It has been six years since French bike and pedal maker Time connected their two product lines with their own shoes. Now a new Osmos shoe family brings together three different carbon-soled performance road shoes to deliver high-end road riding performance for a range of budgets.
Time Osmos high-performance carbon road shoes
Cycling shoes are the most critical contact point between rider and bike when it comes to road riding performance. And Time wanted to move that next step closer from their bikes to their pedals to the cyclist, setting out to improve on both rider comfort and power transfer.
A big part of Time’s drive to develop their own shoes was the opportunity to fine tune the entire foot-to-bike contact structure by producing shoe, cleat & pedal. Time says they took advantage of this link to engineer a reduced stack height for improved pedaling efficiency and power transfer.
Time Osmos road shoes – tech details
While many high-end road cycling shoes lean exclusively on being the stiffest possible, Time sought to focus first on fit, so spent years refining a new road riding last in their own R&D facility in Montelbelluna, Italy that they share within their Rossignol Group parent company.
While they aimed to maintain a rigid structure, they also prioritized limiting rider muscle fatigue. To do that they needed an optimized shoe form & fit that would work with a wide range of road cyclists.
But they also developed a new Sensor 2 structure in the shoes’ soles & insoles with a unique foam in the metatarsal area to damp vibration. That limits the vibrations that typical stiff road shoes transmit directly into a rider’s feet, making the Osmos 15 and their special Sensor2+ insoles at once incredibly stiff, yet without fatiguing road buzz making it to the rider. The Osmos 12 & 10 get similar functionality incorporated into their carbon composite soles, tuned more towards comfort than ultimate stiffness.
Each of the shoes use a lightweight mix of similar bonded synthetic microfiber & mesh uppers to provide flexible support, durability, fit adjustability, and ventilation.
Time Osmos road shoes – pricing, spec & availability
Three different levels of the Osmos shoes correspond to three different composite sole constructions, as well as different Boa dial closures for each.
The top-end $400 / 350€ Osmos 15 incorporates an ultra-stiff full carbon outsole with molded carbon ribs for added strength without extra weight. The Osmos 15 also features the most ventilated upper and two Boa IP1 dials to fine tune fit, and a claimed 480g weight for the pair in sized 42.
The mid-level $325 / 300€ Osmos 12 uses an injection molded polyamide sole reinforced with 20% carbon fibers, then an additional full carbon insert at the forefoot under the pedal. It shares a similar vented mesh design as the 15, but a single Boa IP1 dial paired with a velcro forefoot strap for fit adjustment and slightly heavier 500g weight for the pair.
The base performance $250 / 250€ Osmos 10 gets full reinforced polyamide sole construction, again reinforced with 20% carbon fiber content. The 10 has a mostly single material, perforated upper with just one Boa IP1 dial for fit, plus a mech vented tongue, and the same light weight as the top-level 15s.
Interestingly, Time also lists a fourth Osmos 9 on their website. While that would suggest a more affordable version, it looks to share the same exact tech as the 10 in a black & red color, and the same 250€ pricetag. Perhaps a lower priced model with either a low-cost Boa dial or non-carbon-reinforced sole could be forthcoming.
All of the new shoes are being made in Romania. They have shipped out to global distributors, so should be available any day in most markets.
