Originally Posted by
flan48
Hi Daryou,
For flat pedals with "grip pins", the best shoes, IMHO, are those by Five Ten. I ride Freeriders, and they have almost uncanny grip, and are fairly stiff. Also, because of the generally large surface/contact area of flat platform pedals, shoe stiffness is not all that important.
I should also mention that I periodically use trail running shoes when riding. Most athletic shoes of this type have lots of ridges and nooks that can grab on to the aforementioned pins for good grip.
Best of luck!
+1 on the Five Tens. I also wear Freeriders but they have other models as well--it's all about the Stealth rubber sole. The grip is incredible especially on pedals with pins (I have pedals with "aggressive" pins for mountain biking, and also pedals with less intense pins on my urban bike--they 5 10s stick like glue to both). I personally have no need to run clipless with this setup.
I can ride with my trail running shoes OK, but I find the knobby bottoms are actually a hindrance and inhibit adjusting my foot as easily as with the 5 10s. Plus lots of running shoes have just too much padding/cushion to "feel" the connection to the pedal properly.