can I learn to love my road shoes?

[Biciclista]

I have dominators. I love them. Those slippery bottoms on road shoes don't make sense to me.

[Grog]

I went from cheap touring/MTB type shoes with SPD pedals to super expensive Specialized road shoes that fit me like a glove, with road-SPD pedals (which are like Look pedals).

The shoes were spectacular and I never had any more pain in my feet. But I often got annoyed with difficulty clipping in (or clipping out! when it was rainy or there would be mud on the pedals it would become nearly impossible to clip out...) and with replacing the cleats every year. I had to go up and down stairs with my bike before every ride (and didn't have cleat-covers) so they would wear out fast.

I wore out the Specialized shoes' heels (so I was now walking on the carbon soles) and after three years I decided I had had it. I bought a pair of Dominators and put my original Shimano M-050 (I think) pedals on. I felt immediate relief at being able to put a foot down steadily when I needed to. It's my "happily ever after." And the Dom's soles are just as stiff as my $300 carbon shoes were. As far as I can tell anyway.

I'm sorry to have such a story to report. To directly answer your question: you'll probably get used to it, and it will feel fine, but maybe you'd rather be a dominator than a genius after all.

[tzvia]

I can't imagine using a pedal with small SPD type cleats- with road shoes. That's a small cleat with a small engagement area on the pedal- I would think it would be easy to miss. The larger Look style, or Speedplay or the TIME would be better I would think. And yea, the shoes are meant to be used 'clipped in' so resting your feet on those small pedals must feel like walking on ice with ice cubes stuck to the bottom of your shoes.

I use Speedplay, and if I stick my foot on the pedal and pedal, it will clip in. No looking, no hooking the cleat on the pedal to start, just press down and pedal. If I were ever to abandon my Speedplays (not likely) for SPDs, I would use MTB shoes so I could pedal clipped or unclipped like I do on my MTB with TIME pedals. I want to enjoy cycling, not learn how to do a tightrope act on my pedals.