• The Good – Very cheap price, lots of colour choice
• The Bad – Very tight fitting, lack of breathability
• The Ugly – The look has proved very divisive

With the long hot English summer (clears throat) coming to an end and the damp, nay soggy, autumn fast approaching, one of the essential pieces of kit you need in your cycle bag are a good pair of overshoes. Having neatly destroyed my old pair in a fit of panic as a particularly nasty storm approached I was in the market.

Released earlier this year to much fanfare the ‘Toze certainly seemed an interesting proposition. Coming in 7 different colours, 4 different sizes and 2 cuts (Tall and Short), it’s safe to say that there’s something for everyone and matching kit and/or bike shouldn’t be a problem. Further, given the really competitive price of £14.99 for the tall covers (£12.99 for the short) I took the plunge and found myself with a pair in red (to match my faithful steed) making their way to me.

I am not sure what I was expecting but when they arrived I was surprised at just how small these folded down. They take up no more room in your back pocket than an energy bar (and weigh considerably less), so needless to say as 1st impressions go, so far so good.

Containing natural rubber latex and being very close fitting these do offer a rather interesting look, I loved them but Mrs Rouleur certainly didn’t. My ride partner was also not taken with my latest acquisition asking ‘Why in the hell are you wearing condoms on your feet!?’ on one particular damp morning.

So tick one for storability, and a neutral for look.

Described as waterproof, windproof, lightweight, zipless, aerodynamic, compact (and breath) these make a number of claims and I can say they don’t disappoint. Well I can vouch for all but the Aero anyway, I have much bigger problems in this department (belly, chins, excessive facial hair) to notice the difference an overshoe makes, but they certainly ‘look’ aero.

The very snug fit solves one problem, but  for me raises two. First the good; sitting tightly around the ankle there is no seepage of water into the top of your shoes and they certainly don’t let road spray in underneath either which is great, BUT…. the Bad. Because of the design and material, breathability for your foot is approximately zero!! Taking my shoes off at the end of the ride, my feet if anything were even wetter than if I had just gone for a ride in flip-flops. And now the Ugly….

Firstly these are so bear huggingly snug that they actually come with a full list of instructions to get them on your feet, take a moment to think about that, instructions for putting them on!!!! Secondly as you need to take your shoes off to fit these they are not too conductive to speedy transitions; so what you save in Aero, you lose in installing them on your feet. Sitting outside a Spar in Belgium as the rain started to fall I had a choice, take off my shoes and then gurn away trying to get these on (the ugly) or use my time more wisely and head back inside for a second sausage roll. I’ll let you decide what I did.

Finally on to the durability, a point that seems to be the biggest issue from the negative (very few I might add) reviews I have read. I will leave it for you to decipher this from the official velotoze website.

The rather cryptic answer to the question of ‘How long do they last?

‘veloToze are designed to be used multiple times, but if you take them on and off carefully and follow the proper care instructions, they can last longer’…….

What does it all mean?!?!?!?!?

Well in summary, would I buy them again? At this price point sure, but will I be looking for slightly more stretchy alternatives, probably.

6/10