Who rides in basic trainers?

[shouldbeinbed]

I ride on trainers, but I would like to use cycling shoes - however, cleats scare me and I cannot find hard soled shoes that are cleat-less ...

So, yes, I wear trainers

If you want hard soles you could buy cycling shoes but don't put the cleats on.

Touring/MTB SPD shoes particularly usually come with a solid sole with a piece you can choose to cut out to expose the cutouts to attach the cleats.

I have cleated shoes, uncleated cycling shoes & ride in normal shoes too depends on what I'm doing, tomorrow is a commute in Adidas Sambas on the folder.

 

[raleighnut]

+1 for the SPD shoes with a solid sole and cut outs, best of both worlds. Mind I use cleats but the cut out portion makes a great key fob, real easy to locate with a gloved hand in your back jersey pocket and mine even have a specialized logo on them.

 

[robjh]

I used to ride in trainers, with toe straps, and probably will do again on my next big tour as I do a lot of exploring off the bike as well. I did find it reduced the life of my trainers by quite a lot though as they would start splitting behind the toes where I bend my feet when cycling - special cycling shoes have firmer soles to avoid this.

Cleats do definitely give better performance, though for most casual riding styles the difference will be minimal.

 

[Accy cyclist]

I've just changed my rat trap peddles over to spd on one of my bikes. I rode with trainers in the chrome toe clips for many miles and they felt fine,but i just wanted a change. The clips and trainers could be back on in 6 months,swap and change and all that!

 

[AndyWilliams]

I have tried the spd type cleats several times now. I always end up with aching knees, so I go back to trainers. I think, like others perhaps, that I move my feet quite a lot, so for me these don't work too well. That said, it is faster with cleats, there is no doubt about that at all in my opinion.

I notice I do this, I push hard with my front for hills etc and the middle for cruising, so the idea of being stuck in one position, clipped in others me.
I asked because I was out with a guy who is clipped in and although they clip in and out easy, he is in one position and said he gets a bit stiff in the foot and has to stop and wiggle his toes.
I dont feel any issues. I wear Puma Tazon which are a hard trainer but a basic trainer.

 

[sreten]

Hi,

FWIW wallking shoes with noticeably stiffer soles than "trainers" are better.
AFAIK you can't buy very stiff plain cycling shoes anymore, they all have
some form of cleat system built into the sole nowadays.

Good walking shoes are not best for running, but certainly don't stop you.
Conversely there are "training" running shoes and "racing" running shoes.
(And other "training types" like tennis etc, best ignored here ....)

My Fila "training" running shoes have an "anti-injury" "anti-pronation" stiff
plastic insert in the instep area and work quite well on a bike, but I still prefer
some old Timberland walking shoes with the toe straps on the road bike.

On my plain pedal folder I couldn't care less, but generally use
lightweight walking boots, mainly because they are waterproof,
and breathable,and my sort of generic day to day footwear

rgds, sreten.

 

[gavgav]

I use mountain bike SPD shoes on my hybrid, without cleats/clips. I find them more comfortable to ride in than normal trainers, due to the stiffer sole. I also find I keep the ball of the foot on the pedal more when using them and it makes it easier when climbing for me. All personal preference though

 

[400bhp]

I tried SPDs and they didn't suit me. They gave me foot cramps, then sore knees and sore hips. Set up was probably wrong

Yes.

Get a bike fit.

 

[Brandane]

Yes.

Get a bike fit.

No.

Costs too much.

And won't solve the problem of wanting to move feet on pedals.

 

[400bhp]

No.

Costs too much.

Out of work just now!

Well don't comment about how "it didn't work for me" when you haven't a clue how to set it up properly.

How many hours do you spend on a bike a week on average?

 

[w00hoo_kent]

When Andy Pruitt was asked this he said "going clipless adds 30% efficiency to the ride" (to be fair I remember the 30% bit more than if it was efficiency he followed it up with, could have been power) it was noticeable because it was the straightest/quickest answer to anything all night. And he is basically a foot specialist.

So it depends on why you ride, if being 'better' is part of it, look at getting set up for clipless.

I've gone SPD's on the Synapse because I need to be able to walk around in the shoes and flats with old trainers on the Sirrus. I'm happy to swap between them as I change bikes, over the day today I'll do 40 odd miles in trainers and flats. It's use the right tool for the job really.

 

[Brandane]

Well don't comment about how "it didn't work for me" when you haven't a clue how to set it up properly.

How many hours do you spend on a bike a week on average?

"Haven't a clue how to set it up properly", WTF? I listen to my body, that tells me more than someone in a bike shop who may or may not know what they are talking about. There are also a lot of videos and articles all over the net by the likes of Sheldon Brown to help out us clueless souls!
I do about 500 miles per month in the summer, half that in winter. No racing or club riding and as previously posted, no aspirations to achieve cycling greatness at my age. All in all, no real need for SPDs, I think you might agree?

 

[400bhp]

"Haven't a clue how to set it up properly", WTF? I listen to my body, that tells me more than someone in a bike shop who may or may not know what they are talking about. There is also a lot of videos amd articles by the likes of Sheldon Brown to help out us clueless souls!
I do about 500 miles per month in the summer, half that in winter. No racing or club riding and as previously posted, no aspirations to achieve cycling greatness at my age. All in all, no real need for SPDs, I think you might agree?

Did I mention a bike shop...you use someone who knows what they are doing, which may or may not be someone in a bike shop.....500 miles a month = lot of time to spend putting pressure on 3 contact points. If your set up is slightly out it will create issues. Looking online for a solution is going to be hit and miss. For you it's a miss.

So, what you should have said is something along the lines of "I had problems with clip in shoes as no matter how hard I tried I couldn't get them set up right. I didn't have money to spend on getting someone who knows what they are doing to set me up properly so it was best for me to use normal shoes"

There we go.

 

[KneesUp]

Well don't comment about how "it didn't work for me" when you haven't a clue how to set it up properly.

How many hours do you spend on a bike a week on average?

Yes, @Brandane - how dare you have an opinion about your own preferences!

 

[400bhp]

Yes, @Brandane - how dare you have an opinion about your own preferences!

His preferences are constrained by his lack of funds and his ignorance.