the great shoe debate

[dru_b]

bringing this thread back to life one more time.......

i decided on the shimano m161's and have had them for about half the year now. I HATE THEM, and am in search of yet another set of shoes. this is a pain in the arse when none of the local shops are stocking shoes other than shimano (basically), or have to order in your size. the problem here is that once you order a pair, most shops want a commital. im looking for a place that i can go to try on LAKE shoes. i have searched the lake sight and am having trouble finding a dealer nearby. the list one of the ia cty shops but after a phone call, they dont sell them. i thought i remembered someone earlier in this thread posting about one of the cedar rapids stores having them???

now for the shoe...... they are uncomfortable int the heel cup and just plain dont feel right on the feet. i have an existing injured ankle that makes adjusting the right cleat sometimes and with this shoe, its been nearly impossible. i have been all around the base of the shoe with the cleats, added shims, turned this way and that way and still not right. they have about 200 miles on them and just arent comfortable on long rides. i rode tomrov home in my old supergo phantoms and they did me justice. wish i could find another pair of those babies, they held their own for a $80 ratchet strapped shoe purchased about 5 years ago.

[iLuvTechnical]

bringing this thread back to life one more time.......

i decided on the shimano m161's and have had them for about half the year now. I HATE THEM,...

dru_b,
What pedals do you have?
The pedals sometimes make ALL the difference! I had a cheap pair of SPD's and they contributed to me not liking my shoes for awhile. Once I got a pair of XT pedals, my shoes felt great and I liked how both performed. I like my SPD pedals coupled with my Shimano M086 better than my Crank Brothers pedals. (review...http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/catego...shoes-10-39646 I agree w/ this review.)
I went through 2 sets of Crank Brothers (broke the weld on the beater) in two seasons and they pretty much ruined my old shoes b/c my fat butt put so much weight on the 2 "beater contact areas" causing grooves in the bottom of my shoes. Eventually, I couldn't stay clipped-in.
I bought the new Shimano's and cheap SPD pedals, discovered I needed XT pedals, and have been happy ever since.

My 2 cents.

[Gunchie]

dru_b,
I went through 2 sets of Crank Brothers (broke the weld on the beater) in two seasons and they pretty much ruined my old shoes b/c my fat butt put so much weight on the 2 "beater contact areas" causing grooves in the bottom of my shoes. Eventually, I couldn't stay clipped-in.

They do tend to leave grooves, but if you use the shims and replace them before it gets to the sole they work fine. I just got sick of going for an attack on a hill, standing to hit it hard, and the damn SPD would pop out. That's a big deal breaker in a race. It's never happened with my eggbeaters which is reason enough for me to not ever use SPD's again. To each there own though. Never used Specialized or Shimano shoes. Seen a lot of racers with Specialized shoes though and they look like good quality shows. I had some Lake shoes. I loved how comfortable they where, but I broke the sole on them (guess I was too powerful for them). I broke the soles on a few other shows before I finally got frustrated and bought my Sidi's. After thousands of miles my Sidi's are still going strong, and are very comfortable as well.