What Gianni humbly omitted from his last article is that once he finishes ranting about sock color (actually, the lack of need for any color other than than white), he recovers quickly and we wrap up the Keepers executive board meeting with him tearing our legs off on the ride home from the bar with his magnificent stroke. Because after all, he is Rule #72.
But I digress. All the chit-chat Gianni’s article generated, and the timing of it with a new shoe purchase on my end, has me ruminating on Rule #8. Matching saddle, handlebar tape, and tires is, for the Velominatus at least, quite the no-brainer as it were. The only really poignant question I recall ever being raised is whether Vittoria Open Pave’s have an exemption because they are awesome and scream hardman tire (I think they are acceptable).
But what of shoes? They are the one piece of kit that most often throws a rider’s coordination out of sync. Of course this has traditionally been fine as shoes are such a personal matter that expecting one to match one’s shoes with the rest of one’s kit is hopeful at best. That being said, I wonder if shoes are less kit and more equipment. They transfer power directly from rider to bike and thus they are mechanical, they are engineered by smart people using fancy computers, and they render the machine virtually unrideable without them. In fact, I’ve often wondered why retailers list them under “clothing” and why online review forums don’t put them under “drivetrain” instead of “clothing and accessories”.
So if you don’t accept my premise, at least humor me here. If shoes are equipment and not kit, why would anyone buy a pair that didn’t match the rest of their bike? Surely, with the abundance of shoe choices on the market these days I would think one could make every effort to find a pair that fits, has the features and performance characteristics sought, falls within price range, and matches the rest of the bike.
I happened upon this concept casually deliberately this week. You see, I’ve been sporting considerable carbone over Fi’zi:k’s new shoe line ever since they were introduced (you might say I have a thing for shoes). So when a new pair of R3’s fell into my lap for number 1 I was forced to shift the Yellow Princesses over to number 3. The yellow decals and accents on the Serotta look awesome with the YP’s and the new R3’s are oh so sublime with the BMC. Splendid, indeed.
So I’ll put it to you, the Velominati. Does Rule #8 need amending? Are shoes equipment and not clothing? Do we, perhaps, need a new rule pertaining to shoe/bike matching (I think not but a suggestion might be in order). These are the things that keep the Keepers up at night.
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@frank
ps. Who's on the receiving end of that death stare? Was there a recumbent in the hood? A YJA? Kinda withering if you ask me . . .
I wrote a long post about shoes that I decided to summarise:
I like Shimano shoes.
I hate everything Specialized makes because every time I buy one of their products (tires, bibs, and now shoes) despite promising a good product they are fucking pieces of shit. I will now only buy products from companies that stick to the knitting.
I like that riders can wear hideously ugly shoes with their carefully designed team kits, like Wiggo's Bonts and Cuddles' and Bettini's WC shoes. Would I do it? Not really, unless I was WC.
If anyone wants the full anti - specialized rant, let me know.
@wiscot
Frank obviously heard a fleck of dirt on a chain ring about 3k away.
@frank
Easy big fella!! Too much candle wax huffing? It's all good... we are all wearing sensible shoes...
But I do like these... (ducks)
@Marko
I've said it before in these hallowed pages but I swear whoever designed those white & black Fi'zi:k's was taking the piss about cycling being the new golf.
THEY LOOK LIKE FUCKING GOLF SHOES!
Now the other two pairs on the other hand look spectacular.
@itburns
In Scotland, it's called "the Paisley death stare." Not a pleasant thing to receive.
Methinks he's spied a hipster fixie in his hood, despite the signs he has up at the end of his street - you know, the ones with the bike and the red line through it. Those are clearly targeted at fixies as the bike depicted has no gears, drop bars, etc. They do not, of course, apply to Frank and his stable of thoroughbreds.
i'm a fan of the black shoes, just goes with everything. However i see the point of the pro's such as Eddie boss having fluorescent shoes and i think in a bunch sprint it's sometimes easier to identify a rider in the lead up.
Also Mavic rule
Think this solves the problem. My Sidi steel/lux ergo 2s (with the cool rainbow hologram reflection type thing going on) match all bikes and all socks
@frank
also this is my favourite (maybe overstating but it's very cool) pic from this years tour and fits in with the thesis of it just works