Fizik has gradually built up its shoe range, starting with road, then heading through XC, trail and gravel – not forgetting winter boots – and now onto Gravity riding. The new Gravita Versor and Tensor are Fizik’s response to the quest for the perfect Downhill shoe. Let’s take a closer look.
There are two shoes in the Gravita gravity range: the Versor and the Tensor. Both models are available as either a flat or clipless shoe. The Tensor is a racing shoe, aimed at performing in the rough and tumble (or hopefully not tumble) of the World Cup Downhill or EWS circuit. The Versor is designed to be a little more suitable for the casual rider – still with a gravity focus, but not so pricey as the race shoe.
All the shoes were created through what Fizik calls the ‘Fizik Concepts’ process. Here they bring in people from outside the company to try and bring a fresh perspective to the product design, to try and break away from the bonds of tradition. Instead of taking existing shoes and asking how they can be improved, they looked at racing and asked what demands today’s race courses place on shoes – and feet. With input from Unno’s Cesar Rojo and former World Cup racer Bernat Guadia, it was decided that the primary consideration was grip, with a secondary focus on protection. Comfort, performance and weight were next down the list of priorities, with longevity and water management just behind them.
Blue sky thinking done, they came up with the first designs, based around a standard size 42 last, but also around a size 46 so Bernat could try them out. About six iterations were made of these initial samples, before progressing to Fizik’s pool of field testers, and then pro riders – some of whom spent the end of season races in 2020 racing in these shoes, under the radar. This testing process goes as far as testing the shoes in all sizes and making sure that every colour finish has also been given field testing – just in case a specific dye doesn’t prove as durable as another.
So after all that imagineering and creativity, what have they come up with? Well…some quite normal looking shoes. They’d certainly not leap out at you in a line up of current gravity shoes as offering up anything revolutionary or ground breaking, but perhaps there is the right mix of finishing touches to catch your attention.
Both the flats and clips have the same upper shoe construction, and the RipStop fabric is used across the Versor and Tensor. The soles are the same across the Versor and Tensor (though obviously different between the clips and flats), so it’s in the upper construction that the distinction is drawn between the race shoe and the more casual Versor.
Going back to that list of priorities identified in the design process, the grip comes from the sole and Fizik partnered with Vibram to improve the sole to both companies’ benefits. The clipless sole is a little less sticky than the flat sole in order to allow clipping in and out without sticking to your pedal platform, and the cleat track goes back into the foot so that you can get a good rearward placement of cleats. The cleat track is also offset to one side of the shoe so that your rubbery soles don’t rub your cranks.
Often a shoe will be designed on a standard size 42 last then scaled up or down for the other sizes – this means that then pin placement in relation to the tread doesn’t end up consistent across sizes. On these shoes, both the clipless and flats, the spotty tread pattern has been designed specifically for each shoe size to allow optimal placement of the pins between the spots. At the toe and heel the tread is a little deeper for grip off the bike.
To give protection, the shoe has an injection moulded rubber toe and rubber laminate around the heel – protecting both the shoe and the foot inside. For the foot inside, there’s also protection from an Aeroprene liner within the shoe – this gives a nod to that low down priority of ‘water management’ in that it doesn’t hold or absorb water, meaning the shoes will dry quickly. The race focused Tensor comes with a built up heel cuff with extra protection for the ankle bone, but this is absent from the Versor (apparently your average trail rider doesn’t need this, the clumsy among us might have ankles that would disagree).
Performance is however more of an issue for the racer, and with an emphasis on explosive power in race settings – out of the start ramp, on flat sections, or across the finish lines – the shoes are designed to transfer power into your pedals. The Tensor is equipped with a ‘power strap’ to help hold your foot in place, and the outsoles are designed to be stiff enough not to waste any power – although the flat shoes have enough flex for you to wrap your feet round the pedals a bit for grip.
Does all that add up to a shoe that performs? Our DH ‘racer’ George Thompson has some first ride impressions of the Versor, in its clipless guise. Singletrack World Members can read his thoughts below.
Fizik Versor First Ride Review
There are certain items of bike related kit that I’m quite particular about and others, I’m just not. I don’t think I’ve ever worried about jumping on a bike that didn’t have my preferred choices of Hope hubs or Shimano cranks; quite frankly my skill level just isn’t honed enough to notice such differences.
Contact points though… furrows brow, purses lips and inhales before adopting broadest Yorkshire accent “I know what I like, and I like what I bloody well know”. Ergon GE1 grips, SDG Bel-Air saddle, Crank Brothers DH Mallet pedals and Shimano AM9 shoes as it happens. The latter two are used for pretty much every occasion, including the commute. Aside from a pair of Five Tens which I bought for a brief and as yet still unsuccessful venture with flats (it’s only been five years, give it time), I’ve used this combination of pedal and shoe for as long as I can remember. So, what’s tempted me away? Well, it didn’t take much actually; a message from Hannah asking, “what shoe size are you?” closely followed by “there’s a new player in the DH shoe market”. Always keen to try new stuff, I had cleats installed within an hour of the Fizik Gravita Versor’s arrival, which is a new record in our house so…
First impressions then? “Ooooh they look nice, I like them” my wife approved, and I have to agree that they’re a nice-looking shoe. The laces are offset to the side, the uppers are a ripstop woven mesh and there’s a PU-laminated toe cap for protection and durability. Fizik have made a point of eliminating excess material which shows as they’re much narrower than my AM9’s and they do feel lightweight for a DH shoe. The lack of a lace flap is an aesthetic delight but may be a concern when the weather turns biblical.
The product sheet describes the Versor as “A versatile, lightweight lace-up mountain biking shoe that is ideal for those using clip-in pedals when mixing up lift assisted DH laps with trail riding”. Ideal for a commute on the CX bike then, which was my actual ‘first ride’ in them but they actually performed that function pretty well. Comfy from the off and the sole is super stiff which enabled me to get the power down. They’re comfortable to walk around in and aside from the trip-trap of the cleats on the office floor I don’t think anyone would’ve noticed I was still wearing cycling shoes at lunch time. That ‘first ride’ was just to check the shoes were set up to my liking before our team day at Revolution Bike Park.
Onwards to Llangynog then and by the end of the first 3-minute run I’d clipped and unclipped more times than I did during the 30-minute commute and it soon became apparent that I needed a second shim underneath the cleat as I was struggling to get the cleat in. The circular pattern tread on the Versors is similar to perhaps the most famous MTB shoe brand (think of a number that follows 4 and precedes 6 and then double it) and rather than being scaled off a sample size, each sole has been designed for each shoe size so the circular pads should line up with the pedal pins and I found that to be pretty accurate which means they’re incredibly grippy. That super grippy sole which has been designed to stop your feet moving around on the pedals works against you when you’re struggling to clip in but the shoes come with a set of shims, as do the pedals so no drama there and once the second shim was installed I had no issues clipping in at all.
Personal preference is that I like to have my cleats set as far back as possible so I’m using my quads rather than my calves which promotes a more stable riding position and means that the pressure is being applied to larger muscles. 5 mins into a run down Fort William you really don’t want your calves screaming for a rest. The Versors have a decent sized cleat box which allows you to get the cleats pretty far back. This cleat box is also offset from the centre of the shoe to promote a wider stance, increasing leverage which helps to drive the bike through turns. Combine the two and you’ve got a riding position that’s more akin to flat pedals which takes some getting used to and after one day I’m still not there. With the cleat in the centre of the tracks I can see the inside edge of the pedal and it’s really noticeable that my foot is hanging off the outside. There is a little bit of room to move the cleat laterally which I’ll be doing before the next ride.
World Cup legend Bernat Guardia has been involved in designing this shoe from the start and we have the same size feet, so maybe the Gravita Versor will improve my riding; which to be fair, isn’t something I ever expected from a shoe!
First impressions then are that they’re good not great but they have potential and I’ll be hammering the Fizik Gravita Versors over the next few months ahead of a full review in the summer.
TENSOR Specifications
Clipless
- Ripstop fabric + TPU reinforced upper
- Laces + instep velcro closure
- X6 outsole – nylon shank, EVA midsole, Vibram® Megagrip tread
- Outsole stiffness index 5
- Weight: 410 g
- Sizes: 36-48 (37 to 47 also in half sizes)
- Intended use – downhill, enduro
- Colours – Black/Black, Grey/Aqua Marine, Red/Black
- £174.99 / €179 / $179.99
Flat
- Ripstop fabric + TPU reinforced upper
- Laces + instep velcro closure
- X6 outsole – EVA midsole, Vibram® Megagrip tread
- Outsole stiffness index 2
- Weight: 310 g
- Sizes: 36-48 (37 to 47 also in half sizes)
- Colours – Black/Black, Grey/Aqua Marine, Red/Black
- £164.99 / €169 / $169.99
VERSOR Specifications
Clipless
- Ripstop fabric upper
- Laces closure
- X6 outsole – nylon shank, EVA midsole, Vibram® Megagrip tread
- Outsole stiffness index 5
- Weight: 355 g
- Sizes: 36-48 (37 to 47 also in half sizes)
- Colours – Black/Black, Black/Purple, Grey/Mud
- £129.99 / €139 / $149.99
Flat
- Ripstop fabric upper
- Laces closure
- X6 outsole – EVA midsole, Vibram® Megagrip tread
- Outsole stiffness index 2
- Weight: 270 g
- Sizes: 36-48 (37 to 47 also in half sizes)
- Colours – Black/Black, Black/Purple, Grey/Mud
- £124.99 / €129 / $139.99
The shoes are available from Fizik dealers and UK distributor Extra UK.
For flat shoes there are only two questions possible.
Are they better than 5:10 pro’s?
Are they cheaper than 5:10 pro’s?
These aren’t cheaper.
Third question, are they shaped like actual human feet? Seems not.
Baffles me why cycling shoe companies still use laces, the are a pain to clean when they get muddy and they can catch on the chain. Put a cover over them or use a different system (e.g. Boa).
Prices are rediculous, but people keep paying….
Once again I agree with Onzadog and Mr Dog Bone. Can we have grippy shoes that are foot shaped please?
Also please stop making them ugly
YES YES YES please make human foot shaped shoes!
so sick of the weird things companies expect us to ram our feet into