are they both the same material? i.e. are they both a carbon shoe?

---

Robert Dao
ATC Racing - Austin, TX
Gold's Gym Triathlon Coach
@speedao1
@daotraining

Typically mfgs use the same sole for their road and tri shoes. Lower end soles tend to be fiberglass reinforced nylon, while higher-end ones use carbon fiber. Also some brands may just make the soles stiffer than others.

I have some low-end sidi tri shoes (nylon) and some high-end ones (ergo2 road with a carbon sole). If I were to get the high end sidi tri shoe it would have the same carbon sole as my ergo2 road shoes. The carbon is definitely stiffer, and I personally like the feel; but there's no testing that shows that stiffer soles are faster. What testing exists shows no measurable difference.

---

ECMGN Therapy Silicon Valley:
Depression, Neurocognitive problems, Dementias (Testing and Evaluation), Trauma and PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

with stiffness it might come down to preference. I replaced my tri shoes last season with the S-works. really stiff shoe. I liked the feel so much I *had* to replace my road shoe with S-works as well.

i keep telling myself if I average the cost over 5 years, they aren't that expensive...

Thanks for the inputs. I didn't expect a performance difference, but I definitely prefer the feel of the stiffer shoe. My feet seem to feel less fatigued. I know the Shimano's are carbon. Guessing by the price I paid for the Pearls, they are probably not. I'll probably just move my cleats over to the road shoes for now. Hubby bent a rear derailleur on his mtb this weekend, so I guess we'd better get the news on that first. Wah.

I have the exact same as you with Shimano road shoes and Pearl Izumi Tri shoes. I've had several pair of Shimano road shoes and wanted to try a tri-specific shoe and got a pair of Pearl Izumi Tri Fly Octanes. I like the Octanes and they are comfortable and have a carbon sole, but the feel is very different in the Shimano road shoes. My foot feels significantly more set into the Shimanos and the sole feels way stiffer. Maybe it's in my head, but I do see people frequently racing in Shimano road shoes. I suspect it's probably the same or similar with any high end road shoe.

I feel like a lot of tri shoes do not lock your foot in place like a good road shoe and this leads to it feeling less stiff. I have a cheap Mavic pair of road shoes and high end LG carbon tri shoes and I feel like the cheap nylon road shoes are stiffer and I believe its from the ratcheting strap instead of just Velcro. My tri shoes have one boa lace and one Velcro strap and it is better than just a Velcro strap but most tri shoes I see are just one Velcro strap and that just doesn't work for me.

---

2019 T-Rex Tri Series

They are that expensive, but the S-works road shoes are the best cycling shoes I've ever had and it's not close.

I have a pair of S-works tri shoes sitting at the shop waiting for me to pick them up. Wondering if you always ride them sockless? If so, do you get a crazy tan line on the top of your foot?

I always ride sockless road/mtb or tri.

---

2019 T-Rex Tri Series

Hmmm, I have ridden sockless a total of maybe 20 times in my life. I hate the feeling of dirt etc. on my feet, but I will be training with tri shoes so I will have time to get used to it.

I like my shoes a little tighter than some people probably so I do not seem to slip around and feel as nasty as with a slightly larger size.

---

2019 T-Rex Tri Series

I ended up buying men's shoes for the PI tri shoes. I wear a woman's 11 and PI doesn't make a women's shoe that fits me. I guess that could be part of the problem, they feel loose even when I really tighten the velcro. I think for a longer tri, it will be worth taking the time to mess with the ratcheting mechanism on the Shimanos.


As far as socks, I can do either, but I think the socks help keep the shoes drier (IE less shoe stink later).

i rode them with socks the first few times on the trainer to break them in. now i always ride them sockless. no crazy tan lines yet, but i use a lot of sun block spray