I’ve seen videos of people riding with hiking boots, lately I’ve been nursing a hurt foot so I thought I would give it a try for the protection of my feet. I’ve got a pair of keens (they offer much less protection) for every day wear and then a more mountaineering boot (maximum protection) for actual hiking. I can ride ok in the keens, but my mountaineering boots get very little traction on my pedals, is that feeling something you get used to? I have not slipped off the pedals, but it’s a very disconnected feeling.
I’ve seen plenty of posts around here with people wearing similar boots, so I just gotta ask…
I wear safty Shoes when I riding Muni. Thé feeling IS Not so good of the Pedal because IT’s Stiffer as a normal shoe. Hiking shoes are also great to Ride with Them. I’ve Hiking shoes but there to expensive tobwear Them out for riding some Muni. M’y Safty Shoe from Work costs 100 Euro and there great to Ride.
If you have pedals with fairly aggressive pins (Hope F20 for example) I’ve found that they give a very good grip to the sole of a good walking boot – for example the Vibram soles on my Scarpa Manta boots seem to engage pretty well.
However I can relate to the disconnected feeling given, I think, the stiffness and thickness of the sole of the boot and the support it is giving in general. So I haven’t ridden very much with these as it felt pretty strange and clumpy, it might have got better if I had persevered a while longer though.
Keen mid hight hiking boots are my go to shoes. (summer boots so mid hardness of sole for durability)
My Sorels get used for super cold riding or riding on ice. (winter boots so very soft soles for superior grip)
Mountaineering boots have very hard soles to tolerate the abrasion of rock. (super hard sole so limited flat surface grip - lug dependant for grip)
Do you have pins on your pedals?
If not, then maybe time to start using them?
If yes then maybe time to replace them?
I have one good pair of summer hikers. When they tire a bit then I relegate them to uni boots.
I get about a year of riding on them until my pins start ripping them apart. Enter Shoe Goo for another year of life.
I understand the lack of connection point.
Riding in my work boots has the poorest grip of them all.
I guess my point is to learn to ride in any footwear.
This way, whatever activity is after the ride or complimenting the ride, the footwear is dictated by that.
Another thing that I like in a muni shoe is a heel.
Sometimes the heel can help keep the pedal under your foot when things get squirrelly.
This is what I’ve decided to do, I’ve been putting it off for a long time.
I do have pins, Kona wah wahs, they are brand new but the lugs in my beefy boots are no match for them .
I think it mostly just feels very different, kind of like riding with numb feet.
I also have some carbon foot beds, I may try those in the keens to see if I get a bit more relief from the stiffness. Those boots are about 10 years old
Sure, it’s different feeling than in my five ten impact high, but not bad. It needs a little time to get used to it, but for tours in alpine areas they’re a good choice.
Well Vibram’s soles are not so common. They spent a lot in R&D to achieve top class sticking soles. They are second only to Five Ten soles (grip related)
These are my go to shoes for Muni-riding.
“Five Ten Impact Pro Mountain Bike Shoes”
Although, I did fracture an ankle while wearing them, I can’t blame the shoe that.
Great support and crazy sticky soles.
Good luck and ride hard.
Be well
