Biscayne05

I've decided on buying a new pair of shoes. I'm currently using some Sidi Lasers which were OK but not perfect. I was able to put my custom orthotics inside and overtime created some wiggle room around the forefoot area. My major issue is that I need something wider and a shoe that has an excellent heal support (My Sidis slip, causing me to tighten the buckle but it's very uncomfortable).

I've looked into:

Bont Vaypors
Specialized S Works/Expert
Shimano 191 (I believe the customisable ones like the 315/320s are unnecessary since I'm wearing my orthotics).

I believe all are wider than Sidis and offer an all Black color.

What shoes are you wearing?

RT

I am in the anti-buckle camp. You can ratchet tighter than you can velcro, and you don't need to strap in like you're going for a ride in the space shuttle. The one time I used the buckle, I was unable to get a comfortable level of tightness without over-tightening. I also wear orthotics and have worn customs in the past, but have weaned my feet off of them while cycling. They really did me no good as I was not using them to support my posture while in the saddle..

I have worn many brands of shoes and the Specialized were the widest of them all.

Ebuzz

Sidi Megas!

DaveSSS 

Unless your orthotics are made for cycling shoes and address some problem in the forefoot, they are probably worthless - most have a heel cup that is far too thick to use with cycling shoes. Walking and cycling are entirely different activities. I've worn custom orthotics for my walking shoes for over 25 years to address tendon problems in the arch, but they serve no purpose for cycling. I wore stock Sidi shoes for many years and only recently tried custom D2 shoes that include a custom orthotic. They are fine shoes, but very expensive.

R1lee

No othodics in my shoes. But I do use sworks road shoes with the wide front.

Biscayne05

Thanks, you raised a good point (so did RT).

So S Works it is? It'd break my bank but if they are really made in heaven for wide footed cyclists then I'm in.

I actually found an Expert version online but it's only available locally. Any Cali residents nice enough to pick it up?

Myosmith

I was looking for a walkable shoe for touring and training and went with the Shimano M088E which is supposed to be wide. In the past I've had to purchase shoes a full US size too large to get adequate width across the toes but that caused problems with cleat placement being further forward than I would have liked. I ordered the M088E in my normal size 10 US and they were still a bit too tight, so I had to exchange them for one Euro size (1/2 US size) larger and am hopeful this will solve the problem adequately. I see from online reviews that these shoes run slightly small and I noticed that while the website said size 10 US/44 EU, the box said 44 EU/ 9.7 US. I called the store and the 45 EU are actually 10.2 US. I have enough problem finding regular athletic and work shoes due to wide, short feet and pronation. I usually wear a 10EE or EEEE with lots of arch and heel support. Finding cycling shoes in my price range is extremely difficult. I heard Bont was good and measured my feet per their online instructions and entered it into their size calculator. The answer I got was "Call for a quote on custom shoes".

Biscayne05

I've got a partial list of shoes:

Lake CX331 - BOA system is a major plus, Speedplay soles
downside: pricier but not by much

Bont Vaypor - I'm really convinced with Bont's technology, also available in a wide version
downside: reports of build quality and non-speedplay sole and the damn buckle system
*I can save some $80 by buying the CTT ones from a website as long as I can get over the Red/Black colourway...but I believe things have changed since those and the Vaypors.

S-Works - I have to resort to EBAY (depending on what's there) or buying locally which will cost me a lot, BOA is a plus
downside: cost , non-speedplay sole

Decisions, decisions. I wish I could all try them on but I believe I can only find the S Works locally. Lake and Bont are pretty much non existent around my area.

abhirama

I have wide feet too (somewhere between E and EE I believe). I use Giro Factors and they're wide enough for me. I love them. And you can get them at a good price if you look around.

unionmade

I'm no help on the orthotics, but do have really wide feet. My current shoes are Lake 236 in wide. I love the Boa system. Lake seems to have stopped distributing to the US, I can't find them anywhere in my size, including online UK stores, eBay, etc.

i tried on a pair of Giro Trans at the store recently. They were too narrow, but not by much. They make a "high volume" model for fat feet. Since my Lake's have a few more seasons in them, I didn't have the shop order them yet. FWIW, they are on sale at Competitive Cyclist. Since I took the store's time, I'll buy them there in the future if I do get them. But I'd love to get more Lakes.

NealH

The Shimano 315's in Wide (EE) are superb shoes, and wider (and better fitting) than Sidi Mega's.

topflightpro

I too have wide feet, and so far, I have found the Specialized Pro Carbon wide to work best.

They have the same shaping as the S-Works, but are cheaper and don't have the BOA System.

I tried Sidi Mega, which felt like they were just giving me a bigger shoe - i.e. a 44 mega is really just a 46. That didn't work because my foot was not longer, just wider.

I also have a pair of Lake CX-236. I am not a fan of the BOA system on those shoes. It allows my heel to slip too much. Basically as I pull up in my stroke, the heel slips out and the laces tighten around my toes. I think something like the S-Works system, where there are two separate BOA systems would work better.

I also don't have custom orthotics, though I do like the Specialized insoles. They have three different ones to accommodate for arch height.

Gerry Hull

Shoes have been major albatross.
Sidis wretched for wide feet.
garneau, Giro, shimano bit better.
I'd give a fortune for a solution that requires nothing more than a wallet.
the $$Giros have required the least amount of DIY orthotic jiggering, because they provide several arches to choose from. There are others that do too, I suppose.

a frequent go-to has been to cut a styrofoam plate to the shape of the insole, and then scissors away the area where I feel excess pressure. One layer doesnt require going larger on shoe size.

correct length shoes typically want to crush the bones that run fore-aft, along outer aspect of foot. If the insole in that area is of generous thickness I will take it down a bit with basic rotary sander, rather than get into styrofoam and glue and all that mess.

happy now, but also lucky I had basic skills and patience for this kind of stuff- as occasionally there are problems that there's no ready-made solution for. I dread them.

Gerry Hull

Here is a grab bag of cheap and accessible materials you can use to rapidly alter the terrain of the floor of your shoe with- and easily remove if you don't like.
-"Gel for Her Heels"
-styrofoam plates, as mentioned
-velcro strips, of varying width, thickness etc
-old insoles

you get the idea. Good luck, you might get better results by your own efforts than you think.

RT

After having purchased and used numerous customized orthotics, all of which worked only a little to varying degrees, I found the As Seen On TV brand called Walk-Fit at Big Lots for $6.99. They work better than any other (even custom) orthotic I have used, but none of them fixed anything permanently for me.

Check out my foot discomfort thread. I try to add details whenever I come across relevant data and/or solutions.

GH is right - you can probably do just as well with some creative thinking and household products.

JakiChan

Check with your podiatrist. Mine told me not to bother with my orthotics when riding.

pihb

I can vouch for the S Works. My bike shop had an incredible sale over the weekend and had a pair for $200 in my size. I have a wider flat right food and rode specialized before. I was in a cycling accident last year and picked up some Bont. I can't say i was overly impressed as they were more narrow and hurt my foot about an hour into riding. Switching back to specialized and it feels like heaven. They are super light and the boa system is really comfortable and doesnt put any pressure points on the foot. i have about 100 miles on the shoes but feel great.

Biscayne05

Almost pulled the trigger on some Vaypors last night until I realized I have family "down under". Getting someone to check if the pricing is any better or if the Riot has already released.