. The way you get into the shoe quickly plus the stiffness is really unavailable at the moment, I think it is really revolutionary in that regard.” He is firmly convinced that the triathlon shoes that Cadomotus is launching will change the playing field. And that may be high time.

Cycling shoes too limited for triathlon

“In fact, all triathlon shoes are based on cycling shoes,” says physiotherapist and clinical epidemiologist Sijmen Hacquebord about the current state of affairs in triathlon sport. A thick carbon sole, a lot of hassle with putting it on and taking it off and a position of the foot that does not positively affect walking: these are all points where significant gains can be made for the serious triathlete and reason for Cadomotus to develop the new shoe. “A cyclist no longer has to run after that, so it is logical that you could gain a lot by doing so,” says Hacquebord, who has been involved in the development from the beginning.

Why Cadomtus?
In the skating and inline skating world, Cadomotus has been a leader in top-level innovation for 25 years. For example, several top skaters and inliners achieved great international success with our material. It is the period in which both sports made a huge leap forward: the transition from a relatively soft leather shoe to the current stiff shoes with a carbon cup sole is one of them. Cadomotus has always been at the forefront of this development and is therefore unprecedentedly experienced in design and production when it comes to efficient power transmission.

The carbon shell sole that Cadomotus developed and improved over the years makes the shoe considerably stiffer, ensuring optimal power transmission. We are now using the enormous know-how that Cadomotus has collected in collaboration with renowned custom shoe makers in skating and inline skating for triathlon sports: the carbon cycling shoe is the first high-profile result.

Optimal cycling shoe for triathletes

To achieve the best possible shoe, Cadomotus worked very closely with Hillebregt, Den Braber and Groené from the start. Athletes who know what they need and can indicate what is and is not going well in their development. It became a constant game of testing, feedback and testing again. “The competition shoes I had before were either too soft, but I could get into them quickly, or they were very sturdy and therefore very good cycling shoes, but I could not get into them. As a result, it was always a trade-off between two extremes, so you never had an optimal cycling shoe," says Hillebregt about his starting point in the entire process. “I really needed a cycling shoe that you can get into quickly, giving you the best of both worlds. That's how the ball started rolling. That was the opportunity for me to develop a good triathlon shoe: a good cycling shoe that I can also get into quickly.”

No loss of power if the shoe is not secured

It is exactly the point that Victor Groené also wanted to address when he decided to participate in the development. “Before this I had a carbon composite shoe. It does contain carbon, but it is less stiff. In those short matches I certainly benefit from being able to put them on quickly. I really had to fasten my other shoes with Velcro to fit properly in the shoe and to be able to pull on my pedals. With this shoe, the shell is so tight around your foot that you push your foot into it and you don't necessarily have to fasten it to be able to pull on your shoe. I don't lose power if my shoe isn't stuck. So if a match is really short, sometimes you don't even have time to tie your shoe. But that is not necessary. It is a lot stiffer and lighter than most triathlon shoes. Particularly because it is stiffer, you lose less power that you deliver on your pedal, which is converted into wheel revolutions and therefore into speed. You prefer to have a 100 percent return on what you deliver and what is transferred. And a stiff sole in the shoe helps a lot with this. I've never seen anything better than this.”

Gains in short sprints due to greater directness

The shoes are constructed in one piece and are heated in the oven to partly mold them to the foot. It is not an unknown process for Simon den Braber, it has been commonplace in skating for years. “I have also skated myself and the shoe is completely shaped to your foot.” The Cadomotus shoe does not deform as completely as a skating shoe, he explains, but as much support as you get in a skating shoe is also not necessary. “When I first rode it, it was immediately different from the standard shoe,” he says. “It was very light, the sole is quite thin and I had the feeling that the power goes straight into your pedal, that it comes across immediately. Especially when I first wore my other shoes for short sprints and then put on the Cadomotus shoes and sprinted again, I felt a kind of immediacy.” He is also very satisfied with the ease with which he can put on the shoe when changing. “That you shouldn't keep your legs still for too long to put on your shoe. That should come on in one go, you shouldn't mess around for a long time. Those are all seconds you lose and they are precious after swimming.”

Better walking after cycling

For Hacquebord, the main question is to what extent you can positively influence walking through the cycling shoe. By making a stiff shoe that helps you relieve the strain on your calf, allowing you to cycle more from your hip and thighs and allowing you to save the calf for walking, as it were. In short, a cycling shoe that postpones fatigue for longer, possibly resulting in better results. “We tried this with the triathletes. One of the athletes had very clear progress. They first do a tough interval with their regular shoes. Then they had to do a jumping and sprint test. They then cycled with the Cadomotus shoes and did the same jump and sprint tests again. One athlete had a clear difference, the others showed some kind of trend, but not so clear,” he explains. Further tests must show to what extent gains can be made here, but Hacquebord is optimistic. “It's so logical and relatively innovative.”

The advantages at a glance:

More efficient power transfer while cycling, even when the shoes are not tightened
Being able to walk faster after cycling thanks to a stiffer sole, which makes the heel bone more stable with every pedal stroke and relieves the calf.
The shoe makes you more aerodynamic. A thinner sole means you sit lower, which can reduce resistance by up to 10 watts.