Knee pads and shoes!

Rigger/frigger

Hi guys,

Hopefully some of will be able to shed some light and shoes and knee pads!
I am currently just using flat pedals and just normal k swiss trainers will getting a pair of mtb trainers make that much difference as they are quite expensive.
Also what knee pads would people recommend at a reasonable price?

paul.skibum

This should really be in buying advice rather than general where you will find many, many threads about knee pads.

Shoes wise - the standard for grippy shoes on flats is the 5:10 - either Freerider or Impact generally get the thumbs up. Many people use skate style shoes - DC's are popular but tend not to have the support of the 5:10. Other option would be Teva although I hear they are getting out of the MTB market for some reason - their shoes got good reviews and filled the not quite as grippy as a 5:10 market.

5:10's with good flats are almost too grippy for some. Sizing is broadly in line with UK sizing in my experience, some say go half a size up though.

Also could try the Shimano SH-AM41 - try before you buy I find shimano sizing weird.

mudsucker

Not sure on knee pads but I hear 661 Kyle straits are good.

As above I use 5:10 Freerides which are really grippy on my Superstar Nanotech pedals. 5:10 are expensive but I think they are worth it. I used to use DCs but kept slipping off the pedals and bleeding a lot. Haven't slipped off once with 5:10s :-)

LAW4778

I used to wear my old KSwiss trainers and always felt they offered a good amount of grip on my SS nano tech pedals as they are a really flat quite sturdy sole but as this winter came I got fed up with my feet getting peed wet through and thought id invest in some bike specific shoes.
Looked at the 5.10's and just felt they looked too much like normal trainers and wanted something that looked a bit more purposeful so got some Shimano AM41's wore then for the first time at the weekend and they are really good grip wise, in some ways too good as I found if I wanted to change my foot position I actually had to lift my foot off the pedal instead of just moving it, they are really good in the wet too and kept my feet dryer than my standard trainers although not 100% dry, i'll be investing in some sealskinz socks for that.
Size wise I got a 45 (uk 9.5) which is spot on and is pretty much the size I am all the time now, used to be a 9 so either companies have change their sizing of my feet have got bigger?

Knee pad wise never had any but might get some in the near future. Hope this helps

fyldesmurf

Since Sombrio went out of business shops are giving their stuff away, these are a great deal, as good as 5:10s i reckon http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/somb ... -prod71083

ilovedirt

fyldesmurf wrote:

Since Sombrio went out of business shops are giving their stuff away, these are a great deal, as good as 5:10s i reckon http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/somb ... -prod71083

Erm, Sombrio haven't gone bust...

fyldesmurf

fraid they have ...

Dear friends, fans, and people of the global Sombrio circle,

We have some very difficult news to share with you, but first a little history.

Our customers and fans, love the innovations and products that Sombrio bring to market each year, and we thank you for this. This brand is the result of the dedicated riders past and present, so hats off to all of you. Back in 2011 and in an effort to grow with market demand, and share our vision with a broader audience, we sought out consultants to help us flourish.

The consultants had a grand vision of making Sombrio into a big company very fast with a network of our own retail stores. It seemed almost too good to be true but they were convinced it would work. In 2012 we raised funds from an investor, added staff to a great team, invested in systems, products, and began to execute on this growth strategy.

Sadly, it went sideways, as the retail expansion plan was way more expensive to execute than we were led to believe, barred with issues, and stores never opened. In an attempt to bridge the void, and re-kindle stability our family and primary investor stepped up. Our team re-aligned on our core channels, and worked tirelessly to good result.

However, even with all the positives achieved this year from our team, and a great season mapped for next – the perils of failed expansion has left the company with a significant gap – and one the investors have just weeks ago bowed out.

With these challenges we’re in an incredibly painful position in that we have to pause or halt business until we find a way forward, or a buyer. Granted, our door is still open, and were operational, our future is quite uncertain.

We want to thank everyone that has supported us and we apologize to anyone that may be disrupted in the process. We do remain optimistic Sombrio will land on its feet. We hope you understand that we did, and are doing everything during these tumultuous times to see Sombrio continue to live and breathe the two wheel culture.

Sombrio’s future will need someone with the resources, expertise and vision to continue bringing Sombrio’s innovative, high performance riding apparel to a huge market looking for an alternative to the status quo. We look forward to finding that white knight, rebuilding our team and making a charge for the peak.

Sincerely Dave Watson, Founder & President

ilovedirt

My mistake! Had a quick google and couldn't find anything - that's a shame.

fyldesmurf

yeah, they always seemed to have their own niche style, would have bought a lot more were it not so dear

fyldesmurf

Although interestingly the link from the site I got it from leads to a dead page http://www.bikerumor.com/2013/12/02/com ... e-unknown/ maybe they found that investor after all