I’m doing a grand tour of Switzerland with the wife. It is really important to her that we can stop frequently and walk around. Can I get SPD pedals and some sort of shoe that makes walking around more comfortable? Will I get hot spots on 60-80 mile rides?
Yes - that’s what I have done in the past for cycling tours. Lots of shoe options for SPD pedals … with more or less rigid soles … best to try out in advance if you can.
Can’t speak to the hot spots as n=1 but for example I did a 7 day ride once averaging over 100 miles per day and had no foot problems with the SPD pedals. Maybe a less rigid sole could increase chance of hot spot? Hopefully someone with more experience with me can answer this.
Enjoy your trip!
Sandals, haha
Lachlan Morton just rode two Tour stages in a day, wearing sandals
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If you want to take it all the way you could just get some flat pedals and a pair of cycling shoes designed for them. They’ve done research on this and generally found that power output with flat pedals is comparable to clipless.
I would say flat pedal and VANS or adidas Sambas
The soles are stiff enough to still provide an little uptick in power vs “regular” shoes plus highly walkable off the bike
YMMV
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If you want to take it all the way you could just get some flat pedals and a pair of cycling shoes designed for them. They’ve done research on this and generally found that power output with flat pedals is comparable to clipless.
Unless he’s gonna be launching from behind his wife to win every town line sprint like every alpha male should. Clipless is better for sprinting.
There are gravel shoes that are decently comfortable for walking. That’s what I do when I have a ride where I expect to walk around.
There are gravel shoes that are decently comfortable for walking. That’s what I do when I have a ride where I expect to walk around.
x2. I have the Specialized Recon ADV shoes and they have “walk-friendly STRIDE toe-flex technology.” It does work and they are a lot more comfortable for walking than my S-Works shoes. Also, they have a bit more padding and are lace-up which is nice for more casual hanging out.
I’ve done 2 different things. Firstly, shimano explorer range (multiple models) FOOTWEAR EXPLORER | SHIMANO GEAR
Second is full cycling shoe and some salomon techamphibian lightweight shoes. Buy TECHAMPHIBIAN 5 MEN’S by Salomon Australia online - Salomon New-Zealand They are waterproof and mainly designed for paddleboarding, etc, but you can strap to the top of your paniers on outside of bag and so no hassle to grab when you stop.
The latter option was what I preferred for when the daily distances were over 100ks and/or big climbing as that meant the cycling was more pleasurable with no foot pain/soreness. The former was actually what I did when commuting - 45mins riding then 15min walk over to the gym.
You can get a walkable shoe like the Velo Samba ( https://www.adidas.com/us/the-velosamba-made-with-nature-cycling-shoes/HQ9036.html ) that doesn’t look too out-of-place off the bike. Either pair this with SPD cleats/pedals, or leave the cleats off and use flat pedals with clips and straps (kept loose so you can easily pull out).
Another option is using your existing shoes/pedals, and place some lightweight/compact shoes in your jersey pocket or saddle bags. Something like the Native shoes (slightly upstyled Crocs): https://www.nativeshoes.com/jefferson/111001001501.html?cgid=mens&idx=11 . I’ve also found old racing flats to work well for this (they pack light/small, and with the advent of supershoes I really don’t use mine anymore).
I ride about 50 miles per week in the velosambas. Took about 8 rides to break in for me but now I find them very comfortable for riding for a few hours at a time. Fine for casual walking around the supermarket and such but wouldn’t want to do any hiking in them or wearing them around office for a day - sole is just too stiff.
A friend rode from Toronto to Mexico in a pair of spd sandals without a problem - so that’s another option. I do a lot of winter riding in flats with safety shoes - very thick soles and steel toecaps - and they are excellent for that.
Tennis shoes (flat soles)
Pedals with straps.
When I bikepack I have a pair of Arcteryx Norvan for off the bike which are ultralight.
Honestly if you are touring, you should be using MTB shoes and SPD’s anyways.
I ride tandems quite a bit which usually involves a good bit of walking ( you never want to doubt your footing with 400 lbs of bike & riders)
I prefer mid-grade MTB shoes with most any cleat system - but SPD probably is most common if you need to buy shoes overseas. Avoid carbon soles - they are too stiff for good walking.
I did a 5 day bike event in Switzerland- it was great and your friends will love it!