himespau 

My commute has 2 parts. The first is a half mile walk pushing my bike and my 3 month old's stroller to the day care lady's house. Then I'm on my 5-8 mile ride to work. I have clipless pedals with spd shoes (shimano SPD-M086 if it matters). Typically, I wear a shoe to walk in until I get to the sitters with my riding shoes in my bag, swap shoes after dropping my daughter off, ride to work, and then switch shoes back again at work while changing (after doing my baby wipe bath routine).

I have a pair of shoes I leave at work for emergencies (work in a lab so you never know when you're going to get a spill, so I actually have a whole backup set of clothes there). I'd like to stop carrying the extra weight/bulk of the shoes if I can avoid it and was thinking about just walking to the sitter's in my cycling shoes and just wearing the shoes I already have at work while there and not transporting the extra pair every day.

The half mile in my cycling shoes isn't super comfortable, but it's not too bad and is very doable. I was wondering if anyone else has done something similar and how much the extra walking every day cut down on the life of the shoes. Thanks.

chipcom 

I've got 4-5 years on both my old Shimano sandals and Diadora mid-tops...and there has been lots of miles walked over those years in both. I think I've replaced the cleats once during that time and both are still in use.

tsl

The only non-bike activity I've found that shortens the life of my SPD shoes is squatting down on the balls of my feet (heels not touching ground) as when getting things off the bottom shelf, either at work or shopping. It puts extra stress on the cleat backing plate which eventually pulls through the sole of the shoe.

I've learned to avoid the practice when shopping, and I work all my hours at one location now, so I can easily keep regular shoes at work.

dpark

Have you considered getting a bicycle stroller so you can ride to the daycare? Could you leave a bike stroller at the daycare? That seems simpler and easier than walking a stroller and a bike while walking in biking shoes. I don't know if bike strollers are suitable for young babies or not, though.

himespau 

I would love to get a bike trailer to leave at work or a seat to put on my rack and ride her there. Unfortunately, both cases require helmets and are recommended for kids over a year only both for size and neck strength to hold up the weight of the head plus the helmet. Also, day care hours are less than working hours for my wife or I so she goes in to work 2-3 hours early so she can leave in time to pick up our daughter and I go in a little late and then have to stay late. So my wife would need a way to get her home. But yes, I've thought of it. Many times in fact and it's something I'd love to be able to work out. Also, there's the simple fact that when I've mentioned getting a seat for her to go with me on rides my wife's always poo pooed the idea because she's afraid to have her out on Boston's streets.

dpark

That makes sense. I hadn't thought about the helmet and neck strength.

Steely Dan

i've had a pair of shimano MTB recessed SPD cleat shoes for 3 years now, with probably hundreds and hundreds of miles worth of walking, and they're holding up fantastically well. i'm still on the original cleats too.

bluenote157

curious.. if you leave the stroller at the day care location, why can't you leave your "walking shoes" there. Maybe you can get some ugly crocs and stuff them in the stroller.

On second thought, if your shimano SPD-M086 are mtn style spd shoes, then you probably can just walk in them. If you were using road specific shoes that use the three hole cleat pattern and have a flat slippery sole, then I would say no.

HardyWeinberg

My bike shoes always fall apart from the top down, so it's never wear from walking that does them in. While I don't like walking in them, I don't think twice about it when it comes up.

fietsbob

Friends put an Infant Car seat in the floor of a bike trailer .
It has a steel frame high sides , 2 wheels.
baby seat has significant lay back so head was supported

the infant is over 21 now..

NB: you don't Have to use clipless shoes and pedals,
big platform pedals do a fine job.
the dry pair of shoes at work, is still a good idea, in the winter..

MikeyBoyAz

+1 with some specialized recessed cleat shoes... comfortable too.

himespau 

Have thought of that. Unfortunately, the wife's not going to go for it. She's a bit over protective and drivers here are...well, not good.
I know I don't NEED clipless, but I like to have them on my long rides and as I only have one bike that means commuting with them too unless I swap out with one of those clipless on one side and platform on the other side pedals and that doesn't seem the best use of my money at the moment.

himespau 

Good idea. Might consider that, but the consensus at the moment seems to be that I'm not going to wear out the treads of my shoes walking the little bit I do. I just didn't know if the rubber or plastic or whatever they use to make the soles is less durable than that of a normal shoe (which I tend to wear until they're smooth because I'm cheap). Or if the cleat would get worn down from the cement strikes (I don't hear it on the walk over on the sidewalk, but in the underground garage where I store my bike it's quite loud.

nashcommguy

Touring shoes is the answer. I've posted this before, so please excuse the repetition. Any mtb or road specific shoe is going to have cleat-strike on any hard surface as they aren't designed for off-bike use. Lake, Cannondale, Shimano all make touring shoes w/enough clearance. Along w/shallow cleats they'll be your answer to comfortable walking in cycling shoes. My touring shoes are a pair of Cannondales I've had for well over ten years w/no strike issues ever. My wife has a pair of Lakes w/no issues as well.

lakkdainen

How about cleat covers? Seems like they would take the wear instead of the metal itself. SOmething like this:
https://www.jensonusa.com/store/produ...at+Covers.aspx

somedood

The bike trailer has worked well for us. We have a 3 year old and 7 month old that use it. The 7 month old holds his head up fine, and I don't put helmets on either of their heads while they are in the trailer. However, you both have to be on-board with the idea and if your spouse won't go for it then shoes are probably the best idea.

If it were me, though, I would just not use clipless shoes in that situation. My commuter just has toe-clips/straps and when I bring the kids to work or elsewhere I just use normal shoes because I can't stand carrying 2 sets of shoes.

HardyWeinberg

I was going to say it's surprising how respectful of trailers otherwise aggressive drivers are, but I might not want to test that in Boston...

I would say just ride on the sidewalk for that half-mile.

We had an infant helmet (I think it was this one) for our daughter. She was not 3 months but could have been ~6-8 months when she started riding in the trailer.

SouthFLpix

This is what I would say. I don't think the average commuter gains a big advantage from going clipless. For competitive use, sure, but not so much for commuting.