Cycling shoe fit

I find size varies a lot among brands, a 44 fits in a Sid1 while I take a 42 in a Louis Garneau. Don't know that I would buy an unfamiliar brand/size on ebay.

As Bear says it varies from brand to brand. I've got a wide foot and know from my experience that I have to go a 1/2 size larger with Addidas which seem to be made for narrow feet. I actually went a whole size larger with my last pair to allow room for an orthotic insert in my left shoe.

Rather than buying your first pair off Ebay and risk getting stuck with a pair that doesn't fit, you may want to go to one of the online vendors that would let you exchange them for another size.

Buying from you LBS would obviously be the best way to get a good fit, but will also probably be the most expensive option if you buy from them (one thing I hate to see is somebody getting shoes fitted at the LBS and then taking down the model and size info to order the same shoes online...).

Mark

This is true. For my first time I would definitely get fit at the LBS and BUY there. It's not that much extra. Make sure a sales rep. helps you out because the fit is very important. It should be very snug because when your pedaling you don't want your foot mving inside the shoe. That makes you lose a lot of energy. Also if you know/have clipless pedals have them mount the cleat for you. They need to be very precisely mounted and if it's mounted inaccurately you'll be facing some major knee problems.

Agreed. My first pair were used, free and a bit too big, but I lost them (thankfully) and had to get new ones. There was such a great difference! Just go to the LBS and try on the brand you're interested in before buying online.

As a previous poster inferred, this practice is not exactly fair to the LBS and is extremely bad form. They are not operating as your private showroom for you to try stuff out then buy elsewhere. If you're going to use them for this purpose, then at least have the graciousness to buy from them. If you pay a small premium over the onmline dealer's price, then it is for the service they provided.

Thanks for keeping us honest.

Thanks for your opinions everyone. I actually had gone to my LBS, but they currently didn't have my size (14) and the price was quite a bit over my budget since I'am considering of spending a small fortune on a new softride . However I'll try to go to a different bike shop not within my area and see what they might have first. THX everyone.

~~Gord~~