Cycling UK Forum

Cleats and foot pain are probably a pretty popular topic but having read a lot online, I'm looking to get some advice from anyone who's had a similar issue...

After only a small amount of riding (under an hour) I get pain in the outer edge of just my right foot, on the fifth metatarsal. It's come and gone depending on my bike and shoe combination and is bearable for a time, but it's gotten worse recently and I want to start riding longer distances.

I've tried moving my cleat position further back to no avail, and I've tried angling my cleat a little so my foot is pointing further outwards in case it's my cleats are pulling my toe in (I don't know if toe angle can cause that kind of pain). At the moment I have Giro Cylinder II MTB shoes, previously I had Five Ten Trailcross but I think they were half a size too small and too tight. Same issue on both shoes.

Ultimately my right foot IS a little wider than my left - the outer edge sticks out a fair bit further than my little toe and when buying non-cycling shoes I struggle with shoes that are too slim, where to fit my width in a slim shoe, I'd have to go a size up on my usual fit which often leaves them too long.

Anyway, I'm wondering if I just need wider-fitting cycling shoes? Or if anyone else has a similar issue (happy to share a pic of my foot if it helps haha), can anyone recommend good wider fitting shoe brands?

I really don't want to cough up hundreds to have a full bike fitting done - although admittedly that's what I'm doing continually buying new shoes!

Thanks for the help.

landsurfer wrote:Boardman is a cycle brand. Hoy is a sticker attached by a marketing company to generic cycles various.

Hmmm, interesting point well made...

Anyone got any thoughts on the URB 8.8 vs 8.9? Worth the extra £150 for carbon forks and hub gears?

Hi guys, I'm researching a simple, light bike for commuting. Looking for rigid front forks, disc brakes and just a single front crank for simplicity, so I've narrowed it down to:

Hoy Shizouka 001 vs Boardman URB 8.8

Wildcard: Marin Fairfax SC4

Budget up to £700. Thoughts? My gut says Boardman but is it overpriced compared to the Hoy?

Thanks

Zanda wrote:I considered flip flop but decided I would only use one of the sides. The idea of flip flop is nice, but I can't see myself actually taking the wheel off mid ride and getting my hands mucky for the sake of a couple of sprocket teeth. If it had a freewheel that could get me up the steepest hill on my commute, that would be the side I'd use, and I'd keep the wheel that way round all the time.

And so the wheel you have should be good enough, if you just want to run a SS freewheel. You already know you enjoy riding the Plug, which probably means the frame is a good fit for you. That's an argument for sticking with it.

That's a good point to be fair, although I do like the idea of flipping it before a journey to switch to fixed from single depending on the ride.

Think the decision is done, I'm going to invest in the Plug and slowly upgrade it. Thanks again all - loads of help!

Some great options here, will check out those hubs.

Contemplating selling both bikes and just putting the cash towards a new single speed with a flip flop hub (Plug is pretty tired to be fair), budget around £600.

Any suggestions? I don't need any hipster silly colours, just quality build.

Thanks for the advice guys! Maybe the 3 speed hub is the right way to go.

Is it easy to fit the shifting mechanism? Not sure the Plug has the right fittings to hold the gear cable in place?

Hello forum, here's the deal/

I'm looking for a light, tough, fairly fast, super reliable bike for my daily 30 min commute across Manchester.

I have two bikes at the moment, for a while I've had a specialized crosstrail hybrid that does the job ok, but it's bulky. I don't need the front sus, wide handlebars and gazillion gears as I hardly take it off road.

My newer bike is the opposite, I picked up a second hand, dead simple Charge Plug single speed, which does the job also, but I'm finding I do need a lower gear for Manchester slopes, and a higher gear for the flats to keep the speed up.

I know in theory, I could get something built from scratch but I don't have stacks of cash, probably about £700 budget.

Key points:

I love the bullhorn bars on the Charge and want to keep them, especially having the brake levers on the flat section (rather than on the horns).
Traditional road bike probably a no due to the drop bars - I don't find them comfortable and I don't need that many gears.
I'm after simple gearing i.e. less maintenance.
Brakes - not too fussed but discs useful in the winter rain.

I've looked at the 2018 Kona Paddy Wagon 3 speed (switching to bullhorn bars) but not sure about the internal hub? Am I looking for a bike that doesn't exist or being too picky?

Any thoughts and recommendations welcome!

Thanks