Sidi - 100% Italian?

We like Sidi, they make awesome cycling shoes but... Sometimes they are just very Italian. Their shoe sizes is one example. Their size 43 is actually more like a size 42, at least if you're used to Northern sizes. Another example is their sense of style, but there we have absolutely no complaints. Sidi make really good-looking shoes, in a variety of styles (as far as bicycle shoes go) and colours. Actually, you'd be hard pressed not to find a pair of shoes that would go with your style. Also, their shoes are made in Italy, which means fair wages and working conditions for the emplyees, and made with more environmentally friendly methods. That's super cool. (When it comes to comfort and quality of their shoes, we will have to come back with a review of our Genius 5 Fit Carbon when we have thoroughly tested them.)

But then there are the ads...

 (We borrowed this picture from Italian Bicycle. Hope that's OK!)

We don't know who this girl is. But sitting on the back seat of a rusty tandem bicycle with the kick stand down, in a bikini top and cut off denim shorts, her bicycle shoe-clad foot pushing (well...) a standard pedal, draped in the Italian flag... Why would anyone in their right mind buy bicycle shoes from this company? Would Italians in their right mind do it? Anyway this catalogue cover, as well as the ad, is aimed at the North American market.

(We borrowed the picture from ProBikeKit blog. Hope that's OK!)

Then there's Filippo Pozzato. Filippo Pozzato is a professional bicyclist. But why is he naked and has got oil over his whole body? Of course Filippo Pozzato is free to walk around naked with oil all over his body if he wants to, but what has that got to do with cycling? We don't think (and we certainly don't hope) that Sidi suggests that we should ride our bikes naked (except for Sidi shoes, of course) and covered in oil.

(Actually we don't want to tell you where we found this picture, because... well, we found it on a really dodgy website. But do a search on "Tiffany Toth Sidi ad" if you're interested.)

And then there's Tiffany Toth, a Playboy model and make up artist. What has she got to do with bicycling? OK, to be correct she's wearing motorcycle boots. (Right? Our knowledge in that field is kind of limited.) So what has Tiffany Toth got to do with motorcycles? Does she ride motorcycles, when not modeling and doing make up? And why is she naked? Because "Sidi is the only protection she relies on"? For her sake, we hope that she relies on something else as well.

Lastly there's this advertising film

that we love. It makes us smile. What's not to like? We like Vincenzo Nibali, also when he's not doing Sidi ads, and even though we must confess that we don't know much about Ivan Basso he seems cool as well. We're not sure if the film would make us choose Sidi shoes (Yeah, it would!), but we hope that Sidi keeps running it nonetheless. And if Sidi ever starts making olive oil, we'll definitely buy it!

Ride safe!