Shoes

General
1

What shoes do you use for unicycling?

2

chet thomas darkstar globes. I dont think it really matters what you use.

3

Skateboard shoes (K-mart brand) with soccer ankle protectors. Soccer shin protectors on top of that.
I’m pretty sure this combination has kept me out of the hospital…

4

yeah Skate shoes, or any shoes as long as they have a FLAT sole (so usually only skate shoes)
I can’t ride in sports shoes or shoes with and arch, its too hard to adjust me feet and they tend to just sit in the arches, which doens’t tend to be where i like my feet.

5

I like the Van’s “Off The Wall” boarding shoes. They have a treadpattern of lots of little hexagonal “pits”, which lock in real nice with pinned pedals.

You have to be careful to get the ones with the stiff soles. Van’s makes two basic models, one with a stiff sole and one with a really flexy sole. I have the stiff sole ones and they work great. John Childs does not recommend the flexy sole model.

6

I also use vans and love them. I used to use Airwalks. Truthfully, the Airwalk tread gripped the pedals better but the Vans is much more durable. My Vans have a chevron pattern on the balls of the feet and hex honeycomb pattern on the rest. The main thing I look for in riding shoes are a stiff sole, good tread pattern, durability, price and comfort.

Daniel

7

I’m the same.

Other people I ride with like basket ball shoes for ankle support but I dont like the grip or just the fact that they are basket ball shoes.

8

indoor soccer shoes

-grant

9

I have so far been very satisfied with my sixsixone Dually’s. I dont have much to compare them too, but ive used them for about 6 months for muni and trials and they have held up very well. The tread hasnt worn much at all and they still look great. Also, the 3/4 Hi-Top design gives me a little more confidence when im ridin my summit with the old kh nub cranks. Its kinda pricey, but pretty durable and works well for all styles of riding.

10

Depends on the type of riding.

For general riding, I wear whatever happens to be on my feet at the time. Usually sneakers. As long as there’s no heel to hinder where I put my foot. Also, pedal pins might chew up softer soles. But softer soles may grip freestyle pedals better. So, I think choice of shoe also depends on the type of pedal.

For MUni, I wear boots so that I have some ankle support. Regardless of your skill level, if you are riding down rocky hills, you will certainly have UPDs that will send you running down a rocky hill. I don’t understand why so many people do that in low shoes. Seems like a sprain waiting to happen.

11

I like Salomon Raid Race shoes for MUNi. I’ve been using these and it’s earlier predecessors for the last three years. It’s a nice lightweight trail running shoe for racing, and the best thing is that it has kevlar straps speedstraps that don’t get tangled up on your axle or get clogged up with mud.
Salomon

Ken

12

For trials I wear a Van’s skate shoe. For freestyle I wear a pair of Converse Chuck Taylors. For MUni I used to wear the 661 Dualies but after being very disappointed in the longevity of these I now ride in a pair of “old school” leather basketball shoes. You can pick these up at any shoe outlet in the U.S. for between $12 and $20. The ankles are padded and the sole is plenty soft for the pins and good shoe:pedal contact. By spreading the wear out over three shoes I get long-life and specific function out of each pair.
Tommy

13

always use light mountaineering shoes
grip + ankle support
(+look : people assume a bear should wear mountain shoes)

bear

14

I either ride barefoot or wear my Doc Marten’s boots- cos they’re the only shoes i own…

15

I’ve got a stiff pair of Airwalks and love them for MUniing. Santa Barbara single tracks have a lot of rolling drops and with a softer shoe (which I’ve used a few times) the soles of my feet get bruised on the peddles. I use the Airwalks for trials as well.

For freestyle I like a slightly softer pair of Vans (not the really soft ones), also with a flat sole. They grip tire well for wheel walking and I can lightly drag them over the tire on 1 foot wwing and gliding (which I’m now trying to learn), something I had trouble doing with a treaded running shoe. A good freestyler (I’m not) could probably wear wing tips and do most anything, but I find a flat, tredless rubber sole essential because my technique is raw and the flat sole is forgiving for wwing and gliding.

I think for overall use, a stiff Vans or Airwalk lowtop will serve you well. I’m lucky to live near a Foot Locker outlet and can keep an eye out for specials. MUniing destroys shoes.

JL

16

For freestyle I’ve worn the Converse High Tops for years, which is what most people wear in the Twin City Unicycle Club(one of the best clubs in the world, I think?!). They are flexible so you can grip the pedal and wheels better and have more control. For doing stand-up tricks, it’ll hurt your heel at first but overtime it goes away. One thing I don’t like is that they don’t last a long time, especially if you do lots of gliding. But overall they’ve seemed to be good shoes for freestyle with many world and national champions using them.

As for Muni, I just wear any tennis shoes and don’t have a preference-at least not yet.

17

To ride efficiently you need to be able to flex your ankle as you pedal. You need to be able to point your toes down at the bottom of the pedal stroke. A boot or a high top shoe that restricts the movement of your ankle would not be the best riding shoe.

If you are concerned about sprains or twisting an ankle then the Active Ankles would be a better choice. The Active Ankles still allow you to easily flex your ankle while giving your ankle support against twists and sprains.

For muni I generally ride with either the AXO/661 Duallies or Vans skate shoes with the 661 Ankle Biters. If it’s an extreme trail I may go with the Vans and Active Ankles.

18

I use These: Clicky Clicky I bought them for $35 in utah and they work pretty well. Extremely comfy and grips is not too shabby either. Plus they are total chick magnets. (Washer Safe too)

19

YESSS!!! vans are the best, and always will be. i do agree that they have the best sole for platform pedals

20

Brahma

I wear a pair of $25 Brahma work shoes, the tread grips the pins on my pedals pretty well, they’re comfy, and they’ve a steel toe which I find handy for muni… Took a dive on Saturday that jarred my toes, hate to think what would have happened with a soft toe shoe…