caloso

As a very general statement, road shoes tend to be stiffer and thereore more comfortable and less fatiguing on long rides. Also, as a very general statement, road cleat/pedal combinations are more solid so you are a lot less likely to inadvertantly pull your foot out during a sprint.

Camilo

There might be an itsy, bitsy, teeny, tiny benefit in terms of weight and/or aero-ness. And that might make a difference in world-class racing.

But, I am in total agreement - same quality shoes, same (good) fit, no difference that anyone could possibly measure except maybe in tiny results at the highest level of racing.

DrIsotope

For me, the road shoes vs. MTB shoes is a non-issue. For instance, on Wednesday, I rode 30 miles out to where my wife works to have lunch. We took her car from the office to a restaurant, went in, sat down and ate. Then drove back, I walked her back into the building, retrieved my bike, walked it up some stairs, then rode the 30 miles home.

This is why I wear MTB shoes. Had I been in road shoes, I would have had to tackle those stairs in my socks, as well as having waddled through the restaurant while trying to keep the tile floors from killing me.

Buy the shoe that fits your lifestyle. If you're actually concerned about the speed of your shoes, maybe you "need" those road shoes.

Cyclist0084

What's the tabs for on the back of the mountain shoes? Jets?

Since I don't use cycling specific shoes for any type of riding (yeah, I'm such a Fred ), I hadn't seen that before and am curious.

Wildwood 

Red shiny road shoes are the fastest for seriously challenging pavement rides, just like shiny red italian race bikes.

If you think your mtb shoes make you slower but you insist on using them, get the time trial shoe covers. Giro Ultralight Aero shoe covers $26 @ Backcountry.com, in high viz yellow (shoulda been red). Maybe faster on mountain downhill runs, too.

As to walking with road shoes, doesn't everyone have/use the rubber cleat covers???
$5.99 @ Nashbar!

unterhausen

Boa retention system to tighten the laces. I've had bad luck with them on my mountain shoes, Boa and dirt don't mix that well. Fortunately, the company has really good service and a lifetime guarantee, so they sent me parts.

We went to a tavern after a ride, and there was a guy there sitting next to his bike with ice on his wrist. He said he had broken it when he walked inside to use the bathroom and fell because of his road shoes. That will definitely slow you down.

Wildwood 

anecdotal evidence from encounters at taverns is inadmissible as facts in a rational discussion of how fast differing styles of cycling shoes make a rider.

Rocket7 makes the fastest road shoes in red.
www.rocket7.com

Wilfred Laurier

10 miles is a very good choice to consider because it is a common time trial length (actually 15 km, but close enough), which is a standard test of speed.

jefnvk

I find my local authorities prefer me to wear clothing on my bike rides. My feet appreciate shoes, regardless of the distance walking or cycling.

None of my cycling apparel takes any longer to put on than my regular apparel, why wouldn't I just wear the cycling shoes or clothes? I can understand if I am just jaunting down the road to watch the game at my buddy's place or popping out for something from the party store, I don't understand why I'd not wear the proper clothes for a ride though.

As to the original question: if you have to ask it, they probably aren't. I've never seen a speed difference in any shoes I wear, street or MTB.

Hiro11

No difference in speed. I use road shoes only because I prefer the locked in feeling of SPD-SL on a road bike.

fietsbob

Rig up a Test, so both are dropped out of the window at exactly the same time, see which hits the ground First..

Galileo's Hammer and Feather Drop-test done on the Moon..

Cyclist0084

Ahhh, gotcha. I've heard of the Boa system but had never seen it. Thanks for the info.

Leebo

Walking on water? Do tell.

Jarrett2

10 Wheels wins the thread

unterhausen

well, they aren't much, but there are bridges across the Delaware that cyclists are not allowed to ride over. And they have little trolls sitting in an office at the end of the bridge to enforce the rule. As far as I can tell, that's all they do, enforce the no biking rule. They could also enforce the no horses rule, but I imagine that's a lot less common. So having walkable shoes is an advantage there, it's a lot more work to walk across with road shoes.

bkaapcke

Try getting over "fast". bk

T Stew

Does the timer start include prep? If so my no-shoes cycling might actually be faster
Debating on trying a duathlon, maybe it would actually save a few seconds in transition since I run barefoot as well, no gear to take off or put on other than helmet I guess.

GambadiLegno

Well, in my case I've ridden MTB only for a few months, so I'm sorry I'll give my opinion based on road shoes.

IME there's a significant difference beetwen 2 road carbon shoes. I mean, when buying carbon shoes you have to look at the specifications and see the sole's percentage of carbon fibre. There are a lot of brands that include "full carbon sole" or "carbon sole" in their top road shoes and when you read full details, many times only 30% or 50% is carbon fibre, the rest is a mixture. There are also different stiffness levels, and I've had different road shoes and when racing you feel it a lot, I can't say how many watts you gain obviously, but you can feel the difference.

Now, I have a pair of Ekoi R1 carbon shoes, which I use to train and in autumn/winter and a pair of Giro Factor ACC for racing and summer. Despite the good quality of Ekoi's, the level of stiffness of the Giro's and their Easton EC90 carbon sole is awesome.

On the other hand, I would buy the more comfortable shoes for me if I'd not be racing. To be honest, I feel MTB shoes much more comfortable than road shoes, so despite road shoes for racing, when putting on miles I guess MTB shoes are the best, I know people using them on road bikes.

68venable

I put a road shoe on my left foot and a MTB shoe on the right. I tried to ride as fast as I could in a 10 mile straight line and ended up riding in a counter clockwise circle. Therefore, the road shoes were faster. How much? I cannot say for sure and I don't want to come across a fabricator of information.

Wilfred Laurier

Incomplete experiment.

You must go back out with the same shoes switched between your left and right feet to see if the behaviour is repeatable, then report back.

68venable

You are right. I just got so dizzy that I needed some time to recover.

rmfnla

If you had done this in a different hemisphere the circle would have been clockwise...