Barefoot Shoes and Cycling

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Recently I swapped the clip-less pedals for flat pedals and yesterday I decided to try the pedals on a bike ride. I went for a 74.91km ride with pedals I had never used and shoes I had never worn for cycling. I cycled for almost 75 kilometres with Merrel Vapor Glove 6. These are soft, flimsy shoes that you can roll up and put into a pocket. They’re more like socks, or gloves, than shoes. The fact that this was a 75km bike ride shoes that the shoes and the pedals work fine together although I did find that I felt more fatigue.

The Issue with Barefoot Shoes

The problem with barefooot shoes is that they’re soft. I found after fifty or so kilometres that I wished I had harder soles. I wanted to have soles where I put the foot on the pedal, and pedalled. With soft shoes you need to think about which part of the foot is on the pedal. Too far forward and the toes do a lot of work. Too far back and it feels a little better.

I also drew a little blood. Normally when you cycle you’re wearing solid shoes, and you’re wearing socks. Both of these protect your feet and your ankles to some degree. With barefoot shoes your feet are vulnerable to ground strikes and more. I also felt debris fly into the shoes but didn’t stop to remove it.

The Pedals

The pedals are large, especially compared to clip-less pedals. That’s great, plenty of surface for the shoes to rest on. The sensation of cycling without having to worry about clipping in or out is nice although two or three times I either felt that I wanted the pedal to come up, rather than for my foot to lift or I felt my feet slide forwards or backwards rather than staying put.

Feeling Informal

Barefoot shoes feel nice, when cycling, because it feels as though you are heading to the swimming pool or the lake/seaside rather than going on a proper bike ride. Initially I had considered keeping the barefoot shoes for in case of a chain break or puncture. I never intended to try a 75km bike ride with them.

Conclusion

Cycling with normal pedals and barefoot shoes is feasible but you may end up doing more work than with clip-less pedals. On the way home I felt that I had to consciously think about what my feet were doing, to keep them balanced correctly on the pedals. With normal shoes I would not have had that problem. I felt fatigued by the end of the bike ride and I believe that it is because I used the wrong shoes for cycling. With normal shoes I might have been fine.