[CR]wingtips for touring / now pantofola d'oro "1886"--classicmultitask a thletic shoe

Craig Montgomery wrote:
>You know, I was looking at the close-up stills. Some of those guys are
>riding in regular ol wingtip style leather walking shoes. Good idea. >S tiff,
>thick leather soles. I may have to try a pair. Classy and not garish li ke todays cycling shoes.
>Craig "Ward, you need to talk to the Beaver" Montgomery Tucson

Uh, since my name (well, surname) is Ward, I felt I may as well reply to Craig Montgomery's post about some riders in the '55 British Rail / CTC film mentioned again recently. Wingtips--hear, hear. I'm seconding the observation--speaking truth to Beaver, as it were. They still do the job , and with elegance. However, you may want to assign a specific pair to the touring task, and a pebbled grain is not a bad idea, either. Don't g o for the very heaviest brogues; the soles get wide.

I frequently go for the wingtip option here in metropolitan NYC. I recal l that San Francisco's famous columnist Herb Caen suggested "never brown in town". Not sure if that goes for the leather bits on your toe clips, if you have them (see the velo-orange site).

Another favorite touring and commuting shoe of mine is a stout penny loa fer a la Sebago, Bass, and so on. They don't weigh as much--but they don 't lace, either, being moccasin-style. These of course also feature the blunt toes you need with toe clips, and look well enough at your destina tion. My pointed winklepickers and Beatle boots only work with the platf orm pedals, without clips--so I stick to subway (or performing stage) wi th those. Canvas espadrilles loosen up too quickly, and the soles fray, so I keep them for short hops to the beach or while visiting Picasso at La Californie. ;-)

Serieusement, I would call to your attention that there are numerous new shoes out there in the shops at this moment, meant for casual use by th e masses, that bear a strong resemblance to classic athletic shoes from the earlier 20th Century, and sometimes cycling shoes in particular. My favorites have been an Italian brand called Pantofola d'Oro. These are u nlikely to be in stock in a chain store, but may be around on the intern et. I latched onto a few pair on sale a few years ago, and there were ve rsions with leather soles vs. a stiff plastic with rubber insets, also s mooth leather vs. a roughened finish. They are quite timeless, resemblin g the shoes used in most every sport, if you go far enough back.

Following my own lead, I found this site seconds ago. My model is appare ntly "1886":

http://www.pantofoladoro.com/eng/dove-trovarle.php

I think you are going to love these! Have a look.

Regrets, the site seems to show no U.S. retail outlet. There you have it --a business opportunity for someone. Dale? Wallbike? Velo-Orange? Matte o?? Continuum??? (Have yet to visit that last--but can corroborate the E mey sighting on 6th St. in the East Village).

Thanks for reading this far, and hope some of you will like the looks of the Pantafola D'Oro 1886; cheers!

Oh--look at the soles:

http://www.pantofoladoro.com/eng/news.htm

They have a built-in cleat effect--you'll see what I mean--they truly ar e about halfway between a racing shoe and a touring shoe. The soles have about 5mm of leather at the arch, so are fairly stiff, but also easily walkable; they are firm--not rigid. In addition to the 5mm soles (thicke r at the heel) there are nailed-on leather pieces with circular rubber p ads providing traction.

I do recall they were on the expensive side at full retail, being beuati fully made (I was lucky to find multiples in my size still left at sale time--trendy Manhattan boutique was only carrying them for a single seas on).

ToM Ward Brooklyn, NY -- USA

> neat, thanks robert. nic and andy (the bikebrothers) have had stills and a
> bit of narrative for a while at:
> http://www.bikebrothers.co.uk/cyclistsspecial.htm
> nice to actually see it is real (reel) time !
> r clair
> alexandria, va
>You know, I was looking at the close-up stills. Some of those guys are
>riding in regular ol wingtip style leather walking shoes. Good idea. >S tiff,
>thick leather soles. I may have to try a pair. Classy and not garish li ke todays cycling shoes.
>Craig "Ward, you need to talk to the Beaver" Montgomery Tucson