Hello all.

I ride all year around and when it's summer time I do not mind riding in the rain and don't think too much of it when I get stuck in a rain storm mid ride in the summer. But cycling shoes get soaked and then hey start smelling so bad. I have tried spray and no go.

What do you all do to solve this issue?

I soak my helmet in a Dawn and vinegar solution when it gets nasty. I'm sure it will work for your shoes as well.

Baking soda. Lots of it, overnight, shake out, repeat.

Mine get stinky cuz I keep forgetting to take 'em outta the gym bag, but, they're fully synth so I just throw 'em in the wash machine; pull cleats first, though, cuz they get really rusty.

I leave mine on the porch. Or, rather, I left them on the porch until a stranger delivering flyers decided to try them one with his dirty, bare feet. Now, I have to buy a new pair and I can't leave them on the porch. Which is annoying because they stink to high heaven (I wear them with bare feet because socks are too hot) and I'll have to leave them in the basement or inside the garage.

+1

+2. It works.

The stinky bacteria thrive in moisture. Kill them off when the shoes are not in use by storing the shoes somewhere warm and dry - like on top of your hot water cylinder. I like this method because it requires no extra effort.

Leather shoes won't stink but the insoles will.....remove insoles and wash.

Have synthetic uppers? .....That's why your feet sweat and the shoes stink....you need to clean the whole shoe.

You know how synthetic shirts stink.....same same.

Wear sandals.

I have old shoes which I use to ride in rain with no socks. They stink to high heaven when wet. I just pull out the insoles and let them dry in a place where they bother no one. Currently that place is under the stairwell while at work or in my garage at home.

I had the same problem. I could smell the shoes from several feet away. Posted somewhere on bikeforums. They told me to wash them. I did. The problem went away the second time.

Lots of methods in this article. Other than the boiling-water-plus-bleach method, I think they are all safe for cycling shoes.

https://www.howtocleanstuff.net/remov...nk-from-shoes/

If you're going to use a washing machine, I would find a front-loader (no agitator to batter the shoes), even if that means going to a laundromat.

I solved this problem for all my shoes by using antiperspirant on my feet. I have running shoes that are four years old that still have no bad smell. I wear those shoes without socks too. It sounds funny, but it works and I no longer have any foot odor in my shoes.

The baking soda trick works.

Or old school Keds or Converse sneakers, wash in washing machine.

You can get cedar chip inserts. If you put those in, they dry out your shoes well, and deal with the smell.

Get some tights or stockings and put some cat litter in the toe (the clay stuff works well - but anything that claims to mask odours is good). Tie it off an put it in your shoe.

The cat litter will absorb both the odour and the excess moisture left in the shoe.

Thanks to the UK version of QI series K episode 2 (Kit and Kaboodle) for this tip.