bike shoes

5 watchers

Paul Snell Apr 2011 8:55pm, 25 Apr 2011 1,045 posts	0 Paul Snell Before spending £160 on a pair of shoes may I suggest that you try them on? Remember the Mario Cipollini rescuing the princess ad? He wears a Dogtanian style costume, with Sidis, she wears nothing at all for some reason.
wriggle Apr 2011 10:17am, 28 Apr 2011 570 posts	0 wriggle You don't really need to spend well over a hundred pounds on your first pair of bike shoes! Of course if you have lots of money to splash around, you might want to, but IMO you would be better off starting with some cheaper shoes and taking time to work out what your needs are before spending that sort of money. Similarly with tri-specific shoes - yes they would be nice to have, but unless you're so quick in both the transitions and the bike leg that shoes will make a real difference you might want to save your pennies for now until you know a bit more about what you want. Some folk prefer using MTB shoes and cleats for their first tris - easier to walk/run through transition in than road shoes, and some find them easier to clip/unclip when training - so you might want to keep those as an option. If you're considering budget road shoes you could look at these; they were my first road shoe and have been just fine, great value for money - chainreactioncycles.com As they have 2 wide velcro straps and a tiny bit of heel & toe "tread" they could be a good compromise for starting out in tri (although tri shoes tend to have the straps fastening from outside to inside, to make them easier to do up and undo on the bike without getting them caught in the chainset). (However, I only cycle 300-400 miles a month at the moment (max ride distance of 70 miles) so am very much a casual cyclist. If you're doing some proper mileage you might well need the power and comfort of the high-end shoes recommended above. And trying them on is always the best idea if you can manage it, although you might not have quite so much choice - particularly at lower price points - in your LBS.)
spacehopperhead Apr 2011 11:37am, 28 Apr 2011 7 posts	0 spacehopperhead Hiya, I was looking at the Shimano TR31 tri shoes and phoned my local cycle dealer, Westbrook Cycles in Stokesley, for sizing advice, the guy there put me onto a pair of Scott Carbon tri shoes, reduced down from £200 to £89, half an hour later I'd been tried them on and bought them, bargain!! they were the same price as the Shimano ones. Just back in now from my first ride in new shoes and cleats for the first time, I bought the Shimano SPD pedals from Halfords as they are £25 online, pick-up in store, after almost falling off outside my house I have averted disaster this time round, shoes were comfy, I wore no socks as I intend to do in my first tri (QE2 Sprint) toes were a little numb when I got in, but that may be the cold weather!! the colour may not suit everyone, but I'm pleased with them!! westbrookcycles.co.uk
GregP Apr 2011 11:49am, 28 Apr 2011 45,881 posts	0 GregP Three words. SIDI SIDI SIDI
simbil Apr 2011 11:53am, 28 Apr 2011 4,784 posts	0 simbil I'd go for spd's for your first clip ins and get double sided mtb pedals and soft soled £40 MTB shoes. £60 for shoes and pedals and an easy introduction to clipless plus you can run in them for T1 easyness and general use. Jules, Yes - bought some once and had to send them back, very narrow italian fitting. They do a special wider size which might work for my duck feet though.
GregP Apr 2011 11:55am, 28 Apr 2011 45,884 posts	0 GregP Poof
simbil Apr 2011 11:56am, 28 Apr 2011 4,785 posts	0 simbil Says the italian wearing expensive label whore. I have Carnac's for my high performance shoes
GregP Apr 2011 12:06pm, 28 Apr 2011 45,887 posts	0 GregP Ooooh. (grudging) respect. For the record - my road shoes are SIDI Genius 5.5s. MTB shoes are SIDI Eagles. Race shoes are Shimano TR50s. Dislike them intensely. Mainly because they aren't made by SIDI. Good advice (as ever) from Si - in this case about going the SPD route first up. I'd go one step further and suggest the SPD-on-one-side-flat-on-the-other touring pedals (either M324 or A520) as the ideal first step - this was the route I took many moons ago - still got M324s on my hack/commuting/touring bike.
DeeGee Apr 2011 1:05pm, 28 Apr 2011 8,844 posts	0 DeeGee That's where I am with my MTB, Grep, and a simple pair of these: shimano.com for fannying about with. Consequently I've also got SPDs on my road bike (as I use both for commuting depending on how the mood takes me) so I can either use those shoes or some slightly more racy looking SPDs shimano.com on both bikes.
GregP Apr 2011 1:34pm, 28 Apr 2011 45,904 posts	0 GregP Those latter llok a bit odd, but are probably the Shimano equivalent of my Eagles? sidicafe.co.uk