Cycling shoes

[Fonze]

Looking at a new pair and have been researching for over a month now.
I wear Specialized mtb ones with spd pedals on my road bike so need a pair of road shoes and pedals to match.
So far singled out Sidi Kaos or Gaerne Carbon Tornado.
Sizing seems all over the place.
So I'm curious the pair you've bought and are the ones you'd highly recommend.
I'm looking to spend no more than £150 I think.
Cheers ..

 

[S-Express]

Why not buy a pair of Specialized road shoes? Shoe recommendations from others tend not to be particularly useful, for obvious reasons...

 

[Ian193]

I had specialized MTB shoes and double sided pedals on my road bike changed to spdsl pedals and shoes to match didn't like them so went back to the spd pedals with shimano shoes and not looked back so much easier especially when commuting

 

[bpsmith]

I would have to agree with the above with respect to fit, etc.

What I can say is that I have a pair of Sidi and the quality of them is amazing, with a lot of the parts being replaceable, so they should last a long time.

 

[Dirk]

I'm very pleased with my Lake CX175 shoes.

I bought them a year ago and paid £100 from LBS.
Leather uppers and BOA system.
Merlin are now doing them at an absolute bargain price (sizes and colours are limited though).
https://www.merlincycles.com/lake-cx175-road-cycling-shoes-102201.html

 

[Jason]

Why not buy something like these and stick to SPD pedals. All my bikes have shimano M520's fitted and means I usually wear the same shoes unless going into muddy mtb territory.

https://www.evanscycles.com/specialized-elite-touring-shoe-EV180342

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Horses for courses.
Do you want to race and therefore don't care that you can't walk in the shoes or do you want to commute and would like to walk around in the shoes?

 

[vickster]

Go to local shops, try some on, buy the ones you like most and fit best

 

[Fonze]

Cheers for the pearl of wisdom ^. , that's my next move ..
My question I asked is just to see who has bought a certain shoe that has stood the real test of time is worth letting other people know it's a good shoe in their opinion ..
People like me new to this game need a helping hand with those who've cycled a long time and can offer valuable opinions on products they've used over the years ..
Cheers though ..
only problem I have is my nearest decent stockist is 30 miles away and Evans is about the only one stocking anything worth buying ..

 

[vickster]

Sounds like a good distance to cycle for shopping

Fwiw my Specialized SPD shoes are holding up well. No interest in SPD-SL road shoes from a practicality PoV

Products also change, esp in terms of quality and fit.

 

[vickster]

For those with wide feet, I can recommend trying Sidi Dominator 5 Fit.

Sidi mega although wide enough for foot were no good with high arch, they just dug into my instep and ankle.

 

[Globalti]

Plenty of experience wearing bike shoes here. When I went over to road cycling I realised that SPD shoes are necessarily heavy thanks to the thickness of rubber that's needed to create the well for the cleat so I bought some road shoes and Look Keo pedals and cleats. Soon discovered that in fact Shimano SPD-SL cleats and pedals are far superior in quality and eventually I ended up buying a pair of Specialized Expert shoes, cheap because nobody seems to want the black with orange trim, see below. My only criticism is that although the Boa system is excellent and easy to adjust on the fly by reaching down and twisting the dial, they don't quite hold the heels as firmly as I would like, although in practice that doesn't inhibit cycling and if I want to give it some beans they are an excellent shoe, snug in the front, comfortable and lightweight.

But like helmets, I will never buy a shoe online as I want to try them on first.

Oh, one other point in favour of SPD-SL: if you have feet that turn outwards like mine and are troubled by heel strike you can buy an SPD-SL pedal with a 4 mm extra long spindle. Useful.

 

[bozmandb9]

Cheers for the pearl of wisdom ^. , that's my next move ..
My question I asked is just to see who has bought a certain shoe that has stood the real test of time is worth letting other people know it's a good shoe in their opinion ..
People like me new to this game need a helping hand with those who've cycled a long time and can offer valuable opinions on products they've used over the years ..
Cheers though ..
only problem I have is my nearest decent stockist is 30 miles away and Evans is about the only one stocking anything worth buying ..

I have a pair of Fizik R3 Uomo's, which I bought a couple of years ago. When I bought them, they were far too good for my level of ability, but now, I'm really glad I bought them, and I got a stonking deal, with around 66% off (I think they came in at under £100). I'm now looking to get some new ones, both for 'best use' and also because increasingly I need at least two pairs.

For me, it's a toss up between Bont Vaypor, and Fiziks, R1 if I can find an incredible deal, otherwise quite happy with R2's or R5's. The Bont Vaypors have the advantage of being fully moldable.

My recommendation, within your budget, would be Fizik R5B SPD SL, and of course, SPD SL pedals. I was using Look Keo for ages, and always thought they were fine until I had a disaster with them, and I tried SPD SL, which I find so much easier, harder wearing and easire to clip into. £117 for the shoes, minus £11,70 BC discount if you're a member!

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/fizik-r5b-spd-sl-road-shoes-2017/rp-prod132504

 

[Fonze]

Really appreciate the help ..
I'll try a few brands on Saturday when I visit Norwich ..
Thank you !

 

[400bhp]

I've been keeping my eye out on a new pair for next year. Would like full on carbon sole & boa type closure. I think I'm going to plump for the top end Decathlon ones. Worth a look.