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school me on cycling shoe options
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 2016-01-29 10:56 AM |
New user  25 |  Subject: school me on cycling shoe optionsI've been experiencing some numbness in my right foot with my current cycling shoes and I'm thinking I need to size up. I've been using Giro's with LOOK cleats for the past few years. My only complaint other than current fit is difficulty in walking in shoes since the LOOK cleats are so prominent. There are so many choices (3-hole, SPD, LOOK) that I don't even know what to look for. Can someone help me understand my options for a reasonably priced shoe w/out the bulk of the LOOK cleat? I realize switching from LOOK means I need to buy new pedals but I want to at least be able to price it out. If it's cost prohibitive I'll just stick w/ LOOK and deal with the inconvenience of bulky cleats. Thanks |
| 2016-01-29 11:04 AM in reply to: swimbikerun81 |
1300  | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options How much walking do you do in your shoes? I know what you mean with the LOOK cleats. They're the only ones I've used. The first two years I raced it was like ice skating trying to get to the mount line. I finally decided to just leave them clipped in all the time by my third season. I don't do a flying mount. It's more of a step on them and go. It's worked well for me but I've been doing it for a number of years now. It's not going to help you if you are racing WTC but I'm slow long course so taking my time to the mount line isn't hurting me much there. I have a buddy who uses SPD cleats and he doesn't seem to have much trouble getting around. |
| 2016-01-29 12:32 PM in reply to: swimbikerun81 |
Master 10208  Northern IL | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options How much does walking actually matter here? Three main choices for road shoes in Look, SPD-SL, and Speedplay. None of them are really that great at walking. The first two are sort of similar, but not compatible with each other. Make sure you know if someone means SPD or SPD-SL as the second is often incorrectly abbreviated as SPD. There is a substantial difference in their design and how they function. SPD is a mountain bike cleat system. Some road and tri shoes do accept it now. Still don't think these are great for walking except when on mountain bike oriented shoes. Or maybe some of the other more casual type cleated shoes. The foot problems could be from the shoe or could also be cleat position depending on what's going on. For the cleat, it's usually moving it back some so the pressure is applied on a better area of the foot. |
| 2016-01-29 12:32 PM in reply to: #5164161 |
| 89 | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options SPD cleats are usually used for mtn biking because they clip in easier and shed dirt better/get less interference from dirt. The drawback is that they are a smaller platform and as such don't distribute your downward pressure as well across the foot. Also, on mtn shoes, there are usually tall knobs/traction around the edges of the shoes because while mtn biking, you often get off and have to walk. This would make walking in transition better, but they are not ideal for road use... less aero, usually more straps to buckle, not as stiff. Your standard "road shoe" typically has 2-3 straps, a stiffer bottom plate, and little to no traction. Tri shoes are similar, but usually just have one strap, and holes/mesh in the bottom to drain water. As far as cleats, it seems to me that *most* roadies prefer wider cleats (look and the like), citing the idea that they get better power transfer. Full disclosure, my knowledge may be a few years out of date. Up until a few months ago, I had no interest in maximizing power as I had no plans on competing and ease walking around off the bike was more important to me, so I ran spd cleats and mtn shoes on both my road and mtn bikes. When the wife signed us up for a few tris this season, I invested in a pair of decent tri shoes and look cleats. The difference is pretty noticeable to me on longer rides. (Long for me is only 50 or so miles so take that for what it is. |
| 2016-01-29 12:37 PM in reply to: #5164205 |
| 89 | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options Oh, and are you sure your foot numbness is not related to shoe width or simply over tightening the straps? I'm sure you thought of that, but I sometimes get overzealous with my ratchet straps and end up with numb feet halfway through my ride |
| 2016-01-29 2:15 PM in reply to: davejustdave |
New user 25 | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options Thanks everyone for the info and suggestions! I really should have said mounting / transitioning instead of walking. Considering I do the bulk of my training indoors I think I can deal with the minor inconvenience during races and stick with LOOK. I'm going to focus on trying to figure out what's causing the numbness. I do tend to keep the ratchets on the looser side because I have noticed it lessens the numbness. The shoes are quite snug (width and length) and I only notice the numbness in my right foot which is why I was thinking sizing (that's my larger foot). While I'm sure a snug fit is best for power transfer, I'd much rather be comfortable. |
| 2016-01-29 2:32 PM in reply to: 0 |
Master 2407 Bellevue, WA | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options Old school LOOK is hard to walk in, but new school LOOK Keo has walkable cleats. Much better. And they work better with new shoes. You may even have LOOK Keo compatible pedals, and just using the wrong cleats. Read http://www.competitivecyclist.com/look-cycle-keo-grip-road-cleat They are selling them at full price, Amazon is cheaper. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00J4K0YYY
Edited by brucemorgan 2016-01-29 2:34 PM |
| 2016-02-08 7:32 PM in reply to: swimbikerun81 |
Extreme Veteran 701 Raleigh, North Carolina | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options I've had some numbness in one foot, of which the source seemed to be my socks. The numbness would slowly build in my right foot and turn into a serious burning sensation. It was towards the outside pad area. No amount of moving the clips and/or shoe tightness or position seemed to help. When I changed my sock size from DeFeet large to Defeet XL, the problem went away. |
| 2016-02-09 6:50 AM in reply to: brucemorgan |
Extreme Veteran 1986 Cypress, TX | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options Originally posted by brucemorgan Old school LOOK is hard to walk in, but new school LOOK Keo has walkable cleats. Much better. And they work better with new shoes. You may even have LOOK Keo compatible pedals, and just using the wrong cleats. Read http://www.competitivecyclist.com/look-cycle-keo-grip-road-cleat They are selling them at full price, Amazon is cheaper. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00J4K0YYY
x2 on the Look Keo Grip cleats. |
| 2016-02-09 3:19 PM in reply to: swimbikerun81 |
Expert 2555 Colorado Springs, Colorado | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options Sounds like it could be a sizing problem. If the shoe has an insole, try removing it to see if that gives you more room. I have Look cleats and never walk in them. Except for disengaging from the pedal at traffic signals, my shoes stay on the pedals at all times. I mount and dismount with shoes clipped in on every ride. Been doing it for years. It's become second nature. If you're going to do lots of tris get some tri shoes. Decent tri shoes will allow you to be comfortable going sockless as well as making it easy to do a flying mount/dismount. |
| 2016-02-09 3:58 PM in reply to: Dorm57 |
Member 1083 | Subject: RE: school me on cycling shoe options Originally posted by Dorm57 I've had some numbness in one foot, of which the source seemed to be my socks. The numbness would slowly build in my right foot and turn into a serious burning sensation. It was towards the outside pad area. No amount of moving the clips and/or shoe tightness or position seemed to help. When I changed my sock size from DeFeet large to Defeet XL, the problem went away. This is what I was going to suggest. It might seem insignificant but sizing up in socks really helped how my feet felt on long rides. |
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