What Gianni humbly omitted from his last article is that once he finishes ranting about sock color (actually, the lack of need for any color other than than white), he recovers quickly and we wrap up the Keepers executive board meeting with him tearing our legs off on the ride home from the bar with his magnificent stroke. Because after all, he is Rule #72.
But I digress. All the chit-chat Gianni’s article generated, and the timing of it with a new shoe purchase on my end, has me ruminating on Rule #8. Matching saddle, handlebar tape, and tires is, for the Velominatus at least, quite the no-brainer as it were. The only really poignant question I recall ever being raised is whether Vittoria Open Pave’s have an exemption because they are awesome and scream hardman tire (I think they are acceptable).
But what of shoes? They are the one piece of kit that most often throws a rider’s coordination out of sync. Of course this has traditionally been fine as shoes are such a personal matter that expecting one to match one’s shoes with the rest of one’s kit is hopeful at best. That being said, I wonder if shoes are less kit and more equipment. They transfer power directly from rider to bike and thus they are mechanical, they are engineered by smart people using fancy computers, and they render the machine virtually unrideable without them. In fact, I’ve often wondered why retailers list them under “clothing” and why online review forums don’t put them under “drivetrain” instead of “clothing and accessories”.
So if you don’t accept my premise, at least humor me here. If shoes are equipment and not kit, why would anyone buy a pair that didn’t match the rest of their bike? Surely, with the abundance of shoe choices on the market these days I would think one could make every effort to find a pair that fits, has the features and performance characteristics sought, falls within price range, and matches the rest of the bike.
I happened upon this concept casually deliberately this week. You see, I’ve been sporting considerable carbone over Fi’zi:k’s new shoe line ever since they were introduced (you might say I have a thing for shoes). So when a new pair of R3’s fell into my lap for number 1 I was forced to shift the Yellow Princesses over to number 3. The yellow decals and accents on the Serotta look awesome with the YP’s and the new R3’s are oh so sublime with the BMC. Splendid, indeed.
So I’ll put it to you, the Velominati. Does Rule #8 need amending? Are shoes equipment and not clothing? Do we, perhaps, need a new rule pertaining to shoe/bike matching (I think not but a suggestion might be in order). These are the things that keep the Keepers up at night.
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clearly my grasp of technology is as tenuous at best
@wiscot
Frank's stare just caused this to happen down by the Space Needle:
marko, points well taken, and even better yet is that BMC...wow, what a steed.
IMHO, Rule 8 stands, shoes are independent in our thoughtful considerations of both class and style. Franks pics pretty much sum it up, if its good enough for Jens, let alone Eddy, then its good enough for me.
BTW: am i the only one donning DMT's? They are fantastic shoes.
Your shoes should not be white unless you are at least a Cat 1 - or have done something of significance in the field. They should be seasonally correct (non-white only between Labour Day and Memorial Day). Below the Cat 1 threshold any non-white colourway or combo colourway is acceptable. Newbies, between Memorial and Labour Days, should wear black socks with black shoes and hope they gain proficiency on the bike before the shoe/sock combo has them mistaken for back waiters at an Italian eatery.
@Sam
You need to be logged in to upload or post photos...sorry.
@Souleur
Rode some DMT's for a while, and I think Pedale.Forchetta does as well. LOVED THEM but they were a tad wide for my pinner foot. I saw a reflection of my foot the other day and it was a fucking flipper. Unbelievable that a person can go through their entire life and not know that about themselves. Anyway, loved my DMTs.
To your point:
And here he is rockin' a pair of white ladies (also matched to kit).
I say, rock some black or white shoes and you're good, especially when you're trying to drop a doper.
@sgt
Those are fucking sweet, though. No Doubt.
@Marcus
I almost got those for the VMH, but they weren't made in a size 40.5. They're magically delicious.
When In doubt I always fall back on the final valid option of rule #8 for any color discussion: Black, Black, Black.
@frank
Wonderful. First time one of my posts gets quoted (by Fronk no less) and I sound like f'ing illetirate (sic). Take 2? "I personally have a penchant for silver shoes (aka Glass Slippers). They don't directly match my bike or any piece of my kit (except for one of my helmets). But they do deliberately casually match any piece of shinny metal on my bike, thus reinforcing the notion that shoes are in fact equipment." There. I fell much butter.
My main problem is I fuckin love Red. I got the Red Damsels cause they work with my feet. Also g
@RedRanger
By bike is 98% black and white with little bits of red. Helmet has red. It's part of that OCD thing I got.
@frank
Spot on.
@Marko, I don't know how you get 3 different sets of shoes dialed in. More power to you. I got me some beautiful Sidis early in the summer and getting the cleat dialed on one of them is driving me nuts. The day after a ride it feels like my leg wants to fall off at the hip. The experience has been akin to having a superhot but totally wacko girlfriend. I've gotten to the point where I am back in my old, black, not special Specialized shoes.