Preferred footwear for non-roadies (Flat pedals)

[Smudge]

Well i may have spoke too soon about the Hi-Tec Silver Shadow. Noticed the other day that the bottom part of the sole was coming apart from the spongy part of the sole underneath. But they've had a lot of wear in the last couple of years, so cant really complain.
So i decided to check out some walking shoes with harder soles. After suffering the misery of going in various shops and trying many on, i bought a couple of different pairs of Peter Storm from Millets. They seemed nice quality for the price and i was also armed with a discount code to bring prices down further.
Time will tell if they're any good.

 

[Venod]

i am a bit mystified here, I get the Five Tens, stiff sole sticky rubber ideal for flats, but several people have mentioned stiff sole running shoes ! I have done a lot of running with lots of different brands of trainers both of road and on road and the last thing I need when running is a stiff sole, the more flexible the better, I have run in Silver Shadow at some point but they were not my favorite, Brooks Chariot suited me, a wide fit, off road/fells Walsh or Ino8, I use Salomon GTX for walking/hiking.

 

[vickster]

Trail running shoes have a stiffer sole (maybe what was meant?)

 

[Venod]

Trail running shoes have a stiffer sole (maybe what was meant?)

Yes some trail shoes may have a slightly stiffer sole than other running shoes, but they still have to be flexible, you can't beat a proper stiff soled cycling shoe, for cycling.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Yes some trail shoes may have a slightly stiffer sole than other running shoes, but they still have to be flexible, you can't beat a proper stiff soled cycling shoe, for cycling.

For walking, I always look out for a felixible soled cycling shoe.

 

[vickster]

Yes some trail shoes may have a slightly stiffer sole than other running shoes, but they still have to be flexible, you can't beat a proper stiff soled cycling shoe, for cycling.

True. I’m cycling in running trainers at the mo. Have had to switch to flats as my gammy knee won’t bend enough for clipless currently

My feet do start to ache after a few miles

 

[SuperHans123]

True. I’m cycling in running trainers at the mo. Have had to switch to flats as my gammy knee won’t bend enough for clipless currently

My feet do start to ache after a few miles

Running shoes tend to be not exactly flat and are not ideal for cycling IMO.
Five Tens are flat, grippy and fairly but not overly stiff.

 

[vickster]

Running shoes tend to be not exactly flat and are not ideal for cycling IMO.
Five Tens are flat, grippy and fairly but not overly stiff.

And ugly

I can’t wear flat soled shoes. Aggravate my arthritic joints

 

[snorri]

What are you preferred shoes/trainers for cycling with flat pedals?

I can't think of any shoes I've had which proved unsuitable for cycling on flat pedals.

 

[SuperHans123]

I can't think of any shoes I've had which proved unsuitable for cycling on flat pedals.

Most trainers are ok but if you get those ones with big grooves, or 'torsion' bars (Adidas), they don't sit well on platform pedals.

 

[Mrs M]

I wear these on the MTB

 

[BigMeatball]

Flat pedals with vans

 

[slowmotion]

@frank9755 was in the Trancontinental Race this year and wasn't using SPDs. Have a look at what he wrote in post #82 of the Transcontinental Race Heads Up thread.

 

[frank9755]

@frank9755 was in the Trancontinental Race this year and wasn't using SPDs. Have a look at what he wrote in post #82 of the Transcontinental Race Heads Up thread.

I'll have to read this thread through as I expect I'll learn something useful from it.
But @slowmotion is correct, I've abandoned cleats for long distance riding. For TCR I used some Innov-8 trail running shoes. They weren't perfect but I tried 7 or 8 different pairs of shoes and they were the best.
I won't go through them all but the things I look for are:
- wedge-type sole as I pedal midfoot - I don't want a pronounced instep in the wrong place
- zero heel drop. There is a search engine for runners which sorts trainers by amount of heel drop.
- reasonably stiff sole. But this is not that essential as cycling insoles - I use Specialized - make them stiff enough so that I don't feel the pedal too much. The other thing that I have done is just cut out a piece of flat plastic to go under my insole. That makes a noticeable difference.

I've tried a few pairs of Five Tens or similar shoes from Northwave, etc. They are good on dry days in winter, but they are all way overbuilt for on road cycling, so they are too hot for me in summer. Also they are horrendous when they get wet. Soak up loads of water and take ages to dry. Also I find Five Tens a little bit too grippy - can be hard to make fine adjustments to my foot position.

What I would really like to try is an SPD shoe with a flat / wedge sole, where you have the option to cover up the cleat hole on the base, and where there isn't a big raised plate pressing into my foot on the inside of the sole. I tried a few likely looking options but couldn't find on that met those criteria in time for TCR. It may be that an SPD shoe would be too stiff so wouldn't be grippy enough, but would be worth a try as I don't like to be able to feel the front and back of the pedal too much.

The other thing that I am going to try is carbon insoles. I have a pair but not got round to them yet. They might be risky for long distance as ultra stiff.

 

[Banjo]

While its fascinating to hear what a long distance expert like Frank uses The requirements for the Transcontinental race doesn't really reflect what us ordinary mortals that ride on flats require.I ride on flat pedals and inexpensive karimor trainers which cause me no foot problems at all.I know of a lady who completed the 1200km Paris Brest Paris in a pair of soft rubber beach shoes (Crocs)