Sidi Shoes

jhop

Maybe tempted by the advertising, my treat to myself for this season was some Sidi shoes. Yet despite claims to the contrary I find them quite uncomfortable after an hour or so.
Unlike my ancient Shimano ones they cause an ache in the middle of the sole of my foot and whilst loosening and tightening the fantastic strap does temporarily relieve things they just dont feel right.
I have only used them for rides up to 2 hours long as the discomfort experienced would make a longer spell in them really unpleasant.
I am beginning to think that I have made an expensive mistake.
Any advice / comments would be welcome. (Although feedback along the lines of more sense than money would not help!)

Monty Dog

I've never had a problem with Sidis, they are a great fit and very durable - it may well be that they don't suit the shape of your foot. It may be worth trying a different insole to give you more support under your foot - worth trying and cheaper than ditching them. Superfeet or Soles are brands that come to mind.

schweiz

Probably not much help, but with me it was the other way around. I have a pair of Shimano R099 shoes which I bought a couple of years ago. They seemed okay to begin with but once I started progressing to longer rides (5+ hours) they became unbearably uncomfortable no matter if I had the straps tight, loose or somewhere in the middle.

I then spent a good 2 months going round every cycle shop in the area trying on just about every brand I could think of. Some were instantly uncomfortable (Specialized) whilst I found that Sidi fitted like a glove. I have a pair of Genius 5.5 and the sole is slightly more flexible than the Shimano shoes being nylon with carbon inserts rather than full carbon. I think this helps and last summer I rode a 220km alpine sportive in 9hrs 15mins and had no discomfort at all.

I guess the moral of the story is that if you have found a pair of comfortable shoes stick with them! Everyone's feet are different and what is a good fit on one person isn't on another.

Pokerface

Which model Sidi are you wearing?

I'm currently on my 3rd pair of Sidis after trying both Shimano and Specialized. Can't beat Sidi's for me - but it's a personal thing.

Started with the Ergo 2's and now wear the Genius 6.6's - only because I prefer the colour combos better.

Not sure what model you have - but there MAY be differences between models that are affecting you.

The good news is - if you have a top-end model - they are easy to flog on eBay for close to retail price if in good condition. I sold my old, beat up Ergo 2's for quite a bit of money.

giant_man

Sidi shoes are supremely comfortable, largely thanks to the lorica used, but do stretch a little after some time I've found. Maybe you have the wrong size for you, when you say uncomfortable do you mean they feel too tight or tight in certain places on your feet? The 'ache in the middle of the sole of your foot' sounds like it's affecting one shoe and not both.

Blonde

I agree that insoles can help with foot or knee issues, but if you didn't use them before, then you should be able to use the Sidis without any special insoles as well.

It's possible that the size you've bought isn't the right one, or that the shape just isn't right for your feet, but are your cleats definitely in the right position? It's quite difficult to set up new cleats/shoes, particularly if they are a completely different make to the old ones so it might take a few rides to get the cleats in the right position. I had some initial foot ache in both my insteps (outer edge) with my new Sidis too, despite the fact that I already had two other pairs (same make, different model) and I thought I had set them up the same, but obviously I hadn't! The ache disappeared once I moved the cleats forward and angled them inward slightly (my feet turn outwards on the pedals and when I walk). If you also have high insteps and outward turning feet, it's possible that you need to angle the cleats more inwards. If you feet naturally turn in you'd need to angle the cleats more outwards. If the pain is more towards the outer edge of the instep I'd also suggest pushing the cleats more towards the outer edge of the shoe to bring your feet closer to the cranks - that's worked for me. That way there is more cleat/pedal diectly under the outer instep to give it more support. I would hazard a guess that if it's the opposite, and the pain is more towards the inside of the instep, you should move the cleats inward, which will put your feet further apart and provide more support to the inside of the foot.

jhop

Thanks.

Particularly for the advice on cleat positioning which I have spent quite a bit of time and care over already but will revisit.

The shoes concerned are the Genius 5.5 Carbon Composite road shoe.

I am confident that they are the right size and initially there is no problem the dull ache (In both feet) comes on after around an hour or so and is nothing that I have ever experienced before with any footwear at all.

I have not given up with them yet but guess ebay might be an option if I do!

Pokerface

I don't want to critique your purchase in any way - but it's POSSIBLE that the carbon composite sole on the 5.5's isn't as stiff or strong as the full carbon sole on the 6.6 model.


Not sure if that effects comfort at all - and certainly doesn't help you in any way. (Sorry)

jhop

After fine tuning cleats and switching insoles from my tried and tested shoes I wore the Sidis on a 5 hour Sportive and had no problems at all so thanks for the advice folks.

Barry Nice

jhop,

I have exactly the same issue in the same shoes, but only in my left foot.
Get aching in outside arch of foot after about an hour. I have Superfeet insoles but would like to know how you repositioned your cleat and by how much.

I have also PM'ed you.

Thanks for any infor you can give

Andrew_J

Barry Nice wrote:

jhop,

I have exactly the same issue in the same shoes, but only in my left foot.
Get aching in outside arch of foot after about an hour. I have Superfeet insoles but would like to know how you repositioned your cleat and by how much.

I have also PM'ed you.

Thanks for any infor you can give

Hi Barry did you get a response as i am also suffering for the same thing as yourself, (left foot only and on the outside edge of my foot) so if you have manged to rectify the problem or have any hints i would appreciate it.

nferrar

Just started wearing Sidi MTB shoes myself and feet seem fine despite having less arch support than I'm used to (with BG inserts). That said I still think it would be worth you looking at BG inserts and doing their foot test thing, perhaps you just got lucky with your old shoes and they had the right arch support etc. for your feet.

jhop

I fiddled extensively with the cleats in an attempt to get the optimum position and now after riding the Hampshire Hilly 100 have another 5 hours plus sportive under my belt without problems.

Not sure if there is anything I can add that will help but I have the cleats (Shimano SPR Yellow) as far forward as they will go and even filed away a little from the clip that the securing bolt passes through to tweak a maximum amount of movement. I also have them so that the shoe is as far away from the crank arm as possible.

A bit hit and miss but it seems to have done trick for me

I wonder if they work better with Look cleats?

Are you also using Shimano ones?

Andrew_J

Yes using Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL with Genius 5.5 Sidi's sounds like i just need to change the cleat position.

JonEdwards

Just bought some (admittedly secondhand) Sidi Dominator 5s. Fit is good, down right comfortable in fact, but I can't get over how flexy they are. For an expensive race shoe they're ridiculously soft. I'm commuting in them, and every time I power away from the lights I can feel the cleat pushing up through the sole and I only weigh 10stone! I certainly can understand the complaints about hot spots and sore feet in the reviews - I'm really not sure I'd want to do a full day ride in them.