spartanKid

Seems like there are posts scattered about in different threads related to shoes, but no dedicated thread.


What shoes do you ride? Do you like them?

In terms of track specific stuff, I've heard lots of people complain about boa dials popping loose during starts, and also "ultra light weight" shoes not having the stiffest soles. That being said, Kristina Vogel rides road Sidi's with boas and her starts seem to be all right

Baby Puke

My DMT's are about done, but I love laces. Anybody using the Giro Empire?

carleton

I’m a fan of lace-ups.

I guess BOA style shoes are also lace-ups. That just occurred to me.

seau grateau

I've been using these LG shoes for a bit now: https://garneau.com/ca/en/la84-cycling-shoes-c

Got them on sale for about 1/2 MSRP. I like the lace-up -- never used boas, but always kinda hated velcro and ratchet closures. Not the stiffest shoe around, but they're more than enough for me.

taras0000

Older Northwave Evolutions with the swappable sole plates. About the only shoe that still accepts SPD-R. I've also got a pair with the Speedplay plates for the road. Needless to say, going to be looking for something new soon. May go custom, may try to make my own carbon kicks for the track.

ruudlaff

I'm using a pair of DMT Pistas just now that a bought a month or so ago...but I don't feel 100% with them if I'm being honest. Been messing about with cleat position and the likes but I just don't feel able to put out the full horsepower with them.

Poppit

I'm using Mavic Cosmic Ultimate shoes, mainly because they do a wide version and I've got wide feet. They feel good to me but I think I should have got a half size smaller.

VanceMac

I first bought them as a bit of a lark because I liked how clean they looked and was curious about laces. After my first ride, I never wore anything else, and now have 4 pairs. That's a bit overkill since I gave up road, but you have to have a full color palette right?! I'm laces for life now.

Baby Puke

Nice! They do look clean. Carleton just turned me onto these, also on my shortlist now, looks much classier without the ratchet IMO: Vaypor Classic

And the price is pretty good...

pierrej

I've got an all black pair and they are faultless, there's really nothing that they don't do more than well enough for me. I am considering a pair of Bont's as I'm looking at going speedplays on the road so would need another pair of shoes for the track.

At any high level event there's plenty of Bont's, and they're apparently as stiff as you could ever need and very comfortable from what I've been told.

queerpunk

I use Bont Vaypors. I got 'em for like $40 (which I think is 90% off the original MSRP or somethin' crazy) when a shop closed. Otherwise I'd be on something decidedly more midrange.

Bonts have pros and cons. They really work well for some people; they really don't work for some people.

They are heat-moldable and have a wider toe box and more prominent arch support than most shoes. They also are a little deeper; pairing mine with Giro insoles that have stick-on arch supports of different heights has been important for me - otherwise I max down how much I can tighten the shoes and it's not enough.

They're quite stiff, because the sole comes up on each side of the foot. The first time I sprinted on Bonts I could feel a distinct difference between what I was wearing and what I had worn the day before.

I use a cheaper pair on the road, where I'm less enamored with them. When I tighten down the ratchet to the end, it pops off one tooth when I sprint. When I get them feeling real snug, I lose a little bit of feeling. And I keep wanting to re-mold the dang things to try to get some stuff perfect... I think I'd be fine with a shoe that has a little more manufacturing consistency and less customize-ability.

There are stories of Bont trying to scale up some 8 years ago, and temporarily losing a lot of QC in that process - it's one of the things that makes the brand pretty polarized. Some people had bad experiences during that time... other people kept swearing by them.

JimiMimni

I'm on the Vaypor+. They're pretty great. Mine are a double BOA, which has thus far been problem free. Would highly recommend!

I had some former colleagues who were creating custom carbon shoes for track and field sprinting, and said the ROI was terrible. The time and cost were just astronomical, relative to the product output. That thought process dissuaded me from trying to make my own. Just wanted to give you that heads up.


With regards to the Empire: I've not worn those, specifically, however Giro shoes are good in my book. I've had a few other pairs of their shoes that have been great.

queerpunk

I'm wary of the Boa. If I had shoes with a Boa closure I'd make sure that I had a replacement Boa on hand. I'd hate to have one break on me while at an event.

Although I've seen other closures break, too - a teammate of mine once finished a track event with his shoe just straight up duct-taped around a toe-strap holding the dang thing to his foot.

sarals 

I ride old road Giro's. Three years old, specifically. I bought a pair of Pearl Izumi Elite Road IV shoes (with the single BOA on the tongue) last summer, and they just didn't work out. They were the "same size" as my Giros, but they really weren't. They were too narrow, and clearly a size smaller than the Giros. So, I rode my old Giros at Worlds and they were just fine. Other women were on their old road shoes, too, so hey...

The Pearl Izumi's are going on eBay shortly.

I would like to try the Empires, but I've been warned "they're narrow". I have wide feet! Just the same, I will be on the hunt for shoes later on this winter.

rustymongrel

I went through a bunch of shoes about two years ago when I first started racing regularly. Many shoes that were just fine for riding easy would make my feet go numb during a crit or at the track. I measured my feet for the first time and found that I was wearing the wrong size shoes! I had been wearing regular width shoes in 45, 45.5 or 46 depending on the brand when in fact my feet measured a 44 in length but very wide. I sold all my old shoes and bought a pair of Shimano R260 in 44E and a pair of Sidi MTB shoes in 44 "Mega" and my feet have been happy ever since.

For this season I decided I wanted an extra pair of shoes just for the track so I took a chance and ordered some DMT P1 track shoes on sale in a 45. I have only used them for a few roller sessions and one race night but they fit well for my wide feet without too much excess length and are very very stiff. Can't hurt that they should be quite aero as well.

carleton

Yup!

I rode size 47 for years (even before I discovered track) when I was actually size 46.

taras0000

I know that going DIY Custom would be something time expensive, and raw material isn't that cheap either. I have experience working with composites on an amateur level, Some carbon bike repair (that's still going strong 10 years later!), a couple of canoes and kayaks, and other things, so I know what your friends are talking about when it comes to ROI. For me, this would be a pet project. Something to take 2 or 3 cracks at just for the fun of it and see what I'm capable of producing. Maybe something to occupy the time while I wait for a pair of Simmons shoes to be made (or something else along those lines).

I've got the equipment to make the stuff so it's not like I have to invest a lot of $$$ to get started, it's more the time involved, and when it comes to something like this, I can wait to do it in fits and spurts.

topflightpro

I have two pair of semi-custom Riivo's for road. I plan to get a pair for track at some point. They are awesome.

In the meantime, I have an old pair of Specialized Pro shoes that I had laces put on.

rensho3

I bought some Shimano R321s last year, because I have wide feet, flat arch, but a narrow heel, and did not want to order a Vapor-T without trying it on. They fit well, are very stiff, and I felt very connected to the bike with them. They are no longer made, but are still available on the internet.

topflightpro

I was not a fan of the Shimano wide. They allowed for too much movement of my foot. Like the shoe had too much volume. Carleton has spoken about that too in other posts discussing toe straps.

I like my Riivos because they do not have massive volume, so my foot feel planted to the sole of the shoe.

The modified Specialized I'm using aren't as solid as my Riivos, but they are OK for now.

Huskey

Bont Vaypor Track's for me, made the switch from a set of Sidi road shoes years ago and have never looked back

Baby Puke

I need some Bont advice.
I'm seriously considering the Vaypor Classic (it's pretty affordable), and just did their "Size Wizard" thing to see where I'd be, but it came up, "contact us about custom shoes" first, and now is recommending 42 double, which is not on offer in their pop-up menu.
My measurements were 260mm length and 110mm width. I usually wear a 42.5 or 43, and have been using DMT's for the past several seasons with no issues.
My foot length puts me at 42 on Bont's size chart, but my width doesn't come up until a 45 which is waaaaay too big. To complicate things, I have narrow heels, and a friend who's been riding Bonts tells me their heel cup is wider than average. I have the following questions for those of you familiar with Bont's fit:
1. What standard size would you recommend?
2. How much does the width budge when you heat mold them?
3. How much does it cost for a custom pair?
Thanks all!

topflightpro

I tried regular Bonts a few years ago. I could not get them wide enough through heat molding.

SyntaxMonstr

I'm a 44 in most shoes and own Bonts in 43.5, 44, and 45 (the wizard suggest I get a custom pair as I'd be 43 for length and 45/6 for width). The 45's fit the best width wise, but they're a bit too big at the heel so my foot slides around a bit. I'd say my optimal size would be 44.5. The 44's fit generally true to size according to other shoes I've worn but were a bit snug at the widest part of my foot (just outside my little toe). I found oven molding absolutely useless, but a heat gun directly to the troublesome bit (and a bunch of force) gave me about 5 mm of extra space which was enough to take the edge off the tight spot and make them comfortable enough to ride in.

I believe the quote I got when I was looking for Vaypor S+ nearly two years ago was in the $500 range, I'll see if I still have the email.

Baby Puke

Giro Empires it is. Thanks for the help guys!