I might ditch the clips, but I’ll never lose my shoes.
Mountain bike shoes are 100% irrefutably worth it.
I’m an entry to mid-level rider at best, and I’m good with that. I do daily skills work and carry that constant desire to always out-do myself that most mountain bikers have. Maybe one day I’ll be riding next to all you thirty-foot gappers. Having owned a mountain bike in some form or another since 1998, I never really “mountain biked” per se until 8 or 9 years ago. I suppose I followed the natural progression that many mountain bikers do; starting out on casual paved trails through town progresses up to riding very mild hiking trails or XC singletrack, then the desire to go faster and jump higher kicks in and we start pushing ourselves to clean those blue and black trails. Which of course leads to those burly double black enduros. It seems to be a common theme in the evolution of a mountain biker.
Within that very evolution, I’ve noticed another trend in mountain biking, in that our opinion on the great “flats vs. pedals” debate tends to shift and change as our skills progress. We all started on flats since day one riding a pedal bike and obviously so because during those learning stages we need to be able to bail at a moments notice. But as we progress and begin bombing through more rough sections, the desire to feel more planted on the pedals through the rock garden really kicks in. We maybe even fell for the efficiency hype at some point or another and thought “I’m could crush on the uphills if I were clipped in.” Then eventually we make the switch to clips. But as our skills improve and we start seeing more technical trails or even wanting to learn to do tricks in the air, that “option to bail” sounds like home sweet home again. And you guessed it, we make the switch back to flats.
I know what you’re thinking, “JC, I came here to read about shoes, not pedals”. But just go with me on this one. Because it’s that very evolution in my own riding that has proved to me that mountain bike shoes are 100%, irrefutably worth it.
Lately, I have been really focusing on improving my fundamentals (wheelies, turns, endos, etc) with an end goal of being able to clear larger jumps, rail into berms much harder, improve the usefulness of my manuals and of course master those switchback endos. Every day for 10 minutes or more, you can find me working my wheelies, mastering my manuals and tweaking my turns on our backyard trail or sidestreet in front of our home. It’s amazing how much our riding can improve from just slipping in a quick skills session every day while on a work break.
Now beings that I’m doing skills work, I absolutely love the comfort of not being clipped in and generally run a set of Raceface Chesters, borrowed from Gabe, and an old pair of Nike Mike Trout turf shoes. I would use my dedicated bike shoes, but the cleat for the clipless system reduces my foot-to-pedal engagement far too much causing me to lose grip and slip off. And I’m really not up for taking the cleat off and on every time I decide to switch pedals.
Raceface’s Chester pedals are a great set of bang for your buck, durable pedals that do a decent job of keeping me on the pedals when I’m tootling around the house at relatively slow speeds. But for those high-speed death-defying maneuvers we all are hoping to one day achieve, there’s just not enough grip when paired with tennis shoes. Especially when compared to the level of traction a great set of mountain bike specific shoes can offer, this combo just doesn’t cut it.
Why the poor traction?
From what I have been able to surmise, the two biggest contributing factors to the poor traction are in the construction of both the outsole and midsole.
- The outsole rubber compound is just too stiff; disallowing the pins to fully penetrate into and bite the shoe
- The midsole compresses around the pins rather than forcing them to penetrate into the tread
How bout that cushioned midsole?
Not only does the squishy midsole negatively impact the traction to the pedal, but it also allows the shoe to flex around the pedal in a way that feels as if my heel is trying to leverage my toes off and away from the pins. Not a “confidence inspiring” feeling at all. Though I don’t run a power meter to have the hard data to prove it, I can’t help but think a fair amount of power is being absorbed and lost into the foam when hammering on the pedals, thereby making for a less efficient pedal stroke as well. The midsole really needs to be rigid in order to get the best traction as well as transfer all that quad strength into the crack.
What if I Ride Clips?
As far as a need for a mountain bike specific pair of shoes when running clipless, we don’t have much choice but to commit to owning another pair in this circumstance. Sure you could probably find a way to bolt a cleat to your running shoes, but I can only imagine the headaches that would ensue as a result of this ingenuity. So count on opening your wallet if you intend to give clipless go. If you are looking to spare some cash, there are many relatively inexpensive entry level shoes that can be had for around $50 on Amazon. Some brands even offer shoes with a removable tread portion that allows for cleat attachment when running clipless or can be reinstalled for those times when you want to run flats. It’s not a difficult task to swap the removable tread in and out for the cleat, but I can’t imagine having much desire to do this on the regular.
Conclusion
Do you absolutely need to have mountain bike shoes to mountain bike? Of course not! We only need food, air & water (some may claim smartphones too). Our ability to go out and reconnect with nature, get stoked, blow off some steam or (insert your favorite phrase here) is not dependant upon the shoes you’re wearing. You can tick all those boxes and more with an old pair of Air Force Ones if you so choose. But before long, with all the daily skills work you’re putting in, you’ll find your abilities have begun to push the limits of your equipment, and the extra support and added traction that a mountain bike specific shoe offers, might just be the thing that takes your riding to the next level.