i am noob road bike guy and i hear that road shoes are impossible to walk in.

im looking for something for commuting (30-40 miles) and the occasional 60+/- ride.

so, are triathlon bike shoes better?

Tri shoes are just like road shoes in terms of their bottoms - so - they're just as hard to walk in. The real difference is that they close with a large velcro flap and typically can be opened up easily to slip in during transition.

You can always wear mountain biking shoes. You'd be much happier for commuting and there's no real problem with wearing them for road/tri cycling. I wear a mountain shoes that fit me really well and have been more comfortable than any road shoes I've found. Maybe the snobs will look at you funny but there's nothing wrong with it. (and if you're doing triathlons, you'll see a huge range of gear...there's much more variability than in the road scene)

I'm glad someone asked this question as I have been wondering the same thing. One answer, posted so far, says to wear mountain bike shoes.

So what's better - road clips on a tri bike or SPD MTB clips? In the pictures of tri bikes threads, >90% of the pictures of tri bikes posted have road clips.

Here's the issue - and I don't mean to jump your thread abstract - but I'd rather own one pair of shoes -to MTB and tri in. Hence, one style (SPD MTB) of clip.

Does a road clip - like the ulegra pd-6620 which would require another shoe --give you more surface area for more power and efficency - or should I go with something like the Wellgo MG-8 that has a MTB cleat but is more oriented to road/tri.

Many thanks.

i dont care what the bike snobs think. and it seems the snobs are 99.9% road cyclists.

is there anyone that makes a commuting shoe?

Commuting shoes can widely vary depending on you commute. My commute is 16 miles each way, all roads, no walking. I use my road bike, and my road bike shoes for that. I have seperate shoes and clip on my MTB. My tri bike had road pedals on it, and I use my road bike shoes.

If you want a shoe that you can walk around in all day, and then jump on your bike, yes, MTB shoes and SPD style clips are going to be better. If you change your shoes after your ride, work all day, and then change back, then road shoes and clips will probably be better.

HarlieJ - You'd be getting "SPD" mountain clips for the moutain shoes. Note - Not "SPD SL" (shimano) which are actually road clips. I'm not sure there's a huge difference in power. Mostly, road clips have a larger surface area that your feet rest on. For longer rides, it distributes the pressure better and will fill more comfortable. For most triathlons, other than IM, I'm not sure it'll be such a critical factor.

With regard to commuter shoes and the original poster - I'd suggest a regular mountain shoe rather than a commuter shoe. It'll be a better all around shoe for triathlons and commuting.