In the olden days before clipless shoes/pedals we bought leather cycling shoes that had a steel plate rivited in the sole. You want a rigid sole that allows all your power to transfer into the pedal. A softer sole allows your feet to curl more. Many of the shoes came with a bare smooth sole and the buyer had to purchase the cleats separately. The idea was to use the shoes for a while so the pedal would dig into the sole and leave wear marks. Then the cleats were carefully nailed, glued, or screwed to the sole lining up with the pedal wear marks. Some shoes like the white Ds, pictured above, came with a cleat already attached and allowed for adjustments. ... Why I use this type of old school shoes is so I can pedal the bikes while wearing different types for foot gear besides cycling shoes. Clipless pedals don't allow me to wear sneakers and still strap in my feet for stability and more use of a power stroke. Pedals that have toe clips and straps are more versitile to utilize your various footgear. This way you can ride to do errands and such and just use normal walklng shoes and still have your feet firmly attached to the pedals. Intercity cycling since 1959.