Due to foot problems, I went from flats back to SPDs on the MTB. Pretty much everyone has a lace up mountain shoe. I had been on the Shimano version for the last two seasons, but I went back to the Special S.
the biggest thing for me to get used to is where to put my feet on the platforms, and also what shoes to wear. last ride was in vans slip-ons and I wasn’t racing anyone , just my heart, and spun a fine 14.5mph avg over 25miles which is fine and I dont give a shit
I use flats for everything. Good pedals make your shoe choice less critical, but some shoes definitely work better with certain types of pedals (pins). Most flat-pedal-specific shoes, however, are pretty dorky.
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yeah if I wanted to wear skateboarding shoes I’d break my arm
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Five Ten’s Trailcross Pro (second from right) is a bit of a departure from the typical skate shoe profile, but definitely lacks the grip and pedaling efficiency of the company’s Freerider Pro model. I’m surprised that one of the big outdoor/footwear brands hasn’t come up with something that looks Instagram-friendly and grips/pedals well.
aren’t keen supposed to be good for pedaling, or is that just for the Portland folks?
I’ve never had luck with keens on bikes, the toe box is too wide and my food ends up hanging off the outer edge of the pedal or the inside hits the crank arm every revolution.
All of my spd riding is done in five ten kestrels, they walk the line between full kit and jorts/tank top nicely.
That said, I see no problem with dirtbag clothes and pro level carbon shoes. 
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I like my pearl Izumi velcro+boa shoe but I dont want Spd on all bikes either
I have some really old school shimano DH shoes and on diety pedals it’s almost too grippy. You put a foot down wrong and you can’t twist or slide your foot at all. Gotta pick it up and put it back down.
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Post can’t be empty
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Keens are fine since they tend to have a stiff sole. Well, also if your feet are <12 or so.
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I think for $35 I might try these:
https://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=101601
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At that price, I might too.
they also have a couple sizes in black, if that’s your thing
I smanged some Chrome SPD high top shoes a while back. They’re on a big sale. Haven’t used them yet.
I have them and use them!
For $35 they’re a steal
The soles aren’t as stiff as I’d like, great for around town but were causing bad foot pains over 100k that was resolved by getting some carbon fiber and gel insole from Walgreens.
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I have the CT5s too- disappointed that there are no slots to move the SPD cleat forward/backward; it’s just two sets of holes to determine your fore/aft cleat position… I ended up putting the cleat cover back on and using the shoes as normies.
That white outsole is kind of a bummer on both colors, but easily fixed with a Sharpie.
Those do have slightly orthopedic shoe vibes…
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