Outdoors? In November? Unheard of.
Well, not quite. There were plenty of other cyclists out today. A lovely dinner time spin. Nice and sunny, a bit wet under the wheels, and a tad nippy. But in my three layers, rubber gloves, and long johns bib tights I was toasty. Nice and toasty.
Rather than risk getting my lovely new pristine white cycling loafers all filthed up and covered in grime, I decided I’d wear my old pair. Aside from not wanting to get my new shoes dirty (how tragic) I also wanted to see how they compared, cleat-wise, to my new pair.
Well, it turns out I have a much better fit on my left side on my old pair than I do on the left side on my new pair. Crazy. But, also, it should (I hope) mean I can do a bit of tape measure madness and find / transfer the exact position over, somehow, to the new shoe. And then both my new shoes should be perfecto!
That’s the plan, anyway.
I don’t know if I’m going to go out again tomorrow.
If the weather holds, it would seem really crazy not to get out again, even for just a light ride. I’m a bit concerned I do have quite sore knees this week, and that’s almost certainly down to the change in cleat position on the new shoes. But missing out on the outdoors will haunt me once the rain and bitter cold return.
Overall then, really enjoyed my jolly out today. Get a bit of sunshine, top up the old sun tan, or would that be red face from the wind chill? God knows. It was good to get away from the desk, that’s all I know.
Hey Chris,
Overshoes are the ticket for keeping those new kicks looking new. I got some DHB Neoprene ones for winter here and they’re ace. Pull them off filthy and shoes look brand new. Also good for keeping the tootsies warm too.
I also use a DHB merino neck tube and pull it up over my ears and nose, does a decent job with wind chill and still breathable.
I do have some overshoes which I bought with the shoes, still in their packet with all my kit 🙂
Honestly, with the amount of twist I’m having to put into my leg to unclip with the new shoes, I’m super glad I’m on the turbo or I would definitely have taken more than one tumble by now.
Until I can confidently unclip, I’m going to stick to the oldies for outside. I wonder if that is a symptom of the cleat position? These are the same type of cleats but different brands. The old ones were xpedo I think, and the new ones are Look KEO.
I’ll take a look into a neck tube. I’ve been contemplating a gilet, too. Always something new to buy 🙂
Could be cleat position, I’ve only had experience with Shimano cleats and pedals myself. I have noticed when I’ve replaced my cleats due to wear, the first few rides were a bit dicey when it came to unclipping. Maybe there is a bit of a break in period.
I’ve got a Castelli Perfetto gilet, it’s great! Good in light showers, keeps you warm without getting too hot as it’s very breathable. I previously had a different (cheaper) castelli gilet and while it was very rain resistant, I ended up feeling like a boil in a bag chicken.
Yeah the perfetto gilet is out of stock in my size. Unfortunately the gilet’s in my size are around £80, which is a fortune for what they are. It’s the same price as a jersey, basically. I’ve been looking at the Rapha ones. I do like the rapha stuff, but it seems like everyone wears the same stuff round here, and I also like to be a little different. Mavic sell some decent kit. On the plus size, being ‘extra small’ is a god send in the sales, but beyond that I’m all about the white kit which is terrible for actual real world wear as it gets instantly filthy.
I should shut up. I’ve just been rollecked by my wife for being too drunk. I shouldn’t be on the internet a this point.