Sealing 'waterproof' shoes

amaferanga

I recently bought a pair of Northwave Celsius boots. I've now worn them a couple of times and they're lovely and warm, but yesterday it properly rained and I inevitably got wet feet from water running down my leg. Now I've heard people recommend duct tape around the top or marigolds, but I'm just wondering if anyone has ideas that are a bit more elegant. Duct tape sounds painful and obviously wouldn't be reusable, while I'd look like a right numpty with yellow marigolds round my ankles.

Anyone?

Slow Downcp

I don't think there's any real solution - even if you make a rubber gaiter for the collar, it will eventually soak through from your trouser leg. That said, I've also got the same boots and not been an issue - as long as my feet are warm I can cope with a bit of water.

amaferanga

Yeah I guess nothing is gonna keep my feet completely dry, but I had wet feet after less than 20 minutes so I'm looking for something that'll just keep the water out for a bit longer. I think most of the water got in when I hit a massive puddle at 20 mph. Do you wear overshoes as well if its particularly wet?

Slow Downcp

No - but if the forecast is for rain, or the roads are wet with no sign of drying, I use a bike with full length guards. Better than any overshoe, plus keep your arse dry.

John.T

A good front mudguard with a flap helps no end. I used those boots all last winter and never got more than damp feet.

amaferanga

I have full SKS guards with flap and still got wet feet....

PapaZita

I have the same problem with Specialized Defroster boots. Excellent in light rain, but heavy rain runs down waterproof tights and straight into the tops. Because the boots are waterproof they fill with water and stay wet.

I think the solution must be to arrange layers like you would tile a roof. i.e. legwear over the outside of the tops of the boots. Unfortunately, I can't persuade my tights to remain in this position. They just ride up and start to leak again.

I'm experimenting with gaiters made from a pair of worn out waterproof over-mitts. I wear these under my tights and over the boots to achieve the tiled roof effect. They're held in place under the tights and under the velcro straps on the front of the boots so there's not too much to flap about. So far so good, but I'm waiting for some proper heavy rain to give them a real test.

PZ.

fast as fupp

amaferanga wrote:

I have full SKS guards with flap and still got wet feet....

are you riding underwater?

jermas

Yup same problem here- boots filling with water. I'm going to try drysuit latex ankle seals. Tights, Lycra and now latex- kinky :shock:

amaferanga

fast as fupp wrote:

amaferanga wrote:

I have full SKS guards with flap and still got wet feet....

are you riding underwater?

No, but the roads were particularly wet from a very heavy downpour.

amaferanga

jermas wrote:

Yup same problem here- boots filling with water. I'm going to try drysuit latex ankle seals. Tights, Lycra and now latex- kinky :shock:

Where do you get these kinky latex things?

EDIT: Google found them for me

geoff_ss

Forget about keeping your feet dry over any length of time. The important thing is to keep them warm. When we were dinghy racing every Sunday we had wet feet and wet everything else all day but kept warm with suitable clothes/boots (before the days of dry suits).

The only way I've kept really dry feet when cycling was when I wore my Hunter wellies to ride my trike in the snow to work (toe clips, of course - cleats wouldn't have fitted). That was OK for the 45/60 minutes but not to be recommended for a long ride A pal did the same but he had a Sidi sticker on his for effect.

Geoff