grantelmwood

There was some good info posted in my thread here
https://www.bikeforums.net/general-c...er-easier.html

daihard 

I just bought a pair of Transit Regster SPD sandals from Performance Bicycle. Theyŕe pretty comfortable as cycling sandals. For $36 it was money well spent.

IcySwan1 

I was concerned about being able to clip out after knee surgery so I put flat/SPD pedals on a road bike. Turns out I could clip out just fine but the flats are perfect when riding with grandkids. You put your feet down a lot when riding with 5 year olds. Nice benefit to the flat side of the pedal.

Mike

SurferRosa

Seriously! And why is this?? A ton of the c&v crowd would love a rubber soled, slim athletic road shoe for clips/straps. Like an old-school touring shoe. There's really nothing mass produced that doesn't require a cleat. So wish Adidas or Onitsuka would offer something on this front.

beng1

Thank-you for putting this up, it perfectly shows the real reason for clipless pedals is misunderstood. Clipless pedals are not in reality a performance addition except for the top tenth of one-percent of riders who actually ride for money. For 99.9% of cyclists they are a crutch exactly like an E-bike, a device to help those who do not have the coordination or muscle memory or development, skill or practice to keep their feet on the pedals without a lot of help. These people could seriously hurt themselves riding flat pedals, so it is nice that they have this type of accessory to help them, just like E-bikes are there to help people without the fitness to go on long rides without the help of batteries and motors.

Trakhak

Clipless pedals (and other forms of foot retention) are a "crutch" for bike riders in the same sense that shoes are a crutch for walkers and runners (and bike riders). Walk or run or ride enough while barefoot, and you won't need shoes.

big john

How do you come up with this stuff? This is pretty far out in left field, even for you.

big john

Aften and Five Ten make nice shoes for flats. Even Vans still does, I think.

Kapusta

This is the best way to know what you think and will tell you more than any advice given here.

The Chemist

I've only ridden 25000+km in the last 2.5 years, pretty much all of that clipped in. Tell me again how I know nothing about how to keep my feet on flat pedals. 🤦‍♂️

tomato coupe

This is like asking the crazy guy on the corner how he comes up with his conspiracy theories, after he tells you aliens are invading the Earth disguised as avocados.

big john

What?? You mean they aren't?

tomato coupe

No, that would be stupid on their part -- they'd be thrown on toast and devoured by Millennials before they could establish an operating base.

3alarmer 

...these sort of come and go in the mountain bike shoe marketing demographic. The last time I found some, I bought two pair, but it was only a few years ago. They do have a provision for attaching some sort of clipless cleat, but they also come with a little rubber plate you can use to cover the hole in the sole that leaves. So they look pretty much like a rubber soled running shoe upper, with a stiffer cycling last that it's built around.

If you go on Amazon, and search Men's Mountain Bike Shoe, it more or less shows what's currently available.

tomato coupe

Why? Simple economics -- the C&V segment is small, and it tends to not spend money on new products as freely as other segments.

SurferRosa

Those aren't terrible looking. The others look too much like skate shoes -- bulky not slim enough.

The one 3alarmer posted isn't bad for a mtn bike shoe.

There are tons and tons of mtn bike and gravel shoes. There should be just a few shoes for the c&v folks without having to go to Serbia for them like I did recently with my 2Velo purchase:

philbob57

I haven't read this whole thread, but of toe clips + straps, toe clips + straps + cleats, SDP, and pinned flats, I like the pinned flats the best. The pins provide a lot of retention without forcing my foot and legs into one position with or without a little variation.

The Five Tens are very good, up to a point, if you use them on the road. For me, it's 30 miles, after which point the soles just aren't stiff enough for me. YMMV.

For shoes that look good and work as well on flat pedals as carbon-soled wonders do on clipless, one could buy the shoes one wants and have a shoemaker attach, say, a Vibram sole to your shoes of choice. The pins will grab the Vibram, and the shoes might even be stiffer on pinned flats than on 'clipless' pedals. One can even DIY attach the soles of one's choice to the shoes.

3alarmer 

...this is why all the call girl threads get started in General Cycling, and not in C+V.

rosefarts

So attitudes can change.

In probably 1994, at about the age of 15, I got my first pair of clipless pedals. I still remember them, Onza HO Ti. I got them with either paper route money or Burger King money. Either way, my parents weren't pleased.

What followed were decades of riding clipped in. MTB, Triathlon, Road Racing, Singlespeed messing around, and even a pedicab tricycle. If it pedalled, I damn well better be clipped to it.

Last year I bought a new mountain bike, a slack geometry long travel hardtail. Down-country, party hardtail, milf magnet. I don't care what you call it. It didn't seem right to ride it the way it was designed while clipped in so I bought some flat pedals for it and moved my whole family to the PNW, and left all my other shoes and pedals in storage in Colorado. After more than a year of giving the dirt more hell than I've given it since I was 18, I'm convinced. Off road on flats is the way to go. I've yet to even shred my legs, I think that's either a rumor or incompetence. I wouldn't switch back now.

I'm still clipped in on my gravel bike, trainer, and road bike. That's not going to change. The more uniform circles I can pedal decrease my fatigue and increase my ride satisfaction. They probably don't speed me up.

big john

What kind of soles do those have?

SurferRosa

https://2velo.com/product/cycling-shoes-black-strpes/

big john

Wow!

Fredo76

Left to right:
'5' brand (Adidas) stealth clipless shoes (says so right on 'em!)
'Speed' brand Chinese road shoes from eBay
Matt Berger Ethnies skating shoes, for toe-clips w/o cleats (not particularly stiff-soled, though)

ofajen

Pictures of the Lem’s Primal Zen I mentioned in this thread:





If you want shoes that are foot-shaped, rather than feet that are shoe-shaped, these may be of interest. They also come in suede, each in several colors or the Chillum would be similar style but with mostly canvas uppers.

Otto

Trakhak

The earlier suggestion that clipless pedals represent a "crutch," suitable only for saving inexpert riders from their own ineptitude, rang a faint bell. Finally I remembered. Excelsior!