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Hey Singletrackworlders,
Thought I'd put this question to you as I'm looking for some advice on my first pair of SPD-SL road shoes.
I've been riding clipped in for years, but always in my one and only pair of Mavic Alpine XL (MTB) SPD shoes, using a standard pair of Shimano SPD pedals across all my bikes. Whilst these are fine for my MTB and hack bikes, I'd like something a little snazzier for my road bike now and have narrowed it down to these options, all sub £100. I'm hoping you can give some honest opinions if you've ever tried any of them.
Shimano R088 Wide Fit, £55 Wiggle
North wave Sonic SRS, £81 Wiggle
Shimano R107, £77 Wiggle
Mavic Aksium Elite Maxi, £80 CRC
Bont Riot, £90 Evans
My Mavic's have served me well now for around 4 years and will continue to be my off-road pair. However as you can see I've picked a couple of wide-versions as I do have wide, flat feet and find my Mavic's are a little on the narrow side.
Any comments, for or against would be much appreciated.
Which comes onto my second question - Look or Shimano for the pedals? Don't want anything fancy, just can't decide between Look Keo or Shimano 105. Erring towards Look but only because the pedals are marginally lighter (but let's be honest, I could probably take a decent-sized pre-ride sh*t and save more weight). Realistically I'd rather have the more durable cleat/pedal, whichever that may be...
Thanks in advance.
Rabi
(IMO)
Specialized shoes at the budget that suits
Shimano pedals at the budget that suits
I'd go for shimano pedals, the cleats last about twice as long despite looking outwardly the same as the look ones.
Specialized and Bontranger are the usual choices for wider feet. And both have aftermarket insoles to suit different arches (bontranger use the velcro in modular esoles, specialized their in house BG ones, although nothing stoping you using a different brand if they fit).
I have flat wide feet and have been using the R087 for the last 4 years, the predecessor to R088 and found them really comfy. I like the fact they have the ratchet for security higher up the foot but Velcro for a bit of adjustability lower down. Occasionally on a long ride my feet will swell slightly and this allows me to open the bottom of the shoe up a bit.
The R088 shoes linked with a set of R540 pedals will see you under budget
The best shoes for under £100 at the moment (providing they fit ok) are the Shimano R170 (reduced at a lot of places). Really good; very light and stiff; plenty of options for cleat placement.
The best pedals are whatever Shimanos ar within your budget
The best shoes are ones that fit you.
Go to a bike shop (or shops), try a load on. They vary quite a bit in fit even between models from the same manufacturer, e.g. I love my 2012 Specialized S-works but the 2013s onwards had a different shape upper which doesn't work for me. The 2014/15 Pros are much more like the old S-works in fit.
The alternative is you order all of them and send back the ones you don't like.
Lake shoes are a wide fit - not sure what they do in your price range.
I found Lake shoes to be narrow.
I have some Shimano SPD-SL pedals and cleats for cheap if you wanted them?
Thanks for your comments!
Beej, you are of course right. I've got a trip to my LBS to try on the Mavic and Bont, but am also interested in durability I'm a Quality Engineer by trade you see, so I like to know that my money is being well spent on something that will last! Or at least that's the excuse I use to justify spending a little more than the boss likes me to spend on cycling gear 🙂
Shedbrewed,
You've certainly sparked my interest. What model? Is it all in relatively good nick? I don't mind a bit of wear and tear but think I'll pass if they are a dogs dinner. And price? I'm always game for a bargain.
Rabi
SPD-SL 540 light action. Used by my GF but she's now on Looks so she can us my bikes. Very light use. Come with cleats £16 posted