Warm Biking Shoes for Cold Winter Commute ?

An occasional 0 F (-18 C), more common 20 F (-7 C) temperatures. Eastern
Central Iowa.

I am seeking the experience of others with warm winter biking shoes.

I tried three pairs of wool socks in clipless cycling shoes, and this
was pretty cold because of stuffing so much into a summer shoe just cuts
off the circulation and leaves the foot cold.

There seems to be a lot of heat loss through the metallic sole connections.

Platform pedals with hiking boots or insulated field boots and wool
socks works pretty good, but I lose some pedaling efficiency from the
platform pedals, but not enough to endure colder feet.

Overboots probably don't do much to stop the conductive heat loss
through the sole/attachment/pedal route, and I haven't tried them yet
because of that possibility.

Actually, with good wool socks and a liner, stiff soled full leather
athletic "Walking Shoes" also work fine to a little less than 20 F for
an hour ride. On a dry day.

For winter cycling, the Lake MXZ-300's are likely the best shoe
available. They have good insulation in the sole and are well protected
from water. I am comfortable for extended rides down to 20F with just a
polypro liner and an acrylic winter sock (I hate wool). For colder
temperatures I use a footbed I found at Wal-mart that accepts chemical
hand warmer packets. With the warmers I have ridden down to -5F in
comfort although you do notice the heat being sucked out of the shoe at
those temperatures. I only did this temperature once for a 5 mile
commute so I don't know how long they will work for longer rides in
such extreme cold. Being leather they aren't completely waterproof (no
stream wading) but I haven't had any problems with leaks and you can
confidently walk through puddles. They come with a packet of Nik-Wax
which is a very effective treatment for leather. For best fit you
should go one size up from your normal shoes. This preserves
circulation when wearing layers of socks and the straps can still take
up the extra space for warmer days. The unique heel strap on the Lake
shoes is particularly useful for tuning the fit. The sole has good
traction but it is narrower than a usual winter boot so it still pays
to walk judiciously. The toe spike attachments come with filler bolts
installed so you won't rust out the inserts if you chose to go without
them.

I ruled out the Gaerne polars because they are reported to have
durability issues. The Sidi winter storms have had flaws in the past
with leaks and lack of insulation. The current storm 3's may be
improved. Answer has a new winter shoe with leather uppers
(http://www.answerproducts.com/items....=10&itemid=140) that
might be worth a look. It doesn't appear to have as much coverage of
the upper flap than the Lakes do though.

Down to about -12 C I use 7mm neoprene booties over regular clcying
shoes and thin wool socks. It's usually not my feet that force me to
cut a ride short. I'd give the booties a try. I can only assume that
you have a pretty high cold tolerance level to be even contemplating
doing this, so I'll bet the booties will do just fine. I don't really
ride when it's below -12, as the xc-skiing is usually pretty good by
then!

Joseph

On 2005-08-31, jbuch wrote:
An occasional 0 F (-18 C), more common 20 F (-7 C) temperatures. Eastern
Central Iowa.

I am seeking the experience of others with warm winter biking shoes.

That is the topic of http://www.icebike.com, specifically -
http://icebike.com/Clothing/footwear.htm.

Basically, if you want clipless, there are two models: Lake MXZ 300
and Gaerne Polar. Both are designed for below 0 C.

Konstantin.

jbuch wrote:
An occasional 0 F (-18 C), more common 20 F (-7 C) temperatures. Eastern
Central Iowa.

I am seeking the experience of others with warm winter biking shoes.

I tried three pairs of wool socks in clipless cycling shoes, and this
was pretty cold because of stuffing so much into a summer shoe just cuts
off the circulation and leaves the foot cold.

Buy an oversize pair of shoes.

warmth? a loose fitting boot and wiggling toes helps. you're in felt
boot country right? bolt boot sized 1/2" u-shaped plywood covers over
a set of nashbar bear trap pedals. a simple rig-clamp the ply together,
cut and drill both sides at once. bolt thru with # 6 using loctite.
rasp edges round. sand l;ightly. paint with rusto. paint with rusto
campmor.com has skiing clothing, gloves, and i remember electric socks.
get there before the rush

Konstantin Shemyak wrote:
On 2005-08-31, jbuch wrote:

An occasional 0 F (-18 C), more common 20 F (-7 C) temperatures. Eastern
Central Iowa.

I am seeking the experience of others with warm winter biking shoes.


That is the topic of http://www.icebike.com, specifically -
http://icebike.com/Clothing/footwear.htm.

Basically, if you want clipless, there are two models: Lake MXZ 300
and Gaerne Polar. Both are designed for below 0 C.

Konstantin.


Excellent reference site. Thanks very much.... all my questions were
well elaborated upon.

Jim

jbuch wrote:
An occasional 0 F (-18 C), more common 20 F (-7 C) temperatures. Eastern
Central Iowa.

I am seeking the experience of others with warm winter biking shoes.

I tried three pairs of wool socks in clipless cycling shoes, and this
was pretty cold because of stuffing so much into a summer shoe just cuts
off the circulation and leaves the foot cold.

There seems to be a lot of heat loss through the metallic sole connections.

Platform pedals with hiking boots or insulated field boots and wool
socks works pretty good, but I lose some pedaling efficiency from the
platform pedals, but not enough to endure colder feet.

Overboots probably don't do much to stop the conductive heat loss
through the sole/attachment/pedal route, and I haven't tried them yet
because of that possibility.

Actually, with good wool socks and a liner, stiff soled full leather
athletic "Walking Shoes" also work fine to a little less than 20 F for
an hour ride. On a dry day.


I'm in the capital of Iowa. I suspect you're over in my alma mater
town. I have the Lake boot/shoes talked about by others. My feet get
very cold in an hour of 30 degree riding. My feet hurt after two hours
of 30 degree riding. I'm wearing wool socks and neoprene booties too.
A riding buddy uses cycling sandals with several layers of wool socks
and seems happy. I am going to give this a try this winter. I have
the snadals and wool socks. I'll put the neoprene booties over them
for some wind protection. Sandals will be loose enough for layers of
wool socks.

In article . com,
amakyonin wrote:

For winter cycling, the Lake MXZ-300's are likely the best shoe
available. They have good insulation in the sole and are well protected
from water. I am comfortable for extended rides down to 20F with just a
polypro liner and an acrylic winter sock (I hate wool). For colder
temperatures I use a footbed I found at Wal-mart that accepts chemical
hand warmer packets. With the warmers I have ridden down to -5F in
comfort although you do notice the heat being sucked out of the shoe at
those temperatures. I only did this temperature once for a 5 mile
commute so I don't know how long they will work for longer rides in
such extreme cold. Being leather they aren't completely waterproof (no
stream wading) but I haven't had any problems with leaks and you can
confidently walk through puddles. They come with a packet of Nik-Wax
which is a very effective treatment for leather. For best fit you
should go one size up from your normal shoes. This preserves
circulation when wearing layers of socks and the straps can still take
up the extra space for warmer days. The unique heel strap on the Lake
shoes is particularly useful for tuning the fit. The sole has good
traction but it is narrower than a usual winter boot so it still pays
to walk judiciously. The toe spike attachments come with filler bolts
installed so you won't rust out the inserts if you chose to go without
them.

I ruled out the Gaerne polars because they are reported to have
durability issues. The Sidi winter storms have had flaws in the past
with leaks and lack of insulation. The current storm 3's may be
improved. Answer has a new winter shoe with leather uppers
(http://www.answerproducts.com/items....=10&itemid=140) that
might be worth a look. It doesn't appear to have as much coverage of
the upper flap than the Lakes do though.


Continuing on the subject... I second that the MXZ-300s are the best
cold weather cycling boot/shoe available; but, again, they are not
without their limitations. As amakyonin recommends, buy a size up from
your regular shoe size to accommodate socks on the extra frigid days.

The greatest weakness of the MXZs is the boots' lack of waterproofness
- indeed the term water resistant is more applicable in this case. And
once wet, the leather takes a good deal of time to dry, much more than
shoes with synthetic uppers. Here I deviate amakyonin observation: if
you anticipate much walking in slushy conditions, it's best to avoid
this choice in footwear.

It's for this reason that the MXZ's achilles heel is less subzero
temperatures than near zero wet/slushy conditions. These boots have
kept my toes toasty warm in -25 degree celsius temperatures; but also
had them wet and freezing at +5 degrees.

As to using the boots in conjunction with neoprene booties or nylon
covers to ensure dryness, the nuisance of the extra equipment wasn't
worth it for me; I'd rather forego the SPDs, install platform pedals,
and have a greater variety of footwear to choose from.

And lastly, in my MXZs, the stitching securing the leather upper to the
vinyl heel cup tore loose; and the rubber foresole separated from the
front upper as the glue gave way. The cobbler charged $20 for repairs
and the boots are still in service to this day. I add this not as an
indictment of the quality of the Lakes; but rather as a testament to
their durability: these boots served me while I was a messenger 8+
hours a day for 2 winters - they are well built!!

The perfect pair of cold/wet weather SPD shoes has yet to be made; and
until it is, the Lake's represent the closest thing to perfection that
you're likely to encounter.

Luke

jbuch wrote:
An occasional 0 F (-18 C), more common 20 F (-7 C) temperatures. Eastern
Central Iowa.

I am seeking the experience of others with warm winter biking shoes.

For serious cold and wet you need LL Bean/Sorel type winter boots with
rubber bottom parts and felt liners, with wool socks. Usually they will
fit into toe clips if the straps are loose.

You can solve much of the wet problem with full fenders and a rainflap
on the front. Even with full fenders, without the flap your feet will
get soaked going through slush, especially whenever you turn the wheel.