Finding your own unique fit
We seem to talk endlessly about this, and yet still too many cyclists are wearing the wrong cycling shoes – and it’s so evident. In cycling shops, cafes and gatherings all over the world, this spring cyclists are loosening the fastenings on their shoes because of hot-spots, pain, discomfort and ill-fitting cycling shoes.
Too many buy based solely on price, without realising the reason why those ill-fitting cycling shoes are so cheap. Or worse still, they try to play golf with Tiger Woods’ golf clubs, believing that it will lead to glory, when the only achievement is pain and discomfort on the bike. Yes, if cycling is as many people say, ‘the new golf’; then you need to use the clubs that suit your style of play. Or to be more precise: wearing the same cycling shoes as your favourite rider from the pro peloton, won’t help you to ride your bike with the same performance.
Comfort comes first, then performance follows
Comfort is key to everything in cycling. Your bike and how it is put together. Even down to how the carbon frame is constructed. Most cyclists will look in detail at this and yet give scant attention to their cycling shoes. We recently spoke about pattern here at Lake, and how it ensures that we design cycling shoes that truly fit and perform for all manner of foot shapes.
Our Lake CX242 is a culmination of all our experience, advanced materials, and shoe making techniques to make a shoe that offers the best fitting solution for hard to fit foot types. Made with a heat moldable heel counter and a uniquely designed upper that has enough adjustability to accommodate riders with bunions, deformation, narrow or wide feet, or a high or low instep. The separated panels allow for fine tuning the fit, relieving pressure from sensitive and painful spots on the feet.
In the same way as bike frames use carbon to stiffen the front of the bike, whilst weaving it in a different manner towards the seat tube to give flexibility and comfort – we use different patterns and different materials in particular areas of our cycling shoes. Why, because comfort matters and it’s the foundation of all performance for cyclists, whatever shape their feet may be.
The shape of things to come – Lake
There’s a simple rule of thumb that will help you to determine if your cycling shoes are ill-fitting – beside the obvious pain. Yes, you may get pain from the BOA placement, because the brand hasn’tresearched this, and you may get hotspots and nerve pain because the shop didn’t fit you correctly andforced your foot into a narrow a cycling shoe. However, if you remove your footbed from the shoe, place it onto the ground and then place your foot onto it – without the constraints of the painful shoe – look at how your foot sits on top of that footbed. Does it hang over? If so, then you need to have your feet properly measured and assessed by a shoe fitting specialist, such as our own network of fitters here at Lake.
Our CX239 is the latest version of our most popular road cycling shoe. This new evolution comes with an integrated tongue to the medial panel of the upper for a firmer foot hold, ensuring that power is maximized into forward momentum through improved stability. Every single aspect of the cycling shoe has been thought out in detail by our design team.
It has a fiberglass reinforced internal heel counter, creating a more stable heel hold, and has more spacing between the two BOA® dials to give greater zone adjustment to the forefoot area. It takes one of our favourite cycling shoes to a whole new level of comfort, fit and performance, with modern styling as standard.
And, if it is the right cycling shoe shape for your feet, then you’ll be riding in unrivaled comfort all day long.
Marginal gains start with your feet
Cycling is growing in popularity, and you’ve been growing since birth. Your feet have formed in a particular way, and yes, they define you – how you walk and how you cycle. Trying to ride faster by using the same cycling shoes as Tadej or Jonas simply won’t work. Many in the pro peloton use Lake cycling shoes – because we provide the ultimate in comfort. And we accept that all cyclists have different feet and different needs. We know that the best cycling shoe is the one that fits you; which is why we have the most extensive range of cycling shoe shapes, sizes and widths in the world.
Marginal gains start with a good foundation at your feet. Once you feel that pair of Lake cycling shoes wrapped like a second skin, your feet will smile and the performance will come as standard. No, you can’t play your best golf with Tiger Woods golf clubs – but you can wear the most comfortable cycling shoes in the world – from Lake. You may never ride as well as a world tour rider, but you ride to your maximum, wearing cycling shoes that fit your feet and provide a pain-free cycling experience.
Take a trip to one of our specialist shoe fitting experts this month and feel the Lake difference. Comfort and performance in perfect harmony.
The Casual Cyclist