Cold Feet

Smartwool socks

I have several pairs of Smartwool socks and I couldn't be happier.

https://www.smartwool.com/default.cfm

For anything above 40, I use the "Wool-on-wool" (W.O.W.) socks with my regular Shimano shoes.

Anything lower, I just my Gore-Tex Pearl boots with the same socks.

Above all, the socks are just damn comfy :D:D
 
thanks for the tips

I do have a pair of plastic mountaneering boots i could mount cleats to! :rolleyes:

I've been pretty good for 30-45mins without the booties kept me going for about 1:15 but its the 2-to 2:30 that was painful my toes were almost screaming barfy cold

i did strech my shoes a bit.. mink oiled them nice, wet them some put shoe strechers in.... it helped some but im still not getting fat socks in...the paddle feet just wont allow it (ive been reduced to wearing sidi megas)

the poop bags are great a great idea for people whos feet dont sweat alot unfortunately i dont fit in that category... by the end of the ride my shoes would be like little bathtubs... and actually the collection of moisture makes it worse because the heat loss gets multiplied by the moisture thats retained.

hopefully i can squeeze in the toe warmers

thanks again
 
idbrian said:
I've been thinking about the toe problem lately too. Like you i can't shell out the cash for the Lake boots. I have too many other things to shell out for first (i.e. lights).

I have booties too and was just going to try putting toe-warmers on top of my riding shoes, in between the shoe and the booties. Not sure how well this will work. I do know that my shoes are designed with mesh on top to allow my feet to breath and dry during the summer so hopefully that mesh will let the heat come through.
Click to expand...

This works if your shoes are too tight to put toe warmers inside. Just stay away from water or make sure your booties are waterproof. Once they get wet toe warmers don't work.
 
update-

removed my footbeds to gain more volume, added the footwarmers between my socks and the toe covers. either i had duds for warmers (they were cold by the time i got back ~2hours) or my feet sweat enough to render them inactive. i lasted about 1:40 yesterday... after about 45minutes i was doing the toe warming wiggle on the downhill sections... yeah by the end of the ride the balls of my feet were unconfortably cold too...

...resigned to having cold feet or resorting to indoor training
 
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I used the chemical toe warmers today and was quite comfy. I put them on my socks as opposed to in between the shoe and cover. If I decide to ride the road tomorrow im going to go with toe warmers on both sides of my foot. if that doesnt work then Ill put my spds on my road bike.
 
In between the shoe and shoe cover would be useless. I suggest putting them on the top of the sock near the toes as Fred explained.

Also consider that these warmers need access to air. There is a chemical reaction going on between the contents of the warmer and the surrounding air. without air circulation, they will not stay warm or get as warm as they should. I used toe warmers for the Clayton ride yesterday. I wore winter socks in my regular shoes without any covers. My feet were fine for an hour. After that the warmers were useless and my feet were bricks later. I've had this happen numerous times with the toe warmers.

I've had much greater success with the hand warmers. You can move the warmer around in the glove and it will stay warmer. In some cases, I have removed them from the gloves and put them in a pocket for a few minutes. They've gotten so hot that they hurt when I return them to the gloves.

Obviously, that is not convenient for the toe-warmers. :mad:
 
BiknBen said:
In between the shoe and shoe cover would be useless. :mad:
Click to expand...

no in between socks and toe covers

the layers were as follows:

booties--------------------
top of shoes------------------------
neoprene toe covers---------
toe warmers---------------------
socks-------------------------
toes --------------------------
footbeds (removed for extra volume)
bottom of shoe ------------
cleat



STILL EQUALS COLD FEET
 
then sell yourself on a street corner in Newark and save up for a pair of Lakes...
 
Will have a few days of cold feet.

Heel cup stitching on one of my Lakes ripped out over the weekend.
Seems to be a common problem on the newer version.
Never had the problem with the old pair.
In shoe repair shop till Friday and both should be double stitched.
 
I am not sure why you are having such problems with the toe warmers, I have been using them with much success for the last 5 years or so.
Usually when I finish a ride they are still warm
 
jimjo said:
no in between socks and toe covers

the layers were as follows:

booties--------------------
top of shoes------------------------
neoprene toe covers---------
toe warmers---------------------
socks-------------------------
toes --------------------------
footbeds (removed for extra volume)
bottom of shoe ------------
cleat



STILL EQUALS COLD FEET
Click to expand...


put the foot bed back in. alot of the heat loss through the feet while cycling occurs because of how close the metal of the cleat and mounting plate in the shoe are to your foot. you need an insulation layer on the bottom. pac boots, designed for extreme winter travel(down to -100 or lower) have wool felt footbeds up to or exceeding 1/2" in thickness, and that's before you add the thick liner. get some closeout shoes 2 sizes bigger than you normally wear. you NEED room for circulation. add a bit of insulation, like a smartwool sock, and then either baggie over the sock or duck tape on the outside of the shoe. if you want to wear synthetic socks, you'll need to add a vapor barrier layer between your foot and the sock. once that stuff get's wet it loses it's insulating properties. a vapor barrier layer is even a good idea with wool socks, as they still lose some of their insulation when wet. alot of people up here use plastic subway sandwich bags as a cheap vb layer. you can also ones designed for a foot, and some ski shops have these foot shaped plastic bag dealies. some people also find a thin liner sock between thier foot and the vb layer is more comfortable.
 
Sounds like this may be a job for...
Mr.%20Mcgiver.jpg
 
anrothar said:
put the foot bed back in. alot of the heat loss through the feet while cycling occurs because of how close the metal of the cleat and mounting plate in the shoe are to your foot. you need an insulation layer on the bottom.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Heat loss through the soles of all my shoes/boots in winter is bad news.
I bought Polar Wrap liners(NASA technology blah, blah, blah) a few weeks ago and have been pleased with the results so far. From my sneakers to my riding shoes they fit well, add comfort and chase the cold. You still need good socks and toe covers or booties, but these as a base layer seem very promising. Not that I'm wishing for one, but I'd like to try them on another '13 degrees and windy as hell' day before I give the enthusiastic double thumbs up.

http://www.polarwrap.com/default.aspx?pid=1&sid=37&show=

Then I might consider looking into their masks.
 
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