In The Know Cycling

When the Rally version of the Shimano RX801 gravel shoes came out, shoes I’d previously recommended and wear when I’m not testing others, I wondered what additional benefit they could offer to my riding.

Listed as either the Shimano RX801 Rally, RX8R, or RX801R, these gravel shoes come in an attractive copper color with a high, elastic knit cuff that extends just above my ankles.

As I looked at them out of the box and then put them on, I wondered whether they were the gravel shoe equivalent of the high-top Converse basketball shoes I wore as a kid and that my daughter wears, untied, to be fashionable.

Or were they more like the taller football and lacrosse shoes that my son prefers for the extra support it gives his feet and ankles when he’s grinding in the trenches?

Or was there something about the RX801 Rally that would improve my gravel riding performance and experience?

Or was it just marketing?

While some of Shimano’s road, gravel, and MTB shoes do stand out for their unique colors and patterns, I think of Shimano principally as a brand that introduces thoughtfully designed, thoroughly engineered, and reasonably priced products.

So while I really liked the look of these shoes but was uncertain about how they’d perform, I put my marketing cynicism about cycling products aside as I started testing the RX801 Rally.

What I found after riding the Rally was an unexpected combination of functional and psychological benefits that made me want to wear them instead of the standard Shimano RX801 more often than not.

For me, and perhaps for many of you, the gravel riding season starts in early spring. The winter snow melt and spring rains create what we lovingly call “mud season.” In a good year, mud season starts in March and extends through May most years. Some of the best gravel events happen during these months that also precede the kick-off of the road bike season.

During mud season, the RX801 Rally shoes give me the sense that I’m riding with the protection of winter road cycling boots or shoe covers, protecting my ankles from the slop that I ride or walk through.

Of course, the ankle protection on the Rally isn’t as robust as that of boots, but the high tops on these Shimano shoes keep the mud from caking around the tops or getting inside my regular-height shoes.

And the RX801 Rally weighs only about 10 grams per shoe more than the latest RX801. That still makes it one of the lightest gravel or MTB shoes we’ve tested. And while the cuff takes a bit more effort to get the Rally on and off, once I’ve got them on, they give the same unusually good combination of heel hold, ample forefoot width, ride comfort, and walkability in a single Boa closure gravel shoe that caused fellow tester Nate and I to rate the original RX8 above its gravel shoe competitors.

Once the mud season is over, or I know a summer thunderstorm isn’t going to muddy the track (see Unbound 2022), I’ll generally wear my standard RX801. I even did a few days of A:B test rides on a dry course where I’d normally just swap wheels after a couple of laps but also swapped between the standard and Rally versions of these shoes.

On a warm day or when I’m riding a mixed pavement and Class 1 dirt or light gravel sections, the standard RX801 does the trick. But I also like what seems like a security blanket the Rally gives me, especially when I get onto a more challenging stretch where the surface I’m riding includes some single or double track or looser dirt and gravel that might kick up and find its way into my shoes.

And I never feel like I’m “over-shoed” or wearing more than I need with the Rally.

Bottom line, the Rally is a good choice if you ride muddy tracks or want to keep loose dirt, sand, and gravel out of your shoes.

Selling for just US$25/£35/€30 more than the below the ankle height RX801, you can order the Rally for US$300/£195/€195 at BTD (BikeTiresDirect), Performance Bike, and Sigma Sports.

Compare our reviews and ratings of these shoes with competitively performing models in my review of the Best Gravel Shoes.

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