Vitesse Avant Garde Motorcycle Boots

Saturday, April 24th, 2010

Let’s be honest. Motorcycle boots aren’t the most comfortable of items to wear. Walking any further then a few yards soon expose them for what they are, safety items with rigid soles and stiff leather wrapping your foot and ankle. This, apparently, is the reason many riders don’t like wearing motorcycle boots?

So, enter Vitesse. The avant garde motorcycle boot company, founded by husband and wife team Caroline and John Mollanger, creates boots that are engineered for performance and designed to be worn everyday.

“The Vitesse motorcycle boots blend innovative moto performance with easy to wear, beautiful styling. Existing motorcycle boots all look alike because they are inspired by other motorcycle boots. Vitesse boots are inspired by everyday footwear such as shoes and trainers. The result is a collection of three boots that will make riders confident when they ride, comfortable and beautiful on and off the bike. ”

Having taken a look at the three boots we have to say we’re a little confused by the marking. Only the Hunt boot looks different from anything else we’ve seen. The Glove and the Vulcan don’t look too dissimilar to some Arlen Ness boots we’ve seen or some of the boots custom riders wear.

By their own admission the boots aren’t cheap, the Glove is the most expensive at 200 Euros, although given the price of a pair of Sidi boots we don’t feel that’s that expensive.

39 year old Frenchman John Mollanger has spent his entire career in the sporting goods and lifestyle industry, nine years with Nike in France and the USA and six years with Puma in the USA and Germany. 36 year old Caroline Mollanger spent two years at Puma Moto working on their global marketing campaigns. The couple use Italian design house One Design as its product design partner. One Design also design for Puma, creating footwear for the World Cup and the Puma moto footwear products.

The Boots

HUNT

Hunt is the statement of the Vitesse collection and inspired by traditional work boots. The mainstay of the Vitesse collection is the patented V-Cockpit technology (see below) and apparently provides the rider a great dose of comfort and protection. Made with American Saddle leather and featuring an adjustable lace-up construction, the Hunt is 175 Euros.

GLOVE

Vitesse say the Glove is the sportster in the collection. Also featuring the V-Cockpit technology, Glove features fitted, ventilated leather with track proof elements with zinc-alloy forefoot sliders, external tibia plate, calf spoiler and an injected shift pad. Hunt will cost 200 Euros.

VULCAN

Vulcan is based on athletic trainers and also features V-Cockpit technology. Vulcan has a waxed upper material and will cost 150 Euros.

V-COCKPIT TECHNOLOGY

Vitesse invented and patented the V-Cockpit, an ankle management device that offers comfort and safety. It features a soft wrap around bootie that encapsulates the foot in a comfortable cradle, offering better walking comfort and impact absorption. A rigid, tri-dimensional structure helps protect from impact. The extended forefoot construction guarantees maximum torsional rigidity, keeping the foot stable in the event of an aerial crash.

A radial monobloc, chassis integrates the two other layers into a fully functional system. It reunifies the function of control, stability and protection into one single piece.

Vitesse only sells to consumers through it’s own online store this, so they say, means more value goes to the consumer.

Our main issue, and perhaps we’ve just been conditioned with ‘traditional’ boots such as Sidi that are covered with bits of plastic and more fastners than a YKK factory, but these just look a little too light in the safety area.We guess the only way you’re going to know if they’re any good is to buy some…unless Vitesse want to send us a pair to test…