My apologies, my explanation was incorrect. it IS a matter of heel in. Looking down, if I come to a stop from walking and look down a line drawn between my legs going straight forward would show that while my left foot is angled about 3 degrees outward, my right foot is almost 5 degrees further out.

Today I did 12 miles and wore a pair of Mephisto walking shoes which have a heel which is significantly narrower than the Merrills I've been using. This way I was able to keep the shoe centered over the pedal while angling the heel inward just clear of the crank. Once I did that the irritation subsided. Keep in mind I'm new at this and have to almost NOT try and concentrate on what I'm doing. If I think too hard about it I mess up. It's three hours after the ride and there is no irritation.

What I'm looking for is a way of keeping the right foot angled outward at (more or less) a constant setting. I went to a LBS today (I won't name them) and the gent first of all corrected me that there is no such thing as a clipless pedal. I popped out bikeforums and did a search on my Galaxy and showed him the numerous clipless hits. He knew better. Then he showed me a pair of Bontrager MTB Mountain shoes, size 11. They were verr narrow (crimping my toes) and the tip of my longer foot touched the inside front of the shoe. "Biking shoes need to be snug" he said. I'll try somewhere else next visit. What I actually need is a piece of steel which curls up around the inside and outside of my shoe where the pedal is and then angle it and bolt it to the pedal...hmmmmmmm.

I do wish to thank all of you more mature geezers for the cheerful and flame free assistance. You folks are a gold mine of experience and I've benefitted greatly from your assistance.

Thanks, Rich