Lake is a US cycling shoe brand that inspires an unusual amount of devotion. Andy Hampsten was wearing a pair of Lake CXs when he became the first American to win the Giro d’Italia in 1988, and Lakes have been worn by many pros since, and still are on the feet of WorldTour riders – but that’s not what it’s about. It’s fair to say Lake shoes aren’t as ubiquitous as those from Specialized, Shimano and the Italian brands and, having never worn a pair myself, I asked James Thomas of bike fit specialists bicycle in Richmond – aka Bikefit James on YouTube – to help me understand what Lake is about. His shop is a Lake dealer with walls festooned with Lake’s many models. There are more than 700 pairs on site, he tells me, in every size. “As a brand, Lake has the biggest spectrum of fits, so with one brand we can treat most feet,” he continues. “Lake has lots of different shapes and sizes. Shoes have always been sold as ‘climbing shoes’, ‘sprinting shoes’ or whatever, but we don’t sell shoes based on their material differences, we sell shoes based on how they fit.”
It requires a bit of understanding to navigate through the range, he explains. “There are pro riders riding the CX239, which is a mid-level shoe, but it’s a wide-fitting shoe and that’s what they need. There’s no such thing as a perfect shape or a perfect last because of the sheer variety of human feet, and I think that’s what makes Lake successful.”
Originally, Lake had asked me to review the CX239, launched earlier this year, but once I’d measured my feet and sent them the results, they told me that the CX239 would be too wide and that the CX333, released in 2024, would be better.
In “material difference” terms, the Lake CX333 is positioned one below the range-topping CX403 in its road shoe line. In sizing, Thomas told me the two are “about the same” in their fit, but not identical, even though they’re both constructed around Lake’s CX/TX Race last, which is “designed for very high-cadence riding, with a slimmer and stylish performance fit”. The flagship shoe has a tub-like heat-mouldable carbon outsole that wraps up around the edge of the foot, whereas the CX333’s sole is more traditionally two-dimensional, though it is anatomically shaped, of course.
Inside the shoe, sandwiched between the footbed and the outsole, is a “semi-flexible fibreglass platform” which Lake says allows it to use an extremely stiff carbon outsole without sacrificing riding comfort. The CX333 has been ridden by Lake’s sponsored athletes at WorldTour level: Elinor Barker, James Shaw, and Ben Swift have all raced in the CX333.
As with the pros who use the wider CX239, Barker, Shaw and Swift will undoubtedly have chosen it over the CX403 (and any other Lake model) for its fit. The CX333 comes in three widths and half sizes from 39 up to 47 (and then 48, 49 and 52). The ‘narrow’ that was recommended for me by Lake roughly equates to the ‘regular’ of the previous model, the CX332. Just like wheels, tyres and time trial helmets, cycling shoes have gone wide. I found that although the length was right and the width too, the shoe still has a relatively high volume, and I had to cinch in the closure to its limit. Not a problem, as I’m used to having to work with the relative flatness of my feet, and the final fit was perfect. For truly narrow feet, however, the CX333s might not be the ones – I would look at the CX302s.
Construction
Although it's Lake's second model from the top in price, the CX333’s quality and construction – not to mention its price, £395 at the time of writing – put it on an equal footing with the flagship models from most other shoe brands. With an upper made from soft, supple kangaroo leather (there’s also a Clarino microfibre option), a heat-mouldable heel cup and a super-stiff full carbon sole, it’s very premium – and the white pearl finish is something else.
The CX403 has a large Carbitex carbon-fibre reinforced section of fabric on the medial (arch) side of the upper, whereas the CX333 relies more on the kangaroo leather with a smaller Carbitex panel for support. So although the CX403 is designed for direct power transfer via a carbon-surrounded foot, it’s likely that the CX333 is suppler, arguably more versatile and probably better suited for a bigger range of foot shapes. I've read elsewhere that the CX403 is painful to walk in – something to bear in mind if the café features regularly in your rides, whereas the CX333 is no better or worse than any other shoe. I was happy with the shape of the heel cup out of the box, taking the shoes for a spin on the Wattbike first to decide whether they needed to be baked. Incidentally, you can remould them multiple times if they’re not cooked to perfection the first time round.
The closure system at face value consists of just two Boa Li2 dials, but the cables are laced so that you’re getting the equivalent of six eyelets. The top dial is placed far back, almost behind the top of the tongue, with the top half of the lacing pattern offset towards the outside of the shoe. This effectively spreads pressure over more of the foot rather than clamping it down directly over the top. Another feature of the closure that worked well for me was the semi-sewn in tongue. Since it’s stitched on the medial side, the Boas are pulling and wrapping the upper over from under the arch rather than pulling together two sides over the top. For a low-volume foot (like mine), this meant less chance of bunching at either side of the tongue.
Overall, the layout of the shoe is extremely impressive. There’s only one area in which it can’t compete with other current top race shoes, and that’s in weight. The S-Works Torches – which I use as a benchmark as they’re the shoe I’ve chosen to wear most regularly over the last two years and in my opinion is the one to beat – weigh 249g per shoe in a size 45; the Lake CX333s at 343g each are giving away almost 200g per pair.
Ride impressions
I found the riding comfort and efficiency to be exceptional. Power transfer feels as good as any shoe I’ve ever worn, and I didn’t get any pressure points or hotspots – there’s a unique feel of both stiffness and plushness. The majority of shoes I’ve worn in the last couple of years don’t have lining as such – it’s more of a backing – but the perforated leather lining of the Lakes is soft inside so that you’re aware of it all the time, and it feels great. I suspect this adds a little to the shoe weight, but there’s no doubt that a comfortable foot-pedal interface means more power even if there are a few more grams to carry round. And anyway, if it’s light enough for pros to use in the WorldTour then it’s light enough for me and my evening ‘10’ series.
As for durability, kangaroo leather may not be as resistant to scuffs and general wear as manmade Clarino. Think leather football on a playground. I admit I’ve done my best to keep the CX333s away from muddy lanes and would definitely not go anywhere near gravel. For wiping clean, it’s helpful that Lake has specced black Boa cable loops instead of white. These tend to absorb dirt and stay yellow forever. No such problem if they’re black from the start.
At the time of reviewing, we haven’t hit high summer yet so I haven’t been able to test ventilation in the hottest conditions, but clearly even leather with many perforations won’t be as cool as mesh, as used by the new Fizik Vegas. Lake itself offers a more vented climbing shoe in the CX302 (aka the narrow one). Having used the CX333s for Zwifting as well as outdoors, I’ve found that the leather does tend to hold moisture and take longer to dry than mesh or synthetic materials, as you’d expect. However, as Thomas says, “In the UK we have a lot of rain but I’m a firm believer in the tool for the job. I always use winter boots in the winter. So I don’t think it’s fair to say they’re not good at shedding water. It’s like saying a convertible sports car is no good in a deluge.”
Verdict
Yes they’re very expensive, priced well above both the S-Works Torch and the Shimano S-Phyre 903, which are often regarded as the benchmark for price and performance. However, to me it feels like comparing a custom, made-to-measure frame from a boutique brand against a mass-produced model that’s raced in the WorldTour: the Parlee or equivalent will always cost more, but you’re getting the premium materials, the workmanship, most importantly the perfect fit (which admittedly may need some investigation via a Lake specialist) and of course the cachet that goes with something high end and perhaps aimed more at the connoisseur. Since the fit is such a crucial element of Lake shoes, and because I’ve learnt a lot from him about the importance of a correctly fitting pair of shoes, I’m going to leave the last word to Thomas: “You can’t just walk into the shop [bicycle] and buy a pair of shoes. So we book a £50 shoe-fitting service in which we measure and assess the feet, pronation, arch stability or lack thereof, and we’ll recommend a shoe based on that, rather than saying ‘this shoe has a stiffness index of bollocks over nonsense’. I now ride a number of Lake models and I can’t tell the difference in the stiffness, so I think a lot of that marketing doesn’t translate in the real world.
“We’ve probably sold more shoes to consumers in the flesh than anywhere else in the country. Every single pair of shoes we sell is either sold in a bike-fitting environment or in a shoe-fitting environment, which is the most informed way of doing it without taking someone through a complete bike fitting scenario.”
I was lucky to have Lake themselves recommend me the CX333, which is a superb shoe and fits me perfectly, but if you're considering spending a considerable amount on a pair of Lake cycling shoes – and in my opinion these are worth it – I would recommend booking a session with a bike-fit professional to ensure you get the right Lake shoe.
