adidas Velosamba Vegan 'Cloud White'
Colorway: Cloud White/Cloud White/Core Black · Style code: GX1672 · Release date: June 2, 2022 · Price: $113 · Availability: Available now
More colorways: Adidas Velosamba Vegan Sneakers (GW5323)
adidas returned to cycling in late 2020 with a road shoe, and followed it a few months later with something less expected, a commuter shoe that looks like a Samba from every angle except underneath.
The point is that clipping into a pedal usually costs you the walk at either end. Dedicated cycling shoes are stiff, awkward on pavement, and unmistakably cycling shoes. The Velosamba keeps the gum-toned outsole and the T-toe overlay of the original, then hides a two-bolt cleat recess in the sole with a reinforced full-length plate above it for pedalling efficiency.
Reviewers noted the compromise runs both ways: stiffer than a sneaker to walk in, softer than a race shoe for power transfer, which is roughly what a commuter shoe should be. The vegan build replaces the leather upper with a coated synthetic that sheds water.