any performance to be gained from switching from MTB shoes?

ricey155

Hi all started riding 2 years ago and i share my shoes with my road bike and mountain bike SPD's

would i gain any performance switching to a proper set up road shoe ? my Specialized MTB shoes are pretty heavy

cheers in advance

ddraver

Full on MTB Race shoes (e.g. SIDI, high end Shimano/Spesh), no

More comfy trail/beginner shoes with a bit of flex for walking, yes

For the price of a decent set of road pedals and shoes (~150-200), you could get a very nice, light, comfy set of MTB shoes, that you could still use on all bikes

simon_e

What kind of gain are you looking for? Other than a few seconds in a time trial or road race I'd say it's negligible. A lighter shoe will feel better but won't necessarily make you significantly faster. Road shoes cleats don't have the 'play' that an SPD cleat has but the difference is very small. More important for most people is the comfort of a better fitting shoe.

Bordersroadie

My exact dilemma, and I agree with the comment above that top end carbon MTB shoes are just as good unless you're a pro or an absolute weight-weenie.

I have four bikes, MTB, MTB with ice tyres, winter road bike and summer road bike. All have SPDs.

This year I'm "getting serious" with cycling and training hard for a couple of (for me) very hard sportives. I'm realising that my current set up (Specialized Taho trail shoes designed for walking) will start to show weaknesses as my rides get longer. Certainly I need something better for up to 11 hours on the bike.

So, like you, my choices are:
1. Get a road-specific set up for just the summer bike by buying new shoes and pedals, or
2. Get some very good stiff carbon sole MTB shoes and keep SPDs on all bikes.

After masses of Internet research, I've decided on option 2. Option 1 would have given me slightly lighter top end shoes (compare Specialized S-Works road vs MTB shoes, same soles, lighter weight in road version by a few grammes) but the benefits of sticking to my current pedal system and the ability to walk in the shoes is the deal clincher for me (could prove handy in the Fred Whitton event!).

I don't buy the "hot spot" story when it comes to full carbon sole top end MTB shoes, because there is no more flex around the cleat than in a road set up, the foot is effectively on a solid platform (ie the shoe sole) the same as on a road cleat system. An MTB SPD pedal and a road pedal are no more than a few mm difference in width, in terms of the contact points of the shoe on the pedal. Nobody is telling me that a soft foot pressing on a footbed will deform a rock-solid carbon fibre sole around this specific part of the shoe, sufficient to cause a "hotspot" issue. It is beyond the laws of physics, or perhaps if you were to examine it I might concede that there is a movement of the carbon sole of a micron or two. Maybe.

Also, who cares that many consider it a sin to use MTB pedals on a road bike. The things that finally clinched it for me are that I have a historical knee problem that seems to have disappeared after getting my SPD set up perfect (so why change it - the float of an MTB pedal probably helps me here), and also if my budget is, say, £200, I can get better MTB shoes than a shoe/pedal road combo for the same price.

I'm looking at S-Works and top end shoes from Scott and Giro but haven't parted with any cash yet as I need to get up to Edinburgh to try some on.

You will no doubt get plenty of advice telling you you absolutely must get road shoes and cleats, but you don't have to be a sheep if you don't want to be.

jgsi

Ricey155 wrote:

Hi all started riding 2 years ago and i share my shoes with my road bike and mountain bike SPD's

would i gain any performance switching to a proper set up road shoe ? my Specialized MTB shoes are pretty heavy

cheers in advance

Performance for what?

ricey155

performance being reduced stress on the body when riding, my specialized BG MTB shoes are 345g per shoe, i have issue's with calf problems

along with heavy wheels another thing to swop, im sure knocking down to 230g a side and light wheels it will add upto better performance ok i don't race but i enjoy trying to go as fast as i can beat my goals on endomondo etc and keep up with quicker friends

my shoes are good but they feel big 2012 is the new slim line R155 sixpack central on route

cheers for the replies what would a 11.00 on the stiff index do compared to 5.0 no movement in the shoe or purely sole stiffness ?

ricey155

oh another thing as i go off road a lot with one pair of shoes they come back soaked and dirty (sunday ride)

Monday im stuck with wet shoes so i suppose im spending money buying a second pair and just wondered where to go as the market is so big, nest get to the shop and try some out

ddraver

Low end road shoes will be equally heavy really, although I'd suggest that if you re having calve troube, it 's unlikely to be shoe related, maybe try looking at you saddle height and cleat position first. Perhaps some insoles even?

However, lighter Wheels will make any changes on your feet insiginifcant probably. I'd definitely spend more there than on pedals and shoes.

Spray down the shoes when you re cleaning your bike and stuff them with the Sunday Murdoch Press and leave them somewhere warm, that ll dry 'em.

ricey155

Cheers DDraver appreciate your reply

wheels and good tyres for the summer it is im sold, Calf problem is mainly due to squash and cricket over doing it, i used to play squash for over 2hrs and then break down (nutter really)

back to the shoes i just fancy road shoes save the hassle i walk about 5 yrds to the gate so don't need the tread plus i like neat and tidy

Bobbinogs

Which Spesh MTB shoes do you have? Is it the Tahoe ones (which are pretty much touring shoes) or the Sport range? I have the latter and the soles are much stiffer than the Tahoe ones so no chance of hotspots, etc., and performance overall is very good. I mix them with M540 pedals which are well built, reasonable weight and good VFM.

If you want to splash the cash to save 100g per shoe then go for it but you won't be flying up hills just on the back of a 200g saving. Same goes for wheels, you will spend a lot to save 500g (one water bottle's worth) which will make the wheels feel more responsive and spin up quicker...but your performance won't be noticeably better.

New wheels and shoes will make you feel a lot better and sometimes that is worth the outlay alone, you just need to go into it with the right expectations.

Monty Dog

I have both carbon-soled road race and MTB shoes - it is noticeable that the smaller MTB pedal cleat means the foot rocks a bit more side-to-side along the axis of the foot when really putting the power down. Anything that save rotating weight is a big energy saver - pedals and shoes included.

John.T

Monty Dog wrote:

I have both carbon-soled road race and MTB shoes - it is noticeable that the smaller MTB pedal cleat means the foot rocks a bit more side-to-side along the axis of the foot when really putting the power down./quote]
I also use both and also find that is the only difference. Probably due to the sides of the SPD pedal being supported on the edges of the tread on MTB shoes and this will give a little in use, especially as things wear. You do need better quality MTB shoes to prevent hot spots. You need to look at your riding and go for what ever will be the most convenient in use.

briantrumpet

Monty Dog wrote:

I have both carbon-soled road race and MTB shoes - it is noticeable that the smaller MTB pedal cleat means the foot rocks a bit more side-to-side along the axis of the foot when really putting the power down. Anything that save rotating weight is a big energy saver - pedals and shoes included.

It would be interesting to see this 'energy saving' properly quantified. I'll admit to being a sceptic on the 'better power transfer' claim of 'road' pedals, as surely whatever power you put through your legs is turned into forward motion, unless any energy gets dissipated through heat (or light, or creating parallel universes, etc.).

And before we get the unscientific "well, they must be better because all pros use them", well, firstly, that is unscientific, and secondly, the pros get paid to use the most expensive gear the manufacturers come up with, unsurprisingly.

I've no idea how difficult it would be to quantify difference in efficiency between the systems, but if we can work out the composition of asteroids 300 million miles from us, I'm sure it's not impossible. Maybe it's no difference, 1W or 10W - but it would be interesting to know if there's a marginal gain, and, if so, how big.

John.T

Any reduction in weight will help but not as much as often thought. With constant motion it makes little difference as air resistance is by far the greatest bar to progress. It does make a difference when accelerating or climbing as this is when you are moving against gravity or inertia. Rotating weight is also not as big a problem, in fact with constant motion it can be an advantage due to a flywheel affect. Generally it is fair to say that weight reduction is worth while but loosing body weight is the most affective both in terms of cost and performance.

ddraver

Ricey155 wrote:

back to the shoes i just fancy road shoes save the hassle i walk about 5 yrds to the gate so don't need the tread plus i like neat and tidy

Well if you WANT road shoes, that's a totally different question....

What pedals do you use Monty, I use Time ones that have a bit of a platform, maybe that't the difference...?

simon_e

John.T wrote:

You need to look at your riding and go for what ever will be the most convenient in use.

John.T wrote:

Any reduction in weight will help but not as much as often thought.

+1 to both of these.

Shoes are a small part of the whole picture. I've ridden and raced in cheap SPD shoes and M520 pedals as well as apparently stiffer Shimano road shoes+105 pedals. There is a difference but it's very small. Single-sided SPDs like Shimano A520s improve the shoe-cleat contact area, though I never find hotspots with double-sided SPD pedals and can't help wondering if this is more an issue with foot-shoe compatibility for those that do.

nickel

I'm not going to say I feel a massive performance difference but I definately prefer the feel of road shoes and pedals, having bigger cleat with a wider contact area feels much nicer and more comfortable. A decent set of pedals and shoes doesn't have to cost loads either, a set of basic shimano pedals and DhB road shoes could be had for about 80 to 90 quid.

ricey155

im really happy with my SPD's they are small i did wonder if the bigger cleat gave more foot support / pedal performance ??

im glad i mentioned this as im going in the right direction, forget the bullsh1t on products and do the miles = better performance, ive been a few shops in my area Kenilworth and Earlsdon (Coventry surrounds) and checked out wheels the Mavic AKi with tyres felt heavy no real upgrade unless the stiffness helps ?

40 next year new light weight bike a must = planet x RT57 fav so far - you need a pick me up to keep riding

ricey155

oh im running the specialized BG (body geometry) sport MTB not the most expensive but reliable and hard wearing

done the chase a few times with no marks (Cannock Chase)

Pross

Performance wise negligible but possibly an improvement in comfort over longer rides with road pedals due to larger contact area.