Manwich

New to the road bike and looking to spend more money on a clipless system. I was talking to one of the guys at Performance, and he said a lot of road bikers get MTB shoes because they like the idea of being able to walk around on them since the cleat is suppressed due to the shoe tread. I think it would look a little funny with honking MTB shoes and my trek, but it's a nice point. What do you ride? Do you have recommendations?

Norcal02

I have MTB shoes that I use on my road bike, I don't think it looks odd at all. A shoe is a shoe, and if it can spare the cleats walking around a little, I dont see the problem anybody should have with it. It's not like they look too out of place, some people just chose them over road shoes for that function.

Hickeydog

I use road shoes because I can use the bigger cleats, which I find more comfortable. I carry enough tools to at least get me limping back home, so I don't worry too much about walking. You can use whatever you want.

jaypanerai

I have been wearing MBT shoes and just switched to road shoes, a bit early to provide an opinion.

f4rrest

Road. SPD-SL and love 'em, but I've never tried mtb cleats or shoes.

Carbon Unit

I use road shoes. Yes, they are not as easy to walk in as mountain shoes but I don't really walk all that much. When I do walk, I put on cleat covers and then it is easy to walk in them.

Manwich

Oh another thing... Some shoes have ratchets on the top, some are just all velcro. Does it really matter that much? I like the looks of those SPD-SLs, they look sharp.

ok_commuter

I tried both and chose to go with MTB shoes and pedals so I could use the same stuff on all my bikes.

I first tried Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and Shimano road shoes and really liked them; I can see some advantage from the larger format cleat. However, after only a few rides I thought the cleats looked brutalized.

I was really surprised how roughed-up they looked, since I never had much trouble clipping in. Maybe they get battered at first and then never get any worse?

EDIT: I was influenced by the fact that the ultegra pedals were like $145 and the shimano m520 spd's were $50. i used the difference to upgrade the shoes to sidi dominator 5. i took and offroad route the other day and had to cross a couple of creeks and was really glad not to be wearing road shoes.

joejack951

If you are new to clipless pedals, clipping into dual sided pedals is a much easier task than single sided road pedals. You can get dual sided pedals that work well with road shoes (Speedplay) but they are significantly more expensive than MTB SPD pedals (whose cleats do not work well with road shoes).

Also, if you miss on your first attempt at clipping in, it's much easier to still pedal with SPD pedals than road pedals, especially SPD-SL which tend to be quite slippery when not clipped in.

The advantage of SPD-SL pedals is that you are more securely locked on to the pedals with basically zero chance of inadvertently clipping out (which is not a fun experience if you are pulling up really hard). Some say because of the larger platform that you are less likely to get hotspots though I think that has as much to do with the shoe as the cleat. If you are running a really stiff shoe, hotspots won't be an issue regardless of cleat type. Conversely, with a more flexible shoe, you'll be more prone to hotspots with smaller cleats.

If you decide SPDs are for you, Shimano makes some great looking touring shoes that won't seem out of place on the road at all, in my opinion.

RT51:


RT80:

dcvelo

1. Not all mountain bike shoes are honking (check out Sidi Dominators).

2. Road cleats offer a better connection to the pedal than mtb cleats in my experience (I use SPD and Eggbeaters in the MTB line, Look Keos for road).

3. If you know you're going to be doing a significant amount of walking, then MTB shoes make sense. If, on the other hand, you plan to spend most of your time on the bike (my personal preference), go with road pedals/shoes.

Manwich

How do you like your Keo pedals? I'm looking at the classics. Affordability is the key word here. I like the SPD shoes, I tried a pair on and they were very comfy. I like Sidis but don't want to pay 200+ bucks for shoes, though they're really nice I'm sure. I'm dealing with a self-restricted budget so I'd like to keep this part cheap and maybe upgrade a while down there road. Since I just bought the bike AND helmet AND rack AND saddle, I'm kinda strapped. But I want to get my miles in by training with a pull and a push so maybe I can start working toward competing, and this seams to be a big deal for speed and longevity of my rides.

OldGeezer

Shimano SH-M037 Mountain Bike shoes (SPD) and Shimano PD-M424 double-sided pedals are an unbeatable combination for me. The shoes are comfortable on or off the bike. I've never understood why anyone would want to have to carry cleat covers and otherwise clomp around like a clog dancer while off the bike.

bsyptak

Northwave Lizzard, Lake MX165 (really comfortable but heavy vibram sole), and Shimano all make nice, understated mtb shoes. The Specialized I'm sure are nice too, but deals abound on the other brands.

Remember, nobody is going to be looking at the side profile of your shoes like the product images always show. They'll be looking down at them. From above they all look the same.

Like many, I unified on a single cleat system and it is SPD.

Tapeworm21

Road pedals for me. Why? So I don't crack my knee on my stem/handlebar after I accidently pull out on a sprint.

Luckily, I don't ride my bike to walk somewhere. I'm on my bike to ride my bike. I commute with whatever shoes and clips... because that makes sense.

Carbon Unit

I have Speedplay Light Action pedals road pedals and I really like them. In fact, I can not imagine that any other pedal would work as well for me. The only improvement that I would like to see is making them easier to walk in. A four bolt road shoe with a fair amount of heal would work well to bad Rocket 7 shoes are so damn expensive.

thirdin77

I have both road and mtb shoes.

Mtb shoes are good for when you're sure you'll need to be able to step off the bike and start walking, like for bike commuting or a casual ride to the coffee shop.

Otherwise, if you're heavier, have bigger feet or otherwise do lots of out-of-saddle sprinting, the stiffer soles and larger cleats of road shoes really do give your feet better support and less likelihood of hot or numb spots at the cleat, which the small cleats of mtb shoes can give you.

How much do you weight? Shoe size? Lots of sprinting?

I think if you weigh less, have smaller feet and stay in the saddle, it matters less which one you use.

jely1990

I have some Shimano M076, which are the MTB version of the Shimano R076. They look identical except the M076 has tread.

Siu Blue Wind

I use mtb shoes on a road bike simply because of the walkability.

x136 

telebianchi

I have a pair of these for the mtn bike, and they are great for off road. But for walking on concrete or blacktop, the hard plastic cleats are more slippery than my road shoes with a rubber nub at the back and CB Quattro cleats with a rubber pontoon around the cleat.

As several have said above, if I'm going riding and will be off the bike only for a pee break or to fill a water bottle, I prefer road shoes and cleats. I think the three-hole pattern provides a better cleat mounting which cuts down on hot spots.

simplify

Exactly. And I tried very hard to find a reasonably-priced mountain shoe that had a stiff enough sole to stop the hot spot problem with my ATAC pedals--the balls of my feet would get numb at about the 50-mile point on a ride. Couldn't find any mountain shoes stiff enough within my price range. So, switched to a Look-type pedal, and can't believe the difference. Much more positive connection to the pedal and transfer of energy. And no hot spots, even though the shoes are inexpensive.

Manwich

Thanks everybody for your feddback. I'm 69" 190lb, bought a bike to not be 69" 190lb. And I think Ohio has more miles of bike path than they do interstate, so this is a good way to get the weight off. I like the Shimano R086L and KEO Classic pedals. Affordable, yes. Good choice?

dcvelo

I really like the Keo's. I have the Classics on my older road bike, Sprints on the other. There's a short learning curve since like most road pedals they have one-sided entry, but the connection is solid and clipping out is crisp. My one criticism is that the cleats could be a little more durable.

halfspeed

If you're not competing, road shoes are more hassle than they are worth. Stick to the Shimano touring shoes and a good MTB clipless system.

BarracksSi

Velcro wears out quicker than ratcheting straps. If you have a shoe that's a mix, like my Sidis with a ratchet strap at the top and two velcro straps further down, set the velcro straps to where they fit best and don't touch 'em again. Use just the ratchet strap to buckle in and out of the shoes.