The Blivet Quilo FLT Gen 2 Boots: A Must-Have

In mountain biking, it's often said that the contact points with the bike (i.e., pedals, shoes, saddle, grips, and gloves) are the easiest upgrades to make and the ones that make a big difference in the quality of your time spent riding. It's often easy to see the relevance of some of these components. Everyone has experienced a saddle that turns their ride into a nightmare, and almost everyone sees the benefit of a good pair of gloves or pedals. Where it's not always easy to realize the importance of the impact on your ride quality is in grips and shoes, especially for people who are beginners or have never really given these elements much thought. And believe me, what a difference! But, this isn't only true for mountain biking. If you're a fan of Fatbikes, these elements are just as important. For the past few seasons, I've been riding Blivet accessories and equipment. Blivet is a Quebec company that primarily offers fatbike products. Based on my experience with their products, I've concluded that there's no reason to ride with accessories or components other than Blivet if they're part of their catalog. This conclusion is especially true for my two favorite Blivet products: the Quilo boots and the Vök + Mund grip and pogie duo. Let's talk a little about the Quilo boots.

The Quilo FLT Gen 2 Boots

In both winter and summer, I ride with flat pedals. So the Blivet boots I'm currently using are the Quilo FLT Gen 2. Here are some key features of these boots:

·      Vibram Ò XS Trek sole

·      Insertion of high thermal resistance EVA in the sole

·      Two self-locking speedlaces

·      3M Thinsulate insulation Ô 200g

·      A weight of 1138g per pair in size 44 (US 11 Men)

It goes without saying that people riding with clip-in pedals will immediately equip themselves with boots specially designed for fatbiking. It's mainly people riding flat pedals who don't necessarily seem to gravitate towards a cycling boot. Yet, just like summer on your mountain bike, it makes a world of difference. The Quilo boot will offer you far superior grip to your regular boots thanks to its flattened sole ensuring maximum contact with your pedal, the Vibram Ò compound, and the sole pattern designed to allow your pedal cleats to grip properly. Your regular boots will have a sole that's ideal for walking, but really ordinary for giving you grip on your pedals. Their compound will undoubtedly be much stiffer and slippery. In addition, the Quilo will weigh much less than most winter boots. On a fatbike, the rolling resistance of your tires on snow is already quite intense, put all the odds in your favor and lighten your boots.

I've ridden a few boots from different brands and in my experience, the Quilo boots are by far my favorite boots for fatbiking. First, the comfort of the Quilo is far superior to other boots I've tried. I have a slightly narrower foot and other brands didn't offer the same fit and comfort. They were all a bit too wide for me and my foot tended to move from left to right during my ride. The more flexible design of the Quilo is, in my opinion, one of the boot's greatest assets and contributes greatly to this superior comfort. The fact that it also has 2 speed laces allowing for a better fit on 2 different areas was a game changer for me personally. When there is only one speedlace or one Boa Ò , I always end up with a boot that will be too tight at the ankle and not tight enough at the foot. In terms of warmth, the boot does an excellent job of keeping my feet warm while letting them breathe. The EVA insert in the sole insulates the foot very well from the cold that can be transmitted by contact with the pedals. This is also a source of considerable heat loss and not all fatbike boots address this issue. I've never had a problem keeping my feet warm during a ride, even with temperatures below -20 degrees. As for ride quality, well, we're elsewhere. In my opinion, absolutely nothing compares to the Quilo for riding flats in winter. Other fatbike boots are designed primarily for riding with clip-in pedals. So if you want to ride with flats, you'll be using a boot whose stiffness is far too high to be comfortable and grip your flats well. In addition, the sole is far from being optimized for use with flat pedals. With my Quilo on my feet, I really feel like I'm on my mountain bike with my trusty RC shoes. A world of difference compared to other boots available on the market.

In short, if you want a boot that's truly made for riding on flat pedals and that will give you the same ride quality as your mountain bike shoes in the summer, the Quilo FLT Gen2 are by far the best purchase you can make. Also, since they're not originally designed to ride with clips, the price is really attractive compared to other options on the market. Plus, you're supporting a Quebec company, and that's really a choice we encourage you to make.