Cyclingnews Verdict
For the money, the Le Col Neoprene Toe Covers are a good value way to fill a gap in your autumn/spring kit list
Pros
- +
Stylish design
- +
Good value
- +
Offer good warmth
Cons
- -
Lack of reinforcing under the toe may tear
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The Le Col Neoprene Toe Covers are designed to keep your feet warm when you may not need or want to wear a full overshoe. Several brands offer a similar product within their overshoe categories and for good reason, they can fulfil a really useful role.
The obvious time to be reaching for them would be in spring or autumn when your extremities (in this case your toes) start to feel the chill but a full overshoe feels like overkill. They provide an extra layer of warmth around the part of your foot directly in the line of the wind and most at risk of catching the spray coming up from the road.
Price: £25 / $32 / €29 / AU$46
Material: Neoprene
Available sizes: One size
Colours: Black with white logo
They retail for £25 / $32 / €29 / AU$46 and sit alongside two full overshoe offerings and a lighter-weight oversock in the Le Col range.
As part of my winter overshoe testing, I did a lot of riding in the Le Col Neoprene Toe Covers in autumn before the temperatures really plummeted. If you're wondering how they performed, the spoiler alert comes in the fact that I've already included them in our guide to the best cycling overshoes. To find out more about why they made the cut, keep reading.
Design and aesthetics
As the name suggests, the Le Col Neoprene Toe Covers are constructed using a Neoprene outer, but with a soft fleece inner layer. This likely aids the overall warmth, but also seems to help when pulling the covers on - no bad thing. They are approximately 3mm thick, and they come in one colour only, plain black with white 'Le Col' lettering across the front. They look great - not too garish, but not boring either.
They come in one size only, but due to the stretch of the neoprene, this won't cause any issues. They are pictured on my size EU43 Quoc Mono shoes and fit perfectly, and also go over my winter boots with ease too.
The bottom and top halves of the covers are stitched together and there is also stitching around the cleat cutout. There isn't a reinforced toe section or underside to the covers, just the same neoprene featured on the top.
I measure the covers at about 16cm long which covers the majority of the front of my size EU43 cycling shoes and wraps easily around the rear of the cleat with plenty of material to spare. They are actually a little longer than the Castelli Toe Thingy, for example, which means they cover a little more of the forefoot.
They're easy to clean too. Le Col simply suggests washing them inside out on a 30C machine wash.
Performance
I quickly grew quite fond of the Le Col Neoprene Toe Covers in use, and typically wore them on milder and chilly autumn rides when it was relatively dry. This is mainly because the point of any toe covers is not full-coverage protection, but to offer a better solution on those milder days.
If the roads were wetter I plumped for a full overshoe, and you'll probably want to too, but at around 3mm in thickness, there's enough material in the right places to block wind and spray, so they really do keep your feet warm on milder days. My toes felt quite comfortable on chillier rides where otherwise they'd have suffered.
The lack of bulk is also quite nice. I noticed it straight away and wearing them does make you feel more fleet-footed compared to having the extra weight of a full overshoe. As spring approaches, hopefully bringing milder temperatures with it, I can see myself reaching for these regularly.
Unfortunately though, as mentioned, the underside of the covers doesn't feature any reinforcing and as shown above, there is some wear showing on the front of my clipping-in foot. I can see the undersides here getting torn or broken down fairly easily, particularly for riders that walk around a lot at cafes or before/after rides. The covers, I'm sure, have been designed for riding and not walking but it is a point to be mindful of.
Verdict
The Le Col Neoprene Toe Covers do a great job of providing extra warmth in cooler conditions when you still need a bit of protection. For the money, they can do a really useful job for you in autumn, spring or when you just don't want the bulk of an overshoe. They will shrug off road spray and light showers, and while you will obviously still get a wet foot in sustained rain, they'll still do a decent job of keeping you warm. You could even use them to add additional protection under a full overshoe for extreme temperatures.
As long as you are easy on them when off the bike, I think you'll be impressed.
| Design | Simple, functional does what it's meant too, sliight weak spot underneath | 8/10 |
| Performance | Kept my feet and toes warm in cooler conditions | 8/10 |
| Comfort | Soft fleece inner feels like | 8/10 |
| Protection | Add a good amount of warmth for their intended conditions, feet will get wet in heavy rain | 7/10 |
| Value | Not expensive and do a useful job | 8/10 |
| Overall | Row 5 - Cell 1 | 78% |
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