Shoes...

digitaldave

I'm planning on getting some clipless pedals for my road bike, and numerous people have suggested SPD pedals, as it's easier to get shoes that you can actually walk around in, but these tend to be MTB type shoes. Are there any road type shoes that will take SPD cleats whilst still being easy to walk around in. A second option someone has mentioned is touring shoes, but I have no idea what they are! The final option would be to get MTB shoes as mentioned at the start.

So, any suggestions or tips about shoes?

Thanks,

Dave .

sods_law

Do you need to walk around in your bike shoes?

Road bike shoes normally have an inflexible sole, and are definately the way to go if performance is a factor.

I dont know if you can get road shoes which would suit SPD pedals, I havnt seen any myself.

If you need to walk though, and taking a spare pair of shoes isnt practical, then MTB shoes will work fine, though you will still sound like a tap-dancer when you walk!

fungus_the_muffin_man

I think the dhb road shoes from wiggle have the capability to take spd cleats But I doubt you'd be able to walk much in any road shoe with a spd clip on?

I use dhb mtb shoes with spd cleats they're extremley comfy and
have a very solid base like a road shoe. Plus you can walk in them and clip in easier than with a road clip on.

Oh and as stated above you will sound a bit clip cloppy as you walk in them. But the hospital where I work are used to it now lol.

oscarbudgie

I have some Specialized BG Sports MTB shoes (with SPD's) which I'm very pleased with - good to walk in, stiff enough soles and look suitably 'road' despite being an MTB shoe - I think in fact Spesh sell the same shoe but with a flat sole as a road shoe.

softlad

I don't understand the obsession with needing to 'walk' in cycling shoes. You can walk in road shoes - just not very well.

The furthest I ever walk in mine is from the front door to the bike - and back again at the end of the ride......

jswba

oscarbudgie wrote:

I have some Specialized BG Sports MTB shoes (with SPD's) which I'm very pleased with - good to walk in, stiff enough soles and look suitably 'road' despite being an MTB shoe - I think in fact Spesh sell the same shoe but with a flat sole as a road shoe.

A big +1

mask of sanity

softlad wrote:

I don't understand the obsession with needing to 'walk' in cycling shoes. You can walk in road shoes - just not very well.

The furthest I ever walk in mine is from the front door to the bike - and back again at the end of the ride......

I don't get it either! A few minutes of difficult walking is a small price to pay for more efficient cycling!

timb64

The received wisdom is "thou shalt not walk in road shoes!" :shock:

sods_law

timb64 wrote:

The received wisdom is "thou shalt not walk in road shoes!" :shock:

You can, 1000s of cyclists walk around local cafe's and shops on Sunday mornings after a ride. I wouldnt want to walk more than 50m in them though to be honest, not the most practical of shoe for walking.

timb64

sods_law wrote:

timb64 wrote:

The received wisdom is "thou shalt not walk in road shoes!" :shock:

You can, 1000s of cyclists walk around local cafe's and shops on Sunday mornings after a ride. I wouldnt want to walk more than 50m in them though to be honest, not the most practical of shoe for walking.

Perhaps I should have edited the :shock: to a as there's no tongue in cheek emoticon

oscarbudgie

softlad wrote:

I don't understand the obsession with needing to 'walk' in cycling shoes. You can walk in road shoes - just not very well.

The furthest I ever walk in mine is from the front door to the bike - and back again at the end of the ride......

I don't think its an obsession - simply that a lot of riders use their bikes as vehicles for going places - when they get there they get off and do something that involves walking. I've also found spd/ mtb shoe combo makes life easier when going through heavy, unpredicatble London traffic.

Mills127

I'm also thinking of getting some road shoes, as i'll be no longer commuting but going out specifically riding.

I'm probably going to get some dhb R1 shoes. However, the choice of pedal makes (Look, Time, Shimano etc etc) and their different cleat systems is pretty huge. As a bit a novice, is there much between similar priced systems (ie. look / shimano pedals around the £50 mark) or is it down to user preference?

any recommendations would be much appreciated!

(apologies mods if this is in the wrong place / a much repeated question! :oops: )

sods_law

Mills: It is down to user preference. I use some £30 Look Keo Classics, and they work fine for me. As you pay more, you get extra features (like adjustable spring tension), and they weigh less. All makes are similar, just variations on a theme, whatever you get you will get used to.

fungus_the_muffin_man

If your going to be commuting and have a bit of a walk once you get off the bike then IMO mtb shoes are the way to go. If you are just going to be road biking or don't have far from getting off the saddle once at work then go for the roadie.

I have to walk up stairs carrying my bike, then along polished floor corridors in a hospital. I'd rather live with the stability and clip clopping of the mtb shoes then risk it in roadie shoes.

S2driveruk

i started off with a pair of Specialized Taho mtb shoes and a pair of shimano A520 touring spd pedals.

Really comfy combination if you want to do some walking and have a solid platform for pedaling a road bike.

Having said that, found that I wasn't walking anywhere and stumbled across a pair of Spesh bg elites in the evans sale so have changed to those and a pair of looks for the bianchi I'm sure once winter comes those will be back on the bike again though - keep your feet much warmer!

Biscuiteer

jswba wrote:

oscarbudgie wrote:

I have some Specialized BG Sports MTB shoes (with SPD's) which I'm very pleased with - good to walk in, stiff enough soles and look suitably 'road' despite being an MTB shoe - I think in fact Spesh sell the same shoe but with a flat sole as a road shoe.

A big +1

I've got the road version you mention with Speedplay Zeros fitted - and this shoe will also take SPD cleats although they won't be recessed like on a proper MTB shoe. With the Speedplay Coffee Shop covers on I can quite happily walk around in them. It's a bit clumpy but neither uncomfortable nor dangerous. Every ride, I walk across my garden and down a gravel drive for about 50 metres before I get to the tarmac lane where I can start my ride. I've not fallen over or gone lame yet.

And if you're interested in weights, I saved half a kilo when I changed from SPDs and MTB shoes to the Speedplays and road shoes.

Tony666

I can recommend the dhb shoes - they get rave reviews too (including 10/10 from Cycling Plus and are a lot cheaper than others: http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/dhb_R ... 360042950/

dilemna

If you're going for clipless pedals go for cleats if you want a proper road shoe. Sidi are the best shoes by a mile IMHO. Proper road shoes do not have a treaded sole for walking on but typically a smooth shiny underside with a heal protector and the cleat to lock into the pedal. They are very rigid with virtually no flex in the sole for efficient pedalling. If you want to go hiking, walking or shopping then buy an SPD system MTB/touring shoe as these shoes have soles for walking, within which a cleat is located. These shoes are stiff but not as rigid as road shoes and they tend to be slightly heavier. Fitting the smaller SPD cleats to road shoes would be lethal to walk on IMHO. It is hard enough on larger road cleats but the idea is not to walk very far on these as you should be riding :roll: .

Campy King

Go for Sidi road shoes and road cycling cleats, SPD SL, Look, Time etc etc. I will second that. You will only decide you want a pair some time down the line.

speedo

just purchased my 1st pair of clipless shoes and cleats( Specilaized BG sport 2010 shoes (£60 ) and LOOK cleats (£40 fitted ) from my local bike shop.
Excellent value for money,would recommend both if on a tight budget

Blonde

If you commute and need to walk to/from the bike shed to your office, since you'll have luggage for carrying your clothing etc. anyway, why not go for road shoes/cleats/pedals, and simply carry a cheap and lightweight pair of mules, flip-flops or pumps to use for walking, rather than risk spoiling your cleats, or falling on slippery surfaces? I walk to/from the bike shed at work in lightweight fabric pumps. They cost me £3, but will save me about £9 a fortnight in Look cleat wear! They add nothing to my bike in terms of weight, and they fold up, so they are easy to carry (even in a jersey pocket if necessary).

Anonymous

shimano spd sl cleats have yellow knobbly bits which are easier to walk on than look cleats, easy to clip in and out of and the pedals can be found fairly easily for a good price. have a look at Ribble, I got some 105 spd sl's for £32 with cleats.

neeb

You need to think hard about exactly how you will use the shoes and what sort of cycling you want to do. When I used to commute on an MTB I would sometimes wear my sidi MTB shoes all day - they had plastic soles and were flexible enough to walk perfectly comfortably in, even for quite long distances. The cleats made a clipping noise on escalators but other than that they were good to go for either general wear or cycling without changing shoes. Not to be scoffed at if you are on and off the bike for purely practical transport purposes. The problem was that the cleats and the soles wore down at the same rate, so when the cleats became too worn to work properly you pretty much had to ditch the shoes, as new cleats would stick out beyond the rubber of the soles...

While it would be possible to have this setup on a road bike, you would lose a lot of efficiency - any shoe that is OK to walk around in all day is going to be too flexy for efficient pedaling. So, assuming that you are going to change shoes before and after cycling in any case, you are MUCH better off getting proper road shoes and a road pedal system. There is no problem walking in road shoes over the sorts of distances you need to walk when you are engaged in the activity of cycling, e.g. into and out of cafes & shops, up and down stairs, even onto trains and other bike friendly public transport. You just need to be careful and remember you are wearing cleats.