Sidi took their excellent All Road boots and chopped the tops off to create the over-ankle Fast Rains – the name might not make much sense but boots themselves are fantastic. Originally designed for urban riders to go under jeans, all kinds of riders have discovered the Fast Rains over the last year because they’re well-designed and come with lots of Sidi’s high-tech features normally reserved for their pricier footwear.
The base materials are Cordura and Technomicro, the latter of which is a proprietary synthetic material that is stronger and lighter than leather. The two are fused together with double-stitching in high stress areas and a double layer of Technomicro is utilized as a shifter pad. After a month of usage, it is clear that the Fast Rains are all-day comfortable thanks to a breathable and soft Cambrelle lining which wicks away moisture and prevents your feet from getting too hot. A full-length inner gaiter keeps the boots waterproof and windproof.
Sizing is spot on and the nylon inner sole is complemented by a 3mm arch support pad that you can remove if desired. Ease of entry and exit is high as there are no laces, just three Velcro fasteners. The top fastener is traditional Velcro, while the bottom two feature Sidi’s patented High Security Velcro – it combines traditional Velcro with plastic teeth that lock in to secure the straps where you placed them.
Internally, the toes, ankles, and heels get reinforced protection with the chassis of the boot. Bonded non-slip lug soles provide good grip on all surfaces and are replaceable. In general, these are well-thought out but I think a mistake was made with the location of the three reflective dots above the heel. They should have been placed lower down to minimize the possibility of long pants covering up the reflective dots and rendering them useless.
That gripe aside, the Fast Rains are very comfortable boots that would work for year-round commuting or even touring for those of you that don’t want full length footwear going up your calves. Available sizes run between 7-15 and you can get it in any color you want, as long as it’s black. Henry Ford would be proud.
Check out the Sidi Fast Rain boots ($175) from Sidi’s US distributor, Motonation.
Photos by Nathan May
The above review was written for a magazine after a month of everyday use. I’ve found these to be so good that they’ve earned a place in my usual day-to-day rotation – it just depends if I’m feeling like a short boot or a tall boot in a given day.
11 months of intermittent usage later and I’m still very happy with them, which is why I’ve used them on multiple bike launches where rain was expected (Honda Gold Wing and Yamaha MT-07). One thing to note is that on the right toe box, some material has started to peel off. I know I haven’t crashed in these boots but I simply cannot figure out what caused this: if something fell on them, if they got jostled around too hard in my luggage on a plane, or if it’s a manufacturing defect of some sort. At this point I’m considering it a fluke, but I thought you should be aware:
