Winter Boots Advice

[crazyjoe101]

Having just posted asking about overshoes, I've looked at my finances and decided I can make room for a pair of winter boots.

I currently run SPDs on both my road bike and my mountain bike, but have noticed that the top of my foot is very painful after a 60mi road ride and I'm not sure if this is a lack of shoe stiffness issue?
In short I'm wondering if a 'mountain bike' boot would be suitable for road riding over distances of around 60 miles. It would be nice if I could have shoes which work with both of my bikes and not have to replace the pedals on my road bike, and I've heard many road cyclist use 'MTB' winter boots.

I'll rarely use the boots in below 0 temperatures as I'm not mountain biking at the moment, due to only being able to accomodate one bike at university. My absolute maximum is £150, but I've seen a lot of praise for the £100 Northwave Celcius and £109 Shimano MW81 boots on Wiggle and at the moment I am leaning towards the Shimano boots.

Does anyone have any advice about boots and pedal types in general or any recomendations for a specific pair of boots?

Thanks.

 

[Panter]

I used to suffer badly from cold, painful feet in the Winter.
Finally resolved it (well, mostly) with a pair of Shimano winter boots. They've got a neoprene bit that goes up over your ankle, are very thick and warm and did work well.
I still used to get cold feet if it was well below zero, but even then it used to fend it off for an hour or so.
Not sure what ones they are, but if you're interested, I'll have a look when I get home.

(I use M520 "mtb" pedals on all my bikes)

 

[phil_hg_uk]

Having just posted asking about overshoes, I've looked at my finances and decided I can make room for a pair of winter boots.
I'll rarely use the boots in below 0 temperatures as I'm not mountain biking at the moment, due to only being able to accomodate one bike at university. My absolute maximum is £150, but I've seen a lot of praise for the £100 Northwave Celcius and £109 Shimano MW81 boots on Wiggle and at the moment I am leaning towards the Shimano boots.

Does anyone have any advice about boots and pedal types in general or any recomendations for a specific pair of boots?

Thanks.

I can recommend the Shimano MW81 as I have these, I found other boots to big for the pedals on my road bike but these are fine.

 

[crazyjoe101]

Not sure what ones they are, but if you're interested, I'll have a look when I get home.

(I use M520 "mtb" pedals on all my bikes)

No worries, but it would be good to know if they are the MW81s or not. I also use M520 pedals on my rosd bike, but have the default SPDs which came with the Rockrider 8.1
Also, have you tried a thick pair of wool socks, or two pairs of thinner wool socks for the longer rides? Wool and or layering does wonders for warmth.

I can recommend the Shimano MW81 as I have these, I found other boots to big for the pedals on my road bike but these are fine.

Thanks for the info, I assume then that you also use SPDs on the road? I'm beginning to think that the pain in the top of the foot could be a simple muscle ache after a long ride since I'm not used to riding as far as 60mi.

 

[phil_hg_uk]

No worries, but it would be good to know if they are the MW81s or not. I also use M520 pedals on my rosd bike, but have the default SPDs which came with the Rockrider 8.1
Also, have you tried a thick pair of wool socks, or two pairs of thinner wool socks for the longer rides? Wool and or layering does wonders for warmth.

Thanks for the info, I assume then that you also use SPDs on the road? I'm beginning to think that the pain in the top of the foot could be a simple muscle ache after a long ride since I'm not used to riding as far as 60mi.

Yes SPD's 520 pedals like everyone else, my "normal" shoe size is a UK 9 my MW81's are EU size 45 compared to my specialized shoes that are a size 44 and I can get a pair of DeFeet Woolie Boolie socks inside comfortably

 

[potsy]

Another winter boot user here, I will use them for pretty much the next 5 months now for all riding.

Mine are the Shimamo MW80's, expensive but will last a good few years and are one of the best things I have bought cycling wise, I went a size bigger from my normal 'summer' shoes and they were a perfect fit.

 

[crazyjoe101]

Yes SPD's 520 pedals like everyone else, my "normal" shoe size is a UK 9 my MW81's are EU size 45 compared to my specialized shoes that are a size 44 and I can get a pair of DeFeet Woolie Boolie socks inside comfortably

My normal shoe size seems to be around EU 45 but every shoe varies. My current cycling shoes are too big at EU 47 (I have no idea why I went for that size). I have a pair of DeFeet socks somewhere and they're great; if only I could find them. I'll probably go for a 46 so I can wear thick wool socks if the need arises and hopefully still get away with a thin pair for slightly warmer riding, I think Wiggle allows returns for size though so it shouldn't be a huge problem.

Another winter boot user here, I will use them for pretty much the next 5 months now for all riding.

Mine are the Shimamo MW80's, expensive but will last a good few years and are one of the best things I have bought cycling wise, I went a size bigger from my normal 'summer' shoes and they were a perfect fit.

As far as I remember, the MW80s are the MW81's predecessor.

I'm going to continue to check any more replies to this thread which could change my mind but I've more or less decided to get a pair of Shimano MW81s tonight. My thanks to everyone who has replied so far.

 

[Paul99]

I've got the Northwave Celsius and just wouldn't even bother trying any others. For £100 I promise you they will rank as the best bit of cycling kit you own.

 

[Panter]

I've just Googled the MW80's, they do look exactly like the ones I have but will post back this evening if I find otherwise. I bought them 2nd hand off a mate, but I'm sure that when I researched them first, they were about that price point so fairly certain it's them
I do wear merino socks with them, my trouble is that all the cycling shoes/boots I've tried so far don't really fit properly. My shoe size is 11-11.5, wide fit, and manufacturers just don't seem to cater for those of us with full size feet!!
I'm sure that's the main cause of my problems, if my feet had a little more room to breathe they'd probably be OK.
In fact, on the very rare occasion that I wear walking boots and use flat pedals, I don't get any discomfort at all so it does seem to be a sizing issue in my case.
The Shimano's have been the best so far though, in fact I'm almost looking forward to Winter so that I can wear them again!

 

[Dogtrousers]

I've got the Northwave Celsius and just wouldn't even bother trying any others. For £100 I promise you they will rank as the best bit of cycling kit you own.

Another happy Northwave Celsius user here.

On REALLY cold days, I also use those one-use footwarmer thingies you can get from Decathlon and other outdoor places.

 

[BigAl68]

I have the northwave Fahrenheit boots which are the spd-sl version and they are amazing. Can't recommend them enough and the Celsius are the same boot with a MTB sole.

 

[ACS]

I use Specilized BG Defroster Cycling Boots with SPD cleats for my 45 minute commute in the winter. Because I had a limited budget at the time and my LBS had them on offer I took the plunge because shoe and overshoe combination were not holding back the elements. That was 3 winters ago and I will be digging them out very soon if this morning’s commute is anything to go by. I have also used them successfully on 100 and 200 km winter Audax rides.

The boots have proved to be excellent value for money. I use normal socks to about freezing point and thermal socks for the more bracing winter mornings. I have used them down to about -9 deg C with a pair of overshoes (I live in NE Scotland)

My only criticism relates to heavy rain. The neoprene inner boot becomes saturated very quickly and the water ingresses into the boot. Drying the boots out can take some time. As a cost effective solution I use SealSkin waterproof socks on the rare occasion I venture out into very inclement conditions.

If I had the budget I would certainly invest in a Gore-Tex based boot but one has to cut ones cloth accordingly.

Because I have broad feet I'm not able to wear some Brands of cycling shoes. I would recommend trying some boots on with thicker socks before makingh a final decision. You may also have to go up a size or two depending on the brand.

Some comments here

 

[potsy]

Those MW81's are £99 at Chain Reaction if you use voucher code 'ten'

 

[jay clock]

+1 for Celcius. Comfy, warm and avoids the faff of putting overshoes on. Get larger than needed and wear extra socks if you have chilly feet like me

 

[crazyjoe101]

Wow, now I'm split between the Celcius and MW81s.
Thanks for all the replies.