Triathlon - Newbie needs shoes

I need to buy my first pair of road shoes (to go with my new bike - a 2004 Cervelo One!), but I'm not sure where to start. I've heard that tri-specific shoes make a difference in transition, but most bike shops I've visited don't seem to carry a wide selection of them if they carry any at all. I've also read a little on these pages about carbon vs. not carbon, etc... So I'm wondering how much of a difference tri-specific shoes make, and what sort of features I should be looking for. Does anyone have any suggestions for some good but inexpensive shoes?

It does make a difference, but only since most tri-shoes have one strap instead of two or three more commonly used on road shoes. I'm using Diadora road shoes with three straps (but I only open and close the top two and keep the bottom closed at all times). Might save 5 seconds, but I doubt any more.

One thing to keep in mind though is that most tri-shoes are designed to be used barefooted, whereas roadshoes should be worn with socks. For a triathlete, that might be important, but for a duathlete, that really doesn't mean much as we go from running (with socks) to biking (keeping the socks...).

As far as carbon vs. non-carbon... Any stiff soled shoe will do, carbon or not. Might have a greater importance if you use a pedal with a small platform (such as SPD) as a softer sole could result in hot-spots (in essence pressure points on the foot).

Hope that rambling helped... :)

the straps on a tri specific shoe also open the opposite way so you can pedal away from the transition zone whith your feet on top of the shoe(just to get started) and then strap in. they open the opposite way so that the strap won't get in the chainring and chain. most tri shoes also have the little heel loop to help you pull them on easier