I only ride on the road, but I switched to mountain bike pedals & shoes many years ago so that I could walk a little more easily. If you're looking for stiff shoes, you don't have to buy road shoes. I wear Sidi Dominator (women's) mountain bike shoes which are extremely stiff. It's my understanding that the stiffness of the shoe (and really the shoe itself, other than the extra "lugs" on the sole) matches the Sidi Genius road shoe. Pedals? I use Speedplay Frogs.

--- Denise