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I've been a road biker for awhile now and I realize the importantance of proper footwear when riding. (For those who don't know, road bike shoes pretty much don't bend, this makes it wonderful for riding and pretty awful for walking.)

 

So I bought a mountain bike today and of course I plan to cache with it. (I even did a maintainence run on one of my hides from the bike.)

 

The question I have is what to wear on my feet? I just wore sneakers today but I'm thinking of pulling the clipless pedals from my road bike and trying them. But once I have to go off trail and bushwhack some, these shoes will be awful.

 

Is there a solution to this problem?

 

Thanks!

 

Paul

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Years ago I traded my road shoes for mountain bike clips and shoes. The clips are recessed to the point that the shoes have a flat bottom and they give a little more than road shoes. They are nice to walk on for short distances and clip in even when dirty.

I agree with webscouter ... I tried to bring my old road bike clipless pedals and shoes over to my mountain bike and it was not a good set-up. For one, on a mountain bike you need to be able to get your shoes off the clip quickly ... much quicker and more often than you would on a road bike. I now have a pair of bike shoes like webscouter described. The clip is recessed in the sole of the shoe and it makes walking much easier.

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don't mean to sound trite but wear whatever feels comfortable for you!

 

if that's trainers or combat boots what does it matter what the next person wears?

I think you're missing one point here, which is ok since if you haven't worn biking shoes you won't know what I'm talking about.

 

For some, after you've biked with biking shoes there is no going back. Biking with sneakers (or other soft soled shoes like boots!) is just not as nice. The problem is that biking shoes are very difficult to walk in.

 

When you then realize that biking shoes start at around $70 and then you have to buy pedals for your bike (which are not cheap either), you're immediatley looking at a very expensive experiment. Do I buy shoes/pedals and find that I can't use them?

 

This isn't about style or what the popular kids wear. This is about comfort yes, but I'm just asking for advice before I plunk down enough change to buy have a new Garmin with a SIRF chip...

 

Paul

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I think trail runners are a good alternative. They are basically sneakers on steroids, made for those who prefer to run on hiking trails instead of the road. They will have thicker, lug type soles and more support than traditional running shoes. Many have Gore-Tex liners so they are waterproof. Here is a good selection.

 

I have a pair of Salomons that I really like. They are Gore-tex lined and use a cable system instead of traditional laces. Loosened, they work great as slip ons when I'm heading out the door with the trash, or going to the supermarket, but I tighten the cable when running or hiking. I like that there are no laces to come untied. Here they are:

 

95021-p.jpg

Edited by briansnat
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I guess the optimal solution would be to wear the bike shoes while riding, and carry a pair of hikers to wear while hiking. Any compromise shoe is going to be less than optimal.

 

Carrying a second pair of shoes shouldn't be a big problem--I've done it on hikes that combined trail travel with bushwhacking. I wear trail-runners on the trail and carry my combat boots for the bushwhack. That way I can hustle down the trail at 3-6mph and avoid busting an ankle on the bushwhack.

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I bought a pair of mountain bike shoes and petals about a year ago. I agree with NotThePainter once you wear/use clipless shoes and petals there is no going back! I have a pair of specialized shoe that are ok for walking around in but I would not want to hike very far in them. In my humble opinion I would buy a decent pair of mountian bike shoes and petals (about 150 to 200 USD) and carry a pair of lightweight cross trainers in my day pack.

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An off-road biking shoe with a recessed clip is what you're looking for. As to brands, that would be what fits you. My husband wears a Diadora bike shoe of this type and I have one by Geko. I still sometimes bungee a pair of all-terrain sneakers on top of the bike bag if I'm expecting a long or wet hike. You might window shop at www.bikenashbar.com (mountain shoes) or performancebike, but obviously shoes are something you need to try on.

 

BTW, I just looked at the MTB shoes at performance. The Shimana @ $54 is one I owned and wore out. A good shoe for me, not as stiff in the sole - sort of a good news/bad news feature, better for walking, a bit much flex for biking.

Edited by Isonzo Karst
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These SPD compatible mtn shoes are $20 at Nashbar.com. Mtn shoes are more flexible than road shoes, but still stiff enough to ride. Nashbar even carries SPD compatible sandals!

 

Your other option is to get the old style cage clips; that way, you can use whatever shoe you want.

 

That's the way I had to go. Most bike shoes don't come in Extra-Wide, and the ones that do still felt snug. I did try on a pair of kangaroo hide shoes that felt great, but the were $175.00.

It's a little tougher to get on and off the bike, but you get used to it.

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Paul, although it may seem that I'm stalking you, I'm really not... I promise!

 

Like I said in the NE forum, I've been bike-caching since I started... I've had LOOK pedals on my road bike since I got it, but I held off on getting clipless for my mountain bike until last year... I finally broke down and got some Crank Bros. Candy C pedals and some cheap-ish Specialized shoes($75)... Before I went clipless on my mountain bike I was riding with hiking boots and clip-and-straps... I survived the riding and enjoyed the walking... now that I've gone clipless, I'm enjoying the riding and surviving the walking, which is much better for me, since I leave home, ride a couple miles, walk a couple hundred feet (max.) and then ride the couple miles home... the MTB shoes I have are fine for walking on dirt/gravel/mud/etc, but kinda awkward walking on pavement/cement...

 

In short, the big question is do you plan to spend more time riding or more time walking?

 

also- unless you're using MTB pedals on your road bike, I STRONGLY advise you do *not* use your road pedals off-road- with my looks, anyhow, if they get muddy/grimy/etc., they are a PITA to unclip/clip in... not a pretty picture on most trails in this area!

 

Happy caching

Jeff

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I have some Specialized MTB shoes on OLD school Onza pedals (basically an SPD style cleat on the shoe) and the cleat is not very well recessed, actually. If it were me, I would wear these shoes and bring my trusty Keen Newports with me. Get close to the cache, hope off, quick change shoes, find the cache, change again, and you're off.

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You folks are amazing! Thanks for all the advice so far.

 

From looking at the nashbar site, I'm wondering if my shoes are already some sort of hybrid shoe, they certainly do have some tread on them, but not fully treaded like the full mountain bike shoes.

 

This is what the bottom of the shoe looks like:

 

e786d106-4dac-4e06-90d2-d82d097f383b.jpg

 

and this is what my pedals look like:

 

cfdb616a-e16c-4aa9-b4d5-768771706575.jpg

 

Are these mountain bike pedals/cleats or road bike ones? The pedals came with the bike which I bought used so I don't know what they are.

 

As for carrying my hiking boots with me, I wear full above the ankle work boots, I'll need to get a rear rack and tie them on, no way will they fit in my backpack which is too small to start with!

 

I'm so looking forward to my first bike/cache trip. I've got three groups of friends all lined up already!

 

Paul

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Are these mountain bike pedals/cleats or road bike ones? The pedals came with the bike which I bought used so I don't know what they are.

 

 

Paul,

 

These are the same Ritchey SPD clipless pedals I have on my MTB, they are a 6-8 year old mid-range model. They work pretty well on a mountain bike, I can get in and out quickly although some of the newer models clear the mud better. They've been extremely durable -- I've never touched mine other than the occasional lube.

 

I use a Sidi MTB shoe which has a very rugged tread and toe lugs when I ride but I'll tell you that they are terrible for any length of walk on a hard surface. They have zero traction on granite (which I know you have near where you live!) because the soles are so hard plus the SPD cleat itself is VERY slippery if you happen to land on that.

 

There are some combo pedals which might work if you decided you need both cleat an non-cleated.

 

Even though they aren't the best for walking on hard surfaces, I would never give up the clipless pedals on my bike. If for some reason I thought I had a long walk on top of the bike, I'd throw in some different shoes.

 

GO$Rs

Edited by g-o-cashers
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Are these mountain bike pedals/cleats or road bike ones?

 

Paul,

 

Previous posters have summed the topic up well. One thing I didn't see mentioned is that SPD pedals have adjustable tension. I like to set the tension on my Mt bike pedals very light so it's easy to bail (which I tend to have to do quite often). ;)

 

See you on the trails!

tony

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They have zero traction on granite (which I know you have near where you live!) because the soles are so hard plus the SPD cleat itself is VERY slippery if you happen to land on that.

 

And for those who don't know what GO$Rs is talking about, here are my two kids at a typical NH cache location...

 

d71796c6-d703-4c93-a002-40d17abe3594.jpg

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uhhhh... I have lube them? I can adjust them? I guess I should go over to their web site but any pointers would be appreciated.

 

I think I'm going to enjoy this bike!

 

Paul

 

I would strongly recommend getting a copy of this book. Its saved me a bunch of money and its really easy to follow.

 

If I can dig out the adjustment and maintenance sheet for my pedals I'll send you a copy. It's not a big deal, I'm sure your local bike shop could help out too.

 

GO$Rs

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uhhhh... I have lube them? I can adjust them? I guess I should go over to their web site but any pointers would be appreciated.

 

I think I'm going to enjoy this bike!

 

Paul

 

There is an adjustment bolt in the back of the pedal. It should be a 3mm allen bolt. Turn it counterclockwise to loosen the spring tension (or clockwise to tighten).

 

tony

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I'll never go back to regular peddals either...I use the same Ritchie pedals and a Specialized MTB shoe...it has some give but enough hardness not to soak up all my energy..

 

BTW being physically attached to your pedals allows you to power both up and down. Half the energy is expended as without. 2 riders of equal caliber..the clipped in rider will outlast the nonclipped every time. also will be faster

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BTW being physically attached to your pedals allows you to power both up and down. Half the energy is expended as without. 2 riders of equal caliber..the clipped in rider will outlast the nonclipped every time. also will be faster

Amen, not to mention another benefit of being clipped in: keeping your feet from sliding off of the pedals on sketchy sections. Despite what I assumed before going clipless, I can get out of my pedals every bit as fast as clips or platform pedals.

 

Riding clipless gives you two more control points on the bike. I have been able to hop over stuff and precisely place my back tire around obstacles that would have gobbled me up if I were standing on platform pedals. Clipless pedals take you to a whole new level of biking, whether on the road or dirt. Efficiency and control, baby!

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BTW being physically attached to your pedals allows you to power both up and down. Half the energy is expended as without. 2 riders of equal caliber..the clipped in rider will outlast the nonclipped every time. also will be faster

Amen, not to mention another benefit of being clipped in: keeping your feet from sliding off of the pedals on sketchy sections. Despite what I assumed before going clipless, I can get out of my pedals every bit as fast as clips or platform pedals.

 

Riding clipless gives you two more control points on the bike. I have been able to hop over stuff and precisely place my back tire around obstacles that would have gobbled me up if I were standing on platform pedals. Clipless pedals take you to a whole new level of biking, whether on the road or dirt. Efficiency and control, baby!

 

Another advantage to either clips or clipless over flat pedals is that you're more likely to ride through a sketchy area instead of putting down a foot and/or stopping with flat pedals...

 

and one of the fun things you can do with clipless pedals (or tight straps...)- pedal with only one foot :laughing::anibad: people look at you funny when you do that, though... I can't understand why, can someone help me there? :)

 

Happy Caching

Jeff

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I've been a road biker for awhile now and I realize the importantance of proper footwear when riding. (For those who don't know, road bike shoes pretty much don't bend, this makes it wonderful for riding and pretty awful for walking.)

 

So I bought a mountain bike today and of course I plan to cache with it. (I even did a maintainence run on one of my hides from the bike.)

 

The question I have is what to wear on my feet? I just wore sneakers today but I'm thinking of pulling the clipless pedals from my road bike and trying them. But once I have to go off trail and bushwhack some, these shoes will be awful.

 

Is there a solution to this problem?

 

Thanks!

 

Paul

 

On the weekend, I did some major bushwacking carrying my mountain bike for a good deal of it. I have sturdy mountain bike shoes with recessed cleets. The shoes have nice metal fangs on the front to aid in running up hill. The bike has clipless pedals. I can't cycle without them. I feel more comfortable and safer. I have been using them for about 15 years and in that time I haven't had crush nuts syndrome once. -_- Clipless are the way to go. Try it you'll like it. Feet come off the pedals easily with a kick out of the heal.

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The question I have is what to wear on my feet?

Is there a solution to this problem?Hello Paul....I've been Mt biking for a while. There is a big difference between a Mt bike shoe and a road shoe. There are some pretty good Mt biking shoes on the market that allow for some hiking. I have clipless pedals and wear a shoe made by Shimano. The sole bends when you walk. I wouldn't walk more than a mile with them if that. But they are good when I am searching for caches near the trail.

 

The other solution if you want to do some major hiking..while leaving your Mt Bike all alone... is to carry a pair of hiking shoes in a back pack or camel pack.

 

Go to a good bike shop and try on a few pairs.

Good luck !

Jack -_-

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I found that wearing cycling shoes while scrambling over rocks and such is pretty much silly, you are just opening yourself up to slipping, spraining or breaking an ankle. I have found that I carry a pair of trail running shoes or light hikers in my back pack and if I have to navigate any questionable terrain, I change them out. You are right, once you cycle with cycling shoes, you will never go back, and they suck if you need to walk on big rocks or any distance.

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I've been riding a mountain bike for many years and the clipless design never caught on with me. I use just a plain pair of good supportive but mid weight hiking boots for bike caching. They work really well especially when you have to carry the ride over trailless terrain.

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I'm the original poster and at least for now I know what shoes I'm going to wear.

 

Regular old shoes!

 

I went out riding today. Man, trail riding with roots and rocks etc.. is very different than smooth road riding. I was on one nasty section where I had to dismount about every 5 feet! I'm sure as my skill level increases that trail will seem like child's play but if I had been clipped in I know for certain I would have fallen. And for about 30 feet, a fall would have either been into the lake on one side or the swamp on the other!

 

But yowza, that's fun!

 

Paul

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