I have been waiting to buy these shoes, I had to wait for my Shimano SH-R171's which were a solid purchase to wear out before I deserved new shoes. I have had shoes from Sidi, Mavic, Garneau, Northwave, and Shimano. The Shimano shoes seem to be the best at combining comfort and power transition at the right price. More toe box space than the previously mentioned shoes and great overall feel. The Boa closures are really sweet and super easy to use, my Garneau' also has the Boa system but placed differently, the Rc7's placement is more comfortable and secure to me.
This is my second set of Shimano's metal disc pads, which have excellent stopping power for the price. They installed in minutes on my Cannondale CAAD 12 disc, putting the stopping power back in my Shimano hydraulic brakes. As noted in the title of the review, they tend to be louder than resin pads. If you're not bothered by the noise (I'm not), and want to stop efficiently, go with these. I reduced my rating from 5 to 4 stars simply because for some they might be too noisy for some riders. I definitely recommend.
I look for a shoe that is stiff enough and light enough that I've not wasting power, but that's also comfortable enough that I don't notice them when doing a century. These fit the bill. They're well made and the Boa controls are easy to use while on the bike to snug the shoe after riding for a while.
