Walking in Road Shoes with SPD-SLs - is there something out there?

[capricapers]

Hi all

I like to do 20-60 mile rides and there are times when, against my better judgement, I decide I’d perhaps better stop and have a drink or even a snack.
However, I don’t want to ruin my road shoes and their SPD-SLs. Is there a solution to this? Is there something lightweight we can carry with us and put on to our shoes to protect the cleats and our carbon soles? Hope this is not a silly question. Thanks.

 

[Kestevan]

Hi all

I like to do 20-60 mile rides and there are times when, against my better judgement, I decide I’d perhaps better stop and have a drink or even a snack.
However, I don’t want to ruin my road shoes and their SPD-SLs. Is there a solution to this? Is there something lightweight we can carry with us and put on to our shoes to protect the cleats and our carbon soles? Hope this is not a silly question. Thanks.

Cleat covers.
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-spd...g1r0SyO731M20VV4dBMJRulB5lExDaqRoCnSwQAvD_BwE

 

[Milkfloat]

I have the cheaper version - work perfectly for me.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/lifeline-essential-cleat-covers/

 

[capricapers]

I have the cheaper version - work perfectly for me.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/lifeline-essential-cleat-covers/

Fantastic. Many thanks. I did a search for cleat protectors but got no results.

 

[Slow But Determined]

Hi all

I like to do 20-60 mile rides and there are times when, against my better judgement, I decide I’d perhaps better stop and have a drink or even a snack.
However, I don’t want to ruin my road shoes and their SPD-SLs. Is there a solution to this? Is there something lightweight we can carry with us and put on to our shoes to protect the cleats and our carbon soles? Hope this is not a silly question. Thanks.

Just how far away from the cafe do you leave your bike???

 

[capricapers]

Just how far away from the cafe do you leave your bike???

Haha! I have never visited a café when on my own. When riding solo, I just tend to ride on for miles and never stop.

 

[Slow But Determined]

Haha! I have never visited a café when on my own. When riding solo, I just tend to ride on for miles and never stop.

Best way mate, I never leave mine unattended either.

 

[Soltydog]

Just how far away from the cafe do you leave your bike???

You don't always have to walk much to chew up your cleats, depends on what you are walking on Gravel is a killer, We have a gravel driveway/road at home & it can destroy cleats in no time Look cleats tend to last a bit longer than shimano in my experience. I use cleat covers & tend to go through two pair each year, but better than wearing cleats out monthly

 

[Racing roadkill]

I use them all the time. Some cafes have shiny floors. I also discovered a new reason for using them, at the weekend. I actually forgot to put the cleat covers on, then walked across a little grassy / gravelly bit to the cafe stop. When I tried to get the right foot back in the pedal, the cleat wouldn’t engage. I stopped, got off the bike, took the shoe off, and had a look. The cleat had become all packed with Donkey cr@p, which I had trodden in on my way back to the bike.

 

[capricapers]

You don't always have to walk much to chew up your cleats, depends on what you are walking on Gravel is a killer, We have a gravel driveway/road at home & it can destroy cleats in no time Look cleats tend to last a bit longer than shimano in my experience. I use cleat covers & tend to go through two pair each year, but better than wearing cleats out monthly

Very useful, thanks!

 

[I like Skol]

It might not be what you want to hear but some of us do plenty of 100+ mile rides using MTB SPD pedals and shoes. We don't have any trouble pedalling or walking without having to carry extra gear to protect ourselves when off the bike. Just sayin.......

 

[JhnBssll]

It might not be what you want to hear but some of us do plenty of 100+ mile rides using MTB SPD pedals and shoes. We don't have any trouble pedalling or walking without having to carry extra gear to protect ourselves when off the bike. Just sayin.......

Yep, original SPD's all the way for me

 

[davidphilips]

Worst thing about walking with cleats on for me any way is when i walk into a cafe that has just had the floor cleaned its like walking on ice, theres one club run with a stop at a certain cafe that well for me i keep a bike with SDPs, Cleat protectors may be the solution never tried them?

 

[Racing roadkill]

Worst thing about walking with cleats on for me any way is when i walk into a cafe that has just had the floor cleaned its like walking on ice, theres one club run with a stop certain cafe that well for me i keep a bike with SDPs, Cleat protectors may be the solution never tried them?

They are.

 

[I like Skol]

Worst thing about walking with cleats on for me any way is when i walk into a cafe that has just had the floor cleaned its like walking on ice, theres one club run with a stop certain cafe that well for me i keep a bike with SDPs, Cleat protectors may be the solution never tried them?

This kind of suggests that the SPD-SL pedal/shoe system is not really fit for purpose unless you are racing on a closed road or circuit. Bicycles, by their very nature (two wheels), usually require regular foot/ground contact and to make that contact so precarious is madness.

They are.

Still sounds like an unnecessary faff to me. I choose my cycling equipment to improve the experience, not to compromise the function.

To further illustrate the point of 'fit for purpose' in a rather extreme but perfectly relevant example, a work colleague of mine who is a keen'ish cyclist was out riding alone about 2 weeks ago when he got into a dispute with a motorist at a point where the road narrowed from two lanes to one. A verbal exchange followed and I won't go into the rights or wrongs of the situation but it turns out the motorist was actually Mr Psychopath and before he knew it the driver was out of his car and my colleague was on the ground receiving a battering!!!! He explained to me how he was just like Bambi on ice and just could not stay on his feet to defend himself due to the shoe cleats. I know this is (hopefully) not a typical scenario for most riders but it does highlight a problem and there are a 1001 situations where you may need to predictably or unexpectedly dismount from your bike and rely on remaining confidently upright for safety's sake.