Cyclocross - Shoes for CX

Hi there: I just got a pair of Crank Bros Candy as a gift and have been looking for some shoes to match them. :) So I am looking for some opinions on what kind of shoes one should get for doing some lightweight CXing. What kind of bike shoes do you get/like/suggest (mountain/road/brand/comfort)? Thanks. :)

Nice gift.

I don't know of any cross specific shoes but most people just find a nice pair of mountain bike shoes. A lot of people like the ones where you can put the cleat spikes up front for muddy run ups. I just got some Diadorra Geko's. They fit above description and have a lace up with velcro enclosure. I personally like the lace up to dial in the correct feel. They were only about $60 USD.

+1 on the Gekos. Plus they have mesh on top so they dry out more quickly than full leather.

Thanks for your suggestions. :) I am totally new in buying bike shoes. Anybody know about the Specialized BG design? Is it really worth to pay $200+ for a pair of those? My LBS are recommending those. In my LBS, they are also having a big sale on Carnac, and they don't carry any Diadorra Geko. :( So I would like your expert opinions on them. Thanks.

I'm not sure what "lightweight crossing" is- do you want to enter some races, or just ride some offroad? I don't understand paying $200 for shoes, but I seem to have feet that feel fine in most anything. For racing with running sections, or riding where you need to do any walking you don't need expensive superstiff superlight shoes. You want a somewhat flexible sole for off the bike. Too-stiff soles can be a problem for some people, creating hot spots and foot cramps. The candies can also be a little harder to clip in than some pedal/shoe combinations. My Northwaves take a little work to get in for example, some people shave down the tread with Candies pedals. Lower profile shoe tread works better with those pedals. I prefer the regular eggbeater pedals over the candies for that reason for cyclocross. For longer adventure rides with long walking/hiking sections I really like my Lake MX 160s. These are made for hiking, with a wider sole at the heel and thick vibram tread. Kinda heavy for cross racing, but perfect for the 4+ hour Ironcross adventure race that had hiking sections up steep rough trails, carrying the bike. Last year I nearly sprained an ankle climbing through the rocks on the course with unstable (for walking in the woods) Sidi MTB shoes with slippery narrow soles. Forget about the price- there is little correlation between price and utility/performance on offroad shoes. It's all about what fits. Go to a few shops Cinderella, til you find the one. Brands differ in how they fit your foot, but often fit consistently between models.

As Zen mentioned, get something fairly flexible. You can CX in carbon mtb shoes but I prefer something without the stiff toe box.

I wear an older Sidi SRS design which are stiff enough for MTB racing but have plenty of flex for run ups although they're not cheap.

Zen did you do the Iron Cross this year? This year(i think) was the first year someone won on a cross bike vs mtb. They made it a bit more cross friendly.

I prefer something with a flexible sole, with laces and velcro and removable cleats. I have an old pair of Diadora Jalapenos, which were the predecessor to the Geko's. They are still holding up well after four years. I think I paid $60 for them. Flexible is good if you're doing a lot of running on the courses. Laces are better than velcro alone, because your shoes won't slip off your feet when your running through really sticky mud. Removable cleats are important for slippery run-ups. I buy soccer cleats by the box at sporting goods stores. They wear out quickly, but they're super cheap.

Zen did you do the Iron Cross this year? This year(i think) was the first year someone won on a cross bike vs mtb. They made it a bit more cross friendly.

I've done the Iron Cross every year, I have good intentions of doing Three Peaks in the UK, but never get organized to do it- the one year I could go mad cow disease caused it to be cancelled. But from the pictures, it looks like mad cow is contagious to cross riders even years later. Wacko races, but epic fun.

I just got a pair of cannondale roam shoes. Very comfortable lace ups (no velcro)... I do "light cx'ing", which to me is some offroad but no racing. They look like sneaks but have a good hard sole for riding hard, but you can clip out and just walk around comfortably in them too. They were around $60 or so.

i have some pearl izumi's and i had to grind down the tread to be able to clip into the candy's. a bit annoying, but now it seems to work fine.

i have some pearl izumi's and i had to grind down the tread to be able to clip into the candy's. a bit annoying, but now it seems to work fine.
Common problem with the candy's. The best way to deal with it is to glue a piece of 60 grit sand paper to a 3/4" plywood board or other flat surface and just sand the tread right off. This way it sands off evenly and you dont get any wierd angles.

Common problem with the candy's. The best way to deal with it is to glue a piece of 60 grit sand paper to a 3/4" plywood board or other flat surface and just sand the tread right off. This way it sands off evenly and you dont get any wierd angles.

good idea. i used a dremel, which didn't really work that well. do you happen to know how much tread to remove? ie. should the tread be more or less flush with the cleat, or should i leave more than that?
right now i have about 2mm of tread sticking up above the cleat, and it seems to work "just ok." I have actually had trouble getting clipped in in a race and that really sucks. oddly enough, i have 2 bikes, one with candy Ti's and one with SL's...i can get into the SL's fine, but I have problems getting into the Ti's...so i'm thinking about taking more tread off....