While many cyclists are completely devoted to their cleats on whatever bike, I ride with cleats when I’m out cycling for leisure, but when I’m commuting I tend to wear normal trainers. There are a number of reasons for this: when commuting in London, my route (unsurprisingly) has a fair amount of traffic lights, meaning it can often be quite stop start. As much as I’ve mastered the art of clipping in and out, it will never be as simple as simply taking my foot off the pedal.
In addition, much of my cycling – when not out for leisure – is short rides. A ride to the pub to see friends, or a ride to the shops. And with cycling shoes and cleats notoriously annoying to walk around in when off the bike, it’s handy to wear shoes that are convenient for both on and off the bike.
The Teva Mens Carbon Shoe is exactly that. It’s designed to be a comfortable, breathable shoe that casual cyclists can ride in with comfort, while being happy and good looking enough to wear off the bike as well.
On the bike
Of course, the main downpoint of wearing ‘normal’ shoes or trainers on the bike – aside from not putting as much power in – is that when wet, your feet can very easily slip off the pedal, leaving you a little bit wobbly to say the least.
The Teva Carbon Shoe is designed to avoid that – and having worn it for the first time in wet conditions, I have to admit I didn’t slip off the pedal once. I won’t bore you with the boring technical details of the design, but the shoe’s sole has been designed to maximise grip on a bicycle pedal, and it seems to work.
The obvious thought, once knowing this, is that the shoe might be a bulky, ‘skater boy’ style shoe. However this isn’t the case, and the leather and canvas material used is stylish and incredibly comfortable too.
Teva say the shoe is a “premium upgrade” from other bike shoes, and it seems they are right – but the £65 price tag isn’t as ‘premium’ as you might expect.
Off the bike
As mentioned, using cycling cleats on the bike can lead to some awkward and hazardous walking off it, and frankly it’s a pain having to carry a spare pair of shoes around for when you dismount.
So it really is a nice change to see a good quality casual bike shoe that is more than just practical for on the bike, but is also a pleasure to wear off it. Not only does the sole’s design keep you steady in the wet, but the canvas and leather upper makes for a really, really comfortable shoe – they’re now the most comfortable pair of casual shoes I own – and they look really good too.
Cool feet, cool look
I rode four miles at the weekend, in fairly stuffy conditions, to meet some friends in the pub. I was slightly concerned that wearing such casual shoes would leave my feet a bit sweaty, but this wasn’t the case.
Instead, the leather and canvas kept my foot cool – and dry, when the rain fell on the way home – and looked good in the pub too. I didn’t want to look like a cyclist; and the shoes helped on that front.
Overall
The Teva Mens Carbon Shoe is a great option for casual cyclists, commuters and those who want to look good. It’s not as chunky as you’d expect and looks great on the bike, as well as off it.
- Premium shoe, but not too much of a premium price
- Incredibly comfortable
- Waterproof upper, and a good grip on the sole
Not very security conscious is he?
and he needs to stop riding on the bloody pavement…been looking for some durable cycling shoes for sometime. Converse last 6 months if I’m lucky.
These look great! Do they make a women’s version?
Hi Tammela, there’s a wide range of woman’s shoes available on their site if you click through on the link in the piece 🙂
The solution to the cleat issue is to use a smaller two-hole mountain-bike style cleat system like Shimano SPD, Crank Brothers, Time Atac etc.
Unlike road cleats, these are designed to be recessed in from the sole of your shoe, so you can still walk normally. They are also a lot easier to clip out from than full racing-style road cleats.
You can then pair them with nice casual SPD-compatible pub-friendly shoes like DZR:
http://www.dzrshoes.com/shoes
It may appear quite odd, but I use 1 trainer and 1 cycle shoe with cleat.
I too found too many lights and shuffling through London traffic, but didnt want to give up my cleats completely. The only downside is the odd question, some strange looks and i have a brand new left foot spare cycling shoe and right foot trainer.
Cleat covers? I use them to stop my cleats getting torn up when walking around and they fit into a pocket easily. Much cheaper than buying a second set of shoes. Clipping out isn’t that hard is it?!
Cleat covers? Never heard of them, but I like what you described they do. Where do you find them?
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/?s=cleat+cover
How waterproof are these? My current trainers fill up after about 10 mins of steady rain