Q36.5 UNIQUE PRO 4.0 road shoes

The Q36.5 Unique Pro 4.0 is the brand's race shoe, for sprints, criteriums and out-of-the-saddle accelerations. It takes the Unique Pro and adds a fourth insert under the sole, the one the cleat of the SRM X-Power Direct pedal needs.

It all comes down to height. The carbon sole is only 2.2 mm thick for 4.4 mm of total stack: the closer the foot is to the axle, the less leverage it has to rock with each push. With the X-Power Direct, bolted at two points in line with the foot, the gap between sole and axle drops by another 6 mm compared with a Shimano system, according to Q36.5.

A fitter's tip: when you switch from a Shimano or Look pedal to the SRM, lower your saddle by 6 mm, as Q36.5 recommends. Otherwise the leg extends further at the bottom of the stroke and the pelvis rocks to compensate. Without an SRM pedal, the fourth insert stays empty: the shoe fits like a three-hole one.

Q36.5 has it made in Italy, with the sole shaped by hand in Montebelluna. MAAKE offers it to riders on the SRM X-Power Direct, and to those who keep their three-hole pedals without closing the door.