I’m sure I remember this type of thing coming up before but I can’t find it in the search, so appologies for repeating things.
I’ve been using a pair of leather boots (with smooth soles) for muni, which are excellent but are falling to bits now - I seem to spend as much time repairing them as I do riding.
I want something that covers my ankles, grips the pedals well and won’t fall to bits as soon as they get wet (it’s usually pretty wet here). I’ve been looking at lightweight walking boots and high-top skate shoes and the pros and cons are as follows…
Skate shoes: Nice sole for gripping pinned pedals, but tiny choice of high-top styles, not very durable (Roger’s opinion of 661 duallys) or good in the wet, expensive.
Walking boots: Very strong and durable, huge choice, relatively inexpensive. But all the ones I’ve looked at so far have spikey soles that don’t look like they’d be good on pinned pedals.
Do any of you ride in walking boots? If so, what are the soles like and how do you find them on pinned pedals?
At the moment I’m leaning towards the walking boots after Roger saying the 661 duallys aren’t very durable - I really don’t want to spend silly money on a pair of boots that are going to fall apart in a couple of months. If necessary I’d take a new pair of cheap walking boots to Mr Minute and get them to shave the soles off and stick smooth ones on.
I was thinking about some of those (although they cost twice that much in the UK) but if I’m going to pay that much I need something that won’t fall apart in a couple of months (Dartmoor is quite a harsh environment for stuff - very wet and gritty). Just spoken to Roger (UDC UK) and he says they’re great for riding in but he gets through loads of them - that’s what made me think more about light walking boots, but the soles are less than ideal for riding.
at leat my post was a little constructive, you asked a question, said that any opinions or suggestions are welcome, i told you what i use - and in fact dont fall to bits when they get wet either, which is the best information i can give you.
i ask a question, in return i get a full stop. thanks
I’ve had my Dually’s since October last year. They’re pretty much fine, the ridges on the soles have worn down a fair bit though but I do wear them a fair bit when I’m not unicycling. If you do get some try not to wear them when not riding to extend their life a bit. I’m going to get another pair soon I think and keep my current ones for dossing about/playing hacky sack in and keep the new ones for just riding.
I think my Dually’s were about £40 from chainreactioncycles.co.uk. For 8 months worth of use I’d say it ain’t a bad investment.
I really like them for riding my mates Schlumpf too, the plastic ankle cups make changing gear much easier.
My only complaint with them is that the sole isn’t quite stiff enough for my tastes but grip-wise, even in the wet they’re really good and the ankle bash protection is lovely to have…Gone is the perma-scab that used to blight my inside ankle bones.
have you considered shoes from Try All? Those are extremly popular in the trial community. Here is a link.
Those work good for me (I got the ones on the left picture). I like that my ankles are protected, the grip is good and they are, at least in my case, durable (I’m wearing them every day and I do not care if they getting wet, muddy or anything). Btw. the sole has zigzag wave texture.
There are some drawbacks though, the grip of my Entnies is a lot better, which I sometimes really like more, and they are rather expensive around here (90 €).
Hi Rob
Paul and I use light wieght walking boots. generally fairly cheap Hi Tec ones. Not waterproff so get wet feet or use sealskinz socks. Fairly robust, proctect the ancle and Ok with pined pedals as they are not good enough quallity to have a very solid sole.
The old style dually is £35 at chain reaction if you’ve got small feet. I ride in Hitec light hiking boots from millets. Very cheap and seem to work. The soles are a slightly knobbly and probably grip the pedals a bit too well. They’ve lasted ok but are on their way out now after a couple of years of frequent use.
i use dunlop volleys. they are really light wieght, really flexable and have awesome grip. however they dont cover your ankles at all. they don’t last as long as a decent pair of shoes but they are cheap.
Sorry - I wasn’t intending to be rude :o
I was just pointing out that I wanted something durable and with ankle cover - neither of which really fits running shoes. Anyway, in response to your question, I find flat soles better - spikey soles tend to “find their own place” on pinned pedals and end up in an annoying position.
Thanks for the suggestions people.
nickjb: those look potentially pretty good - quite a bit like 661 duallys, but slightly stronger-looking (I wonder if they are). Still pretty expensive though - bit of a gamble without knowing somebody who’s had some.
The '04 and '05 duallys people are selling on special offer never seem to be available in my size - seems like everybody’s got size 10 feet and has bought them all
I’ll check out the HiTech boots in Millets as well - three votes can’t be bad.
same problem for me: I cannot order shoes I haven’t tried. I have slightly short feet (size 42) but width is important and I am obliged to try and I may be obliged to go as far as 44! so can’t buy online.
edit: 42 looks like size 10?
I usually find that size 10 or euro size 44/45 fits me, perhaps with a slight sock-thickness adjustment. Sizes do vary a bit though, I agree. I prefer to try shoes on before I buy them, unless I’ve had the same style before, but it’s not possible with stuff that nobody local sells. The only time I’ve ever bought shoes completely “blind” was a pair of pointy winklepickers that are so impractical it wouldn’t really matter if they didn’t fit that well - they’re actually pretty comfortable though
Some online shoe shops will exchange for another size as long as all you have done is tried them on.
