Showme230

I checked with the local specialized dealer and no luck on shoes. If they had fit it was going to be 250.00 for shoes and clips. Is this normal cost and where can you find a 10.5 EE bike shoe? I also was looking at going to a smaller tire on my specialized carmel bike. I am at 299 pounds right now. I have been told if I do these two things I will improve my riding performance. Anyone have any suggestion?

CraigB

Nashbar sells a wide version of Lake's CX165 road shoe. They say it's both 2- and 3-bolt compatible, so it would work with Look-style or SPD pedals.

I'm not sure what they mean when they say smaller tires will improve your riding performance. Narrower tires will have a theoretical advantage in rolling resistance, but that depends on many things, including brand and design, as well as the pressure you inflate to. They sure won't be more comfortable, though.

jbrow1

Unless you have knobby tires, I would suggest leaving the tires alone. Skinnier tires (if that's what you're talking about) won't really make you faster, or easier to pedal.. But it will give you a more harsh ride quality. I googled your bike, think I got the right one. Looks about like my scwhinn hybrid, which has pretty fat road tires. Rides good though.

The more you ride and get your body (heart/lungs/legs/butt) used to being on the bike, the better and easier it will feel, different tires or not.

I have wide feet too. I ended up buying a size bigger shoes to get adequate room for my feet. A little more snug would be nice, but I get a pinched nerve in one foot so I need the wiggle room.

Good luck to you and happy riding!

pbd

Going clipless I don't think sped me up any, but I feel a lot better doing the same rides. I feel more efficient and more comfortable, definitely worth it.

As far as $250 for pedals and shoes, that's a huge "it depends". I got Specialized mountain shoes and the simple SPD pedals from Shimano, and all installed and adjusted ready to go by my LBS for $150. Or you could go a little cheaper on the same equipment online. Or you can get road shoes that will cost you $250 alone before you even touch the pedals, it really just depends.

I didn't need fancy or ultralight anything, so low-end SPD is fine for me; I wanted the mountain shoes so they'd be a little more walkable; so I ended up about as cheap as possible at my LBS, but you could go even cheaper online or at other bike shops if you want.

seenoweevil

I've got a pair of these shoes I dearly love, after buying 4 or 5 pairs of other more expensive shoes. I'd also give my 2 cents toward keeping the tires you have, they will have a more comfortable ride. Let it be a while, and just ride!

Drew Eckhardt 

Some of the Shimano mountain bike shoes run wide. I usually wear size 10.5 EE New Balance walking/running shoes and size 45 of a previous generation Shimano BMX shoe works well. $80-$90 a pair.

mthayer

I would have your feet remeasured. I was measured at a 10.5 EEEE for my shoe size and thats what I wore for years. I went to get another pair of work boots, and the store's policy is to measure your feet before they sell you boots. I ended up measuring out at a 11.5D. I started wearing that size and my feet quit hurting.

cod.peace

I found Sidi "Mega" wide shoes fit my 12.5 EE feet, but the tread was so narrow I couldn't easily walk in them..not to mention the price on those, ouch!. I ended up with a pair of Northwave MTB shoes in euro size 47 (US ~13) which fit very well with a walkable sole. I added a Superfeet blue insole and am very happy with them. I got them on a clearance sale for ~$75 or so. Now is a great time to find closeouts from last year on bike gear...

Mr. Beanz

Honestly, at 290 lbs, riding the bike will improve your performance. If speed is what you mean by performance, forget about going clipless on that bike. If anything, I'd use toeclips on that bike. Save the pedal upgrade etc for when you get into shape, then go with a roadbike. That would be the best route if you are looking to improve performance.

Otherwise, I would wear out the tires, then go for a higher psi model. That will help a little but other than the tires, why invest money on something that you are not sure that you will like, or even stick with that model. Don't mean to sound like a bike snob but if you are concerned with performance, it won't be long before you upgrade the bike.

Not to dis you you but at 290 with a 10.5 foot, you are more than likey not real tall. Lose weight first, then worry about performance. Until you lose the weight and get fit, looking for equipment advantages just aren't there and more than likely will not be noticed.

Another thing, some low end bikes might not accept clipless pedals. I may and could be wrong about newer bikes but I have had lower end bikes ($300) that did not fit the Shimano clipless pedal threads due to the lower end cranks. Some of which have the rings rivited/pinned (vs chainring bolts) together disabling the switching out of chainrings.

Be careful and do some research on your equipment "before" you spend your money.

sstorkel

Just about every modern adult bike should be using pedals with a 9/16" spindle these days, even cheap import bikes. The only bikes that still use 1/2" spindles seem to be: kids bikes, BMX bikes, and some beach cruisers. If you've got an older bike, it's probably not a bad idea to check. If you're a Clyde and you've got 1/2" spindles, you probably already know it: I can feel the pedals and cranks of my 1970's Schwinn cruiser flexing every time I stand on the pedals!

Wogster

The biggest performance issue with bicycles, and I have said this before is the engine, anything you do to the bicycle, only adds tiny amounts to performance, you could get on a bicycle that is designed and built for the TdF and find your performance is improved less then 5%. So start by working on the engine, the best way to do that is to ride more and give that engine better fuel....

RichardGlover

I second this advice. Talked to my Podiatrist about this one, in fact. Turns out, as you age, the tendons in your feet start to relax, which means the bones get further apart, and arch less... making your feet longer (but not really wider). This increases your shoe size by length, but tends to narrow the width a tiny amount.*

To the OP's original questions...

I picked up a pair of road shoes from my Local Specialized Bike Shop's clearance rack. Normally they went for upwards of 120ish bucks; I got them for 20. They had scrapes on the outside of one of them; looks like somebody bought them, tried them with clipless, fell once, and returned them. Bonus to me!

I rode them for 3 months with clips and straps - not really the way they were designed, but, I'm a cheapskate.

Yesterday, I found a pair of Forte Pro road pedals for $20, normally $80. They also looked like they'd been used once, somebody fell, scraped the outside of one of the pedals, and returned them.

Cue McDonald's "I'm Lovin' It" jingle.

Now I'm riding clipless (this morning's commute was my first day!), and loving it. All for $40.00. So, to all of you riders who tried clipless, then returned your shoes and pedals... Thank You.


Mind you... I'm still looking for a pair of MTB or Touring shoes on the clearance rack in my size. Road shoes are great and all, but I'd like something that has more 'walk' in them. Or something that has less ventilation for winter riding.

Eventually, I'll probably put clips/straps back on my commuter, and put the clipless pedals on the Randonneuring bike that currently exists only in my mind.

* - This is all "IIRC". I'm not sure exactly why your width decreases. Maybe the widths are relative to length, so an X wide foot of Y length is 'wide', but X wide of Y+2 isn't 'wide' anymore... also, your foot height goes down a bit, which is compensated by many of us with a wider shoe. :shrug:

sstorkel

Actually, the bike does make a difference. Or at least it seems to for me... I've been switching between my 23lb touring bike and my 17lb road bike recently. My PowerTap tells me that for the same amount of power output, the light bike averages around 2.0 mph faster than the heavy bike on the same 30-mile test loop. That's a difference between a 1:45 ride and a 2-hour ride, which is a 12% performance improvement... Not to mention the fact that the light bike is a lot more fun to ride

Wogster

You realise that, that 2MPH over a 30 mile course, depends considerably on engine performance. Take a guy who over 5 miles starts out at 200 watts, and ends up at 50 watts, on a hybrid, now put him on your 17lb bike, the difference is going to be considerably less then 2MPH, and the improvement may go from 5 miles over an hour to 5 miles in 58 minutes.

cyclist2000

I think that the pricey shoes are worth it if my feet feel better in them. My sidi's are 6 years old, still in good shape, worth every penny I paid and have many more good years in them.

Showme230

Thanks for all of the good advice I do agree nothing is going to help more than shedding a lot of pounds. Thanks

wrenchy54110

I wear an 11.5 - 12 EEEE running shoe and depending on the maker and my road shoes are a 12 Bontrager RL. They are a standard width but they fit very well for me.

ClemY

I find Sidi shoes fit my fat feet best. I am a size 13, which translates to a size 48 in Eurospeak. I used to use toe clips, straps and adjustable road cleats. I switched to MTB shoes with SPD clips. I can now walk in the shoes, and the clips allow more float in foot position, which helps me prevent knee problems.

I shop for my shoes on line during end of season sales. I get a pretty good discount that way.

If you are 300 lbs. you are a lot lighter than I was three years ago. I am now down to 250. Now my weight plus my bike plus all my touring rig is still lighter than I was three years ago. I haven’t commuted to work on a bike in 15 yrs. Where I live now there is a very nasty bridge I have to cross, but I am preparing to take the summer off and ride cross country.

jr59

I wear 14 EEE, and wear both the Sidi mega's as well as the lake shoes in wide. Both fit well and neither work well.

They don't pedal fast or long enough. Other than that, the fit and work great!

1bluetrek

Let me know what you come up with as far as shoes, I got some Lake CX 165 shoes from Nashbar and had to return them. they weerent put together very well, even one of the velcro straps wasnt glued onto the leather. The return and exchange took a month. Call every bikeshop within a hundred miles and see what they have, chanches are they will tell you Sidi Megas or even Shimano