aw, crud.
Yesterday was an absolutely stunning day, weather-wise - I was happily walking around in short sleeves, savoring the sun and picnicking on the porch, etc., etc. Naturally I was thrilled when the weather report claimed that today would be almost as nice - what a perfect opportunity to get my butt back into biking to work!
The shoes I wore on my trip this summer are completely trashed, and not very winter-worthy. So, a few weeks ago, after biking to work in the cold-cold and getting frostbite on my toes, I decided to spring for a new pair of winter biking shoes. These shoes kick ass. They are completely insulated and enclosed. The sole has a thick barrier between the footbed and the very bottom of the shoe where the cleats attach - most bike shoes are ventilated there. They've even got little neoprene gaiters and a flap that folds over the neoprene-backed lace area, and I can wear them with big fluffy socks (as I am doing in this photo). Dude! Cool.
What I didn't discover until actually leaving my house this morning is that these shoes aren't actually compatible with my pedals. Almost perfect, but not quite. The cleats themselves would lock with the pedals, but they are about 3 mm more recessed than the cleats on my old shoes. All this wouldn't matter at all if I didn't have those city-bike pedals. I love the fact that I can use them even without clipping in - one side has a clip for my cleats, and the other side I can use with sneakers or sandals, or I can use it in city traffic when I don't want to have both feet locked in. This is a great feature, except that it makes the pedals so big and fat that they don't work with my new shoes. (For reference, this is what other clipless pedals look like. note the distinct lack of big-and-fatness.)
This sucks! So I came inside, took pictures of my shoes, and drove to work, tail between my legs.
In other news, it was a great weekend. I think we ran into almost everyone we know at the Fetish Flea, even though we were only there for an hour or two. Stayed in a swank hotel for a company party on Saturday night, played DDR and Pump It Up in the arcade Sunday morning, then had the aforementioned porch-picnic and sat around chatting all day. Fabulous, lazy, and happy.
The shoes I wore on my trip this summer are completely trashed, and not very winter-worthy. So, a few weeks ago, after biking to work in the cold-cold and getting frostbite on my toes, I decided to spring for a new pair of winter biking shoes. These shoes kick ass. They are completely insulated and enclosed. The sole has a thick barrier between the footbed and the very bottom of the shoe where the cleats attach - most bike shoes are ventilated there. They've even got little neoprene gaiters and a flap that folds over the neoprene-backed lace area, and I can wear them with big fluffy socks (as I am doing in this photo). Dude! Cool.
What I didn't discover until actually leaving my house this morning is that these shoes aren't actually compatible with my pedals. Almost perfect, but not quite. The cleats themselves would lock with the pedals, but they are about 3 mm more recessed than the cleats on my old shoes. All this wouldn't matter at all if I didn't have those city-bike pedals. I love the fact that I can use them even without clipping in - one side has a clip for my cleats, and the other side I can use with sneakers or sandals, or I can use it in city traffic when I don't want to have both feet locked in. This is a great feature, except that it makes the pedals so big and fat that they don't work with my new shoes. (For reference, this is what other clipless pedals look like. note the distinct lack of big-and-fatness.)
This sucks! So I came inside, took pictures of my shoes, and drove to work, tail between my legs.
In other news, it was a great weekend. I think we ran into almost everyone we know at the Fetish Flea, even though we were only there for an hour or two. Stayed in a swank hotel for a company party on Saturday night, played DDR and Pump It Up in the arcade Sunday morning, then had the aforementioned porch-picnic and sat around chatting all day. Fabulous, lazy, and happy.