jeirvine 

With the rise of l'Eroica, is anybody making decent cycling shoes that can be used with clips and straps, but not requiring cleats, like the old Avocet Touring shoes? They had ridged soles that would keep the foot on the pedal, without cleats. I suppose one could wear spd shoes without the spd cleats, but the soles aren't necessarily ridged and slotted to match the pedal cage.

stardognine

I really like the looks of those, as far as the useage anyways. I never made myself learn to use straps when I was young, and now it's too late to teach an old dog old tricks.

trentschler

I had two pairs of those in the 80s and have tried to find something similar in this day and age. No luck yet. I'm so used to clipless pedals that toe clips, straps and cleats are pretty much a non-starter. But if I could find shoes like these, I'd try clips with loose straps, just as I did in the olden days.

jeirvine 

Maybe Bianchi could release a l'Eroica shoe. No chrome required.

John E

You have asked my perennial question. With the steel shank, transverse ridges, and walkable rubber sole, the Avocet Touring I and II were my absolute favorite general purpose cycling shoes through the 1970s and 1980s, and since I still ride clips and straps, I would be delighted if someone would introduce a reasonable reproduction.

The closest -- but not a true substitute -- I have been able to come have been now-discontinued (of course) Diadora mountain biking shoes and flat-soled Lake BMX shoes. I currently wear flat-soled ASICS, but these would not be suitable for tough hill climbs or long distance, although they are great for casual rides up to 25 mi or so.

gaucho777 

Hey, I recognize that photo! I'll be following this thread with interest. Those/my Avocet 30s no longer look so new, and I'm already plotting for the day when I'll have to replace them. I haven't found anything similar currently available. I'm glad I snatched these with a reasonable BIN when I did. It's a great shoe!

I sometimes wonder whether it might be possible to have a cobbler adapt a flat bottomed cycling shoe (something like a Quoc Pham shoe) to add ridges. Though I'd be reluctant to potentially damage the shoe, I've also wondered if a small groove(s) might be carefully made directly into a flat sole.

I have seen some vintage Carnac touring shoes with a similar ridges in the bottom, but never in my size and nothing currently in production. Rivat also made a touring shoe with series of angled ridges along the entire sole. Also, there is a similar Avocet 20 model with grooves on the sole. A few examples of both Avocet 20 and the Rivat shoes are available on ebay now, but only in very small sizes.

jeirvine 

Story of my life. Try finding anything in a 47.

bikemig 

I liked the bata bikers; they were cheap and they worked.

eschlwc

the onitsuka tiger mexico 66 old school running shoe has been around since the late '60s.

in basic black, it makes for a nice combo with a comfy pedal like the kkt top run.

add clips and straps, of course.

Wildwood 

Most are looking for a stiffer sole in a cycling shoe, I think.

Mexico 66 | Standard | Red/Red | Onitsuka Tiger United States

RobbieTunes

Most of Onitsuka Tiger became Asics, so you may want to look in that direction. Indoor soccer shoes that had the neoprene bottoms also come to mind.
One of my Ironman friends uses a pair of Adidas trail running shoes, with a shallow groove filed in, says they work great.

I used to use their track spike shoes, without the spikes screwed in, and filed a shallow groove across the bottom for the ridge on the pedal.
Worked OK. I have a friend that still uses them with double straps.

These days, I use a pair of Puma Touring shoes, similar groove filed across the outsole. They work fine but pinch my little toes.
I just picked up a pair of Giro Republics. I'm thinking of buying a spare set of walking pads and altering them to fit a toe clip pedal.

lotekmod

I had a set of old mountain bike shoes with a stiff sole and thick rubber on the bottom. I cut grooves in the bottom, like the Avocets above, with a bandsaw. I used them with clips and straps and it worked very well, but then I got a pair of vintage Dettos with cleats and ended up tossing the old shoes. That was unfortunate since the MTB shoes were much more comfortable than the Dettos, but then again they didn't look vintage. I've thought about picking up some new Shimano lace up touring shoes which have more of a vintage look and taking a saw to them.

edit: the good thing about cutting your own slot is you get to put it exactly where you want. I think I did a few rides with my shoes until I could see the mark in the rubber from the back of the pedal, then cut a slot on that line.

artclone

Dettos pop up NOS frequently for reasonable prices on eBay.

And new ones are $200 or moreScarpa da ciclista Detto Pietro originali

eschlwc

i buy my onitsuka tiger mexico 66s new on ebay. usually under $60.

Drillium Dude 

I have a pair of Onitsuka shoes. Nice fit and all, but the sole wouldn't be stiff enough for any real distances. My arches already give me enough grief at times!

I like these old Sidis. The earliest versions were true leather; sometime in the mid-90s they went to Lorica uppers. I looked waaaay ahead when I bought these and purchased a spare pair I've not had to put into service just yet. I wore out my only leather pair (bought at Condor Cycles in London in 1994) by wearing away the soles at the toe from doing flying dismounts and sliding to a stop on my feet!



I got these through Bicycle Classics around 2000. I think they ran about $50 a pair then. I used a leather punch myself to do the ventilation (based the pattern off a pair of Dettos so they didn't look too home-made). Great shoes!

I also had a pair of those Avocets back in the day. The black and grey version. I found them comfortable on and off the bike. I'd probably wear them again if I could find them.

DD

artclone

Amazing job punching the leather! Funny that you're good at that too, but I guess it makes sense.

Pompiere

I have a pair of Avocet 20 shoes that I still wear on occasion when I ride a bike with toe clips. I bought a pair of Bontrager SPD shoes when I was worried the Avocets were worn out and rode with toe clips for a while. After a few months I went ahead and bought SPD pedals. My son uses an old pair of track shoes with the spikes removed. The part that contacts the pedal is hard plastic and since he ran distance events, they have a slight heel for walking.

Sir_Name 

I've used a pair of trail running shoes for the past few years. They have a stiffer sole than other running shoes and work ~okay. Longest distance on them was a century and they didn't cause any pain or hot spots. They have fairly aggressive tread (due to their design intent) that complicated flipping the pedals and slipping into them. I also use them for hiking otherwise I'd be tempted to file them down a bit. I'd love to find something like the Avocet. Sidi or Detto would be nice if I could find them for a decent price in 47. I've tried Sambas, but found the sole to be far too soft for me.

LeicaLad 

Anybody try these?

Amazon.com: DVS Men's Luster X Cinelli Fixed Gear Bike Shoe,Black,12 M US: Shoes

RobbieTunes

Very cool to know.

I thought they sold out completely, as the Dan Gable wrestling shoes went from Onitsuka Tiger straight to Asics.
I think Bata and Ontitsuka Tiger had me covered for shoes back in the day.
Our local Ben Franklin sold nothing but Bata and Tiger.

RobbieTunes

it's probably in code, too....

RobbieTunes

I wonder if I could get someone to 3D print a cleat that bolts onto the bottom of Giro Republics, would include an abbreviated pad on each side and a slot for the pedal lip. Would bolt right in where the walking pads go now. Incorporate the 2 bolts on the shoe and the 4 bolts that hold the walking pad. Walkable, compatible with toe clips.

aluminummonster

I'm going to echo some of the opinions on the Onitsuka Tigers. They're not bad riding shoes depending on the pedals you use. On quill pedals with cages, they're not too bad--they're not exactly stiff soled, but with a new insole, they work fine; but if you ride a pair of the old Shimano 600 pedals that are sort of triangular for example, the Tigers, imo, just do not provide enough support. I'm more a fan of the Adidas Samba's. They're relatively lightweight, stylish, and just stiff enough not to kill your feet.

Classtime 

Here is my solution so far. For wide size 46, my old Sidi Megas.

I got some rubber sole material from the shoe repair guy and used Shoe Goo. I built up the edges for a flat forefoot. Cycling specific sneakers gave me hot spots. These so far on 90 minute rides in and out of traffic are great. The velcro straps have not hung up but the plan was to cut them off and burn some holes for laces only keeping the buckle. The clips were bent to be taller (wide?) and I will probably bend them a little more. MKS makes some wide clips.

If I was starting over, I would cut it off shorter and glue on some plastic/nylon/delrin whatever in the back with a slot. I may try a slot in the rubber sole this weekend for a long ride. I also may put some Gorilla tape across the toe to build it up a bit like Chuck Taylors.

Some internet postings refer to Vittoria 1976 coming in wide, but I can't find a pair and Vittoria won't respond to my inquiries.

CO_Hoya 

Hmmm. Interesting discussion for a clipless-only rider.

There's a listing for a lot of bike parts for sale not too-locally that included this:


Didn't give it much thought, but perhaps with l'Eroica these would have some value.