Hi Nick, et alll... Let me joun the other baboons and say "oo oo ahha ahha" (that is baboon for bologna...) I don't know if you recall the thread I started about shoes... I was having foot pain as I was riding. I found some old school cycling shoes. Nice stiff soles... I used them and, >No more pain<.
Grunt grunt
Don Williams Woodinville Washington USA
On Thu, May 15, 2008 at 6:19 AM, ehbusch <ehbusch@bellsouth.net> wrote:
> Baloney ? - First off as far as a stiff sole is concerned. I tried a few
non
> cycling shoe methods when I first started cycling. Soccer shoes beeing on
e
> of them. When I finally broke down and spent the money to purchase a pair
of
> cycling shoes it was an imediate improvement. Having a stiffer and stable
> platform under my foot was a clear advantage, and caused much less fatigu
e
> in my feet. Not having my feet feel like they were always flexing and not
> feeling like the edge of the peddle cage was tearing into my foot. Take a
> look around, the reason you see most people using cycling shoes is not
> beacuse they are baboons, IT IS BECAUSE IT WORKS.....
> Secound off. As far as tightening up your toe straps. If you chose not
to
> tighten up your toe straps you might as well throw them away. They will j
ust
> be a decoration.. The reason there are toe straps and or clipless peddles
is
> so you can maximize the peddle stroke. While beeing clipped or strapped i
n,
> you can both push and pull with both feet. While one foot is pushing down
> the other can be pulling up.Comes in real handy, especially when going up
a
> steep climb out of the Saddle.YOU CAN'T DO THAT WITOUT BEEING STRAPPED
> IN...IT IS MUCH MORE EFFICIENT........
> Third off. As far as different size toe clips. Two reasons I imediately
> see for this is (1) If a foot is placed on the pedal with the ball of the
> foot directly over the pedal spindle, it would seem to me that the toes o
f a
> person with a size 5 shoe wouldn't extend over the front of the pedal as
> much as a person with a size 14 shoe..Therefor different size clips ARE
> NECCESSARY...(2)Having the ball of the foot centered directly over the
> center of the spindle is a personal preference. Some cyclists might like
to
> have thier foot in a more forward position and some might like the opposi
te,
> also requiring DIFFERENT LENGTH CLIPS...
>
> This is also just my oppinion, and I believe to be COMMON SENSE.......
>
> ED Busch
> Vonore, Tennessee USA
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nick March"
> <nicbordeaux@yahoo.fr>saddle.
> To: <marcus.e.helman@gm.com>; <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Thursday, May 15, 2008 5:29 AM
> Subject: [CR]cycling shoe baloney
>
>
>> Marcus wrote:
>> << Someone recently recommended shotput shoes for use with toeclips and
>> straps. How stiff are the soles? I have been riding with the same pair
of
>> indoor soccer shoes for several years, and am beginning to want somethin
g
>> new. Has anyone tried to put stiffer insoles in sneakers to
>> get a better pedalling platform? Do stiffer insoles exist? >>
>>
>> Dear Marcus, Dear List:
>> The whole issue of cycling shoes and stiff soles is a load of pure,
>> unadultered, copperplated baloney. A very good friend o' mine recently
>> pointed me to an article about this, and no doubt he will contact you to
>> give you the url.
>>
>> OK, let's say you are aiming to win the TDF or some other minor
>> criterium, maybe real stiff shoes strapped down hard will give you an
>> advantage of sorts. They'll also make sure that it's exactly the same
>> muscles working in the same way on every stroke, so you'll get RSI. I gu
ess
>> you need to be able to move aound a bit on the pedals, as in the seat to
>> accomodate different terrain, fatigue. Clips are really fine. As long as
you
>> don't strap your feet tight. They look good, they are part of the fun of
>> riding old machines, but to the average cyclist they offer no advantage
>> whatsoever apart from foot placement (and mostly people fit any length
>> period clip irrespective of their shoe size).
>>
>> So why do so many people wear specific shoes locked to the pedals ?
>> Because they are like the Baboons on Gibraltar rock, they copy whatever
they
>> see. Tommorow the marketting boys tell the sponsored racers to ride the
Giro
>> mountain stages with a pink Ostrich feather protuding from the back of t
heir
>> Lycra pants, 1 000 000 000 cyclist will spend 50 trillion bucks on pink
>> ostrich feathers.
>>
>> This is only my opinion and I can imagine that other people won't agree
,
>> which is fine, anybody is allowed to be wrong, it's a free world.
>>
>> Plimsoles (sneakers) are fine if you feel good in 'em, the only rigidit
y
>> you need to add is to the underside of the sole to stop your soft plims
>> being torn apart by the pedal cage edges.
>>
>> Nick March, Agen 47000, Lot et Garonne, France
>>
>>
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