Moose.eu Downhill sock

Unlike the Road Masters from Moose, the Downhills are cycling specific socks with a bent towards off-roading. Made from the same 100% synthetic fibres, the Downhill is a much thicker sock, with more padding throughout, whilst maintaining the cycling specific shaping and construction of its lower profile road sibling.

Extra padded areas include the ankle bones (both sides), toe area, and the whole sole of the foot, presumably taking into account hike-a-bike time. The mid-foot is still ribbed to contour around the foot, but not quite as snug as in the Road Masters, while the ventilated mesh panels at the top of the foot are smaller, but still assist in keeping overheating to a minimum. The ankle cuff is also longer than on the Road Master, but still comfortably secure, stretchy and plush. As with the Road Masters, the toe box is left and right specific and with quite a lot of space.

There's no getting away from the fact that these are pretty warm socks. The extra padding, the increased overall fabric density and the reduced ventilation panels mean they run much warmer than the Road Masters, and are really much better suited to colder riding conditions. The fabric wicks moisture well and dries quickly, but as with the Road Masters there's a certain stickiness to the skin left by the synthetic yarns. However, this is a less pronounced problem in a cold weather orientated sock. The increased volume of the Downhill also requires more shoe space, so these are ideal if you have a separate larger sized pair of shoes for winter training, or if you favour looser fitting casual touring or commuting shoes anyway.

Verdict

Comfortable and well designed extra cushioning on or off-road cycling sock, but best suited to cold weather.