A company that produces high-tech footwear, both for professional sport and everyday use, needs to count on the support of athletes testing the products daily and contributing to their development. 

It’s a value that cannot be renounced. This is a fact, and it is not a novelty.

In the big Sidi family Michele Pirro is certainly a reference rider with an innate predisposition to seek improvement in the smallest details.

Yesterday, April 13th, during a visit at our offices in Maser, rider and test-driver, Michele, told us what it means to have a dual role.

Rider and test driver, what are the fundamental differences between the two roles?

There are two major differences: the rider must be "focused" on giving his best and expressing all the potential he needs to go fast during the race weekends. Basically he is entirely focused on himself.

The test driver, on the other hand, works about 7-8 hours a day, has to have an outright view and is also very clear about the needs of the other users of the product.

Over the years, I have learned to distinguish and manage these two objectives.

Being a test rider means paying attention to details in order to continuously improve a bike. Is it important to have a great feeling and sensitivity in your work?

I can confirm that years of experience are fundamental. I was lucky enough to start doing this job when I was young, and this has allowed me to be one of the best in this role. Ducati helped me grow. Starting very young meant that I didn't have any prejudices and I could gradually improve. I grew up with them and maybe, in a company where the bike is already perfect, I couldn't have grown so much.

Do you feel more like a rider or a test driver?

Ah this question is too obvious (giggles). I feel like a rider and I work all year round to be a rider. The fact of being a test rider and improving the bikes, it's still competition because you try to improve to win. My goal is to do the races and improve to always get the best results.

The race you remember most fondly? The circuit you like the most?

There are many circuits I like, Mugello and Misano in Italy, and Australia and Laguna Seca abroad. Usually a rider likes tracks where he gives his best.

What do you prefer about Rex boots? What would you absolutely not change?

As with Ducati, with whom I developed a competitive bike, with Sidi I went through a process of evolution. Rex is the result of the work done over the years and the know-how of the riders involved in the search for the best balance between comfort and safety. If it is true that you have to take comfort into consideration, it is equally true that you cannot neglect safety. I have to say that Sidi has always paid a lot of attention to this issue, being well aware that injuries are part of a rider's job. However, if the rider has a company behind him that knows how to limit the damage caused by falls, it is certainly a very important aspect. For me Rex is all of this, comfortable, safe and reliable.

How will you match your job with the arrival of your baby girl?

It's a wonderful novelty, it's a moment in life you're never ready for, so I don't know yet if I'll be able to do everything, but I know I'll get organised because I want to continue racing at a high level and I want to do well in my job. The birth of my daughter is certainly an extra stimulus. I have a supportive person next to me and I know that she will help me, so I continue with what I have built. I also know that I have the support of my sponsors, who are like a family to me, and this is another strong point. Sidi is one of the companies where I feel at home and I thank them for helping me achieve all this.