Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
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UpWrong
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Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by UpWrong »

I'm finding my Lake SPD shoes rather heavy. I ride a recumbent trike and it seems to me that I'd benefit from less rotating mass. So maybe SPD-SL shoes? Trouble is my feat are very wide, "H" fitting. Any suggestions?
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cycleruk
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by cycleruk »

Shimano & Sidi do wide fitting SPD etc' shoes. Do a Google for the various types.
You'll never know if you don't try it.
Samuel D
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by Samuel D »

My experience of Shimano wide-fit (actually ‘E’) shoes is that they are far from wide and anyway uncomfortable in other ways. I don’t think anyone with genuinely wide feet should consider them.
Seagoon
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by Seagoon »

Apart from custom made shoes Lake make the widest road shoes out there, just make sure you look for Lake shoes in wide fitting.
The sole of my Lake road shoes measure 110 mm at the widest point if that helps .
freeflow
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by freeflow »

I too have wide feet. Specialised body geometry shoes worked for me. Shimano trainer like lace up spd were also Ok in the past. I'm perfectly happy on plain old spds.

I went to a local Evans intending to get a new pair of Shimano but they had none in stock. after trying on multiple pairs the bg shoes were by far the most obvious fit. Even better is that this was when they were new and quite snug. Several 1000km later they are slightly looser.
Richard D
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by Richard D »

Same question, but for a four-hole Speedplay cleat? "Use the adaptor plate" is not the answer I am looking for.
UpWrong
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by UpWrong »

I'll take a look at the Lake extra-wide road shoes in the first instance. Their SPD shoes are nice but rather heavy so I'm hoping for something lighter.
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by Vorpal »

A couple of suggestions...

1) It may be worth trying Decathlon, if you have one nearby. I have feet that are very wide at the balls of my feet, and I have never been able to wear cycling shoes from most companies (even Shimano wide ones). The only shoes I have ever found to fit my feet are Decathlon branded ones.

2) You could try either Lake or Shimano custom moulded shoes. They are moulded to the shape of your foot at a certified dealer, and should fit well, whatever your foot shape.

p.s. the custom moulding thing is dear. Sit down when you search on custom moulding. :wink:
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Samuel D
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by Samuel D »

Like Vorpal, my feet are wide across the ball (I spent half of my childhood in bare feet or flip-flops). Shimano shoes aren’t compatible with my foot shape, but I have found decent comfort in Northwave shoes, albeit by choosing a large size and leaving the straps very loose.
UpWrong
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by UpWrong »

Thanks for the suggestions. On-line reading is pointing me to try the Nortwave shoes. Apparently some of the wide Lake shoes have the carbon sole extending up into the instep and this is reported to be uncomfortable. Worth trying Specialized BF too. Will start with the cheaper optionss, - I can't contemplate spending more than £200 :shock:
Brucey
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by Brucey »

I don't have very wide feet so this thread is interesting to me from a 'these won't fit you' sort of perspective.

I am old enough to remember when the standard cycling shoe went (over about a decade) from an all leather thing -that was quite stretchy- to an all-synthetic thing, that wasn't.

My chums with wide feet were in absolute misery for several years, because many 'good brands' were Italian and they were mostly cut for a narrow foot; no problem with the older shoes, they stretched out after a while, but with the new synthetic shoes, torture for anyone with wide feet.

My chums mostly became happy when they went out and bought Time shoes, which back then were cut wider than average. I think they still are.

These days many manufacturers offer their shoes in a wide fit option; I guess it is just a question of trying them until you find one that fits OK.

cheers
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iainb
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by iainb »

+i for Specialized Body Geometry, I have two pairs, different models, and find them both very comfortable on my wide feet

Regards

Iain
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pjclinch
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Re: Road Shoes for wide feet- recommendations?

Post by pjclinch »

This sort of thing comes up fairly often in walking circles, and the more one looks in to it the more "wide feet" is something of a sweeping generalisation.

Feet are a complex 3d shape and they can be variously wide or narrow in different places. My feet, for example, seem broad in the forefoot but thanks to arches bordering on the gothic are effectively very narrow (at least down at the sole) in the midfoot and then a reasonably normal heel. The practical upshot of "there's more to wide than just being wide" is what works for one person with "wide feet" won't necessarily work for another (so my "wide feet" (noted so by an experienced boot fitter) are happy in Scarpa shoes and boots, while another friend thinks they're ridiculously constricting, preferring Meindls herself though another friend with particularly narrow feet is really happy in Meindls too... it's complicated). And the practical upshot of that is there ain't no substitute for trying things on.
If you can't locate a selection in your neighbourhood be prepared to throw extra money at postage, order up several alternatives and send back the less comfy ones.

FWIW my own values of "wide feet" are happy in some Diadora touring shoes and I've tried on some Bontragers that seemed decently comfy. I've used pre-BG Speccies and they were okay, but not so nice as the current Diadoras. Shimanos are so narrow for me I have to wear two sizes up just to get in to them and then I'm miles from the toes. Their SPuD sandals are okay, but then they don't have uppers to speak of and are still much less comfy than Tevas (if only Teva did sandals that could take cleats...).

Exec summary: try on everything you possibly can.

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
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