I try to drive barefooted whenever I take long trips, my big feet tend to bind between the pedals too often. Too much unintentional heel-n-toe!

Sandals or 'walking sneakers' for me otherwise, but I am stuck driving the truck if I am wearing work boots, the few times I drove the Mini with them on I was having a time trying not to mash all the pedals at once.

 

Mighty - the shoes you posted while great are not really what most people would consider a driving shoe. A driving shoe is something you can drive in, walk into the mall, walk into the store, etc with as well...everything you do while at stops during driving...I have a pair of racing shoes and they are a pita using as driving shoes as they are not very comfortable outside of driving and are a pain to get off an on each time you want to get out of the car. Now for racing, auto-x, etc these are perfect and I would not use a driving shoe, but a real racing shoe.

The MINI shoes i find to be gorgeous, very very stylish, european looking....and they don't have that hey look at me i'm a wrestler look. I personally will be buying atleast one pair of these when they are released and find them a million times more stylish then the traditional racing boot...but then again...different strokes for different folks...if we all wore the same shoes it would be awful boring.

 

actually casey, they are produced and technically called, "driving shoes".

The Mini Puma's are the ugliest shoes this side of a sheepskin boot.
Who thought those would look retailable? ACK

And of all companies, PUMA who already makes a fantastic driving shoe.

Sorry I have to disagree with you. Mini Shoes = Horrid

 

Many thanks for information and discussion, while I was out of MCO...
In fact, my pc had some problem, but anyway, many people put a lot of attention on footgear! Yes, why not! There's a simple reason. Driving shoes are the device to transfer your driving passion to your love one, MINI.

 

Go to http://store.puma.com, and they have an excellent selection of driving shoes in their motorsport section. The key is to have a low-cut shoe, with a nice, rounded heel, and narrow sole, so you can heel & toe easily, without having a problem with the bottom of the shoe catching on the floormats, or pedals. My shoes are Speed Cats, and they're excellent driving shoes, and very comfortable to walk in as well.

BCNU,
Rob in Dago

 

Driving shoes!?!? And here I thought driving gloves were the dorkiest thing this side of a Pablo Cruise boxed set.

 

>>I find it perfectly acceptable to wear my Chuck Taylors. lol

I'm all about driving with a pair of Chucks on!

 

>> Go to http://store.puma.com, and they have an excellent selection of driving shoes in their motorsport section. The key is to have a low-cut shoe, with a nice, rounded heel, and narrow sole, so you can heel & toe easily, without having a problem with the bottom of the shoe catching on the floormats, or pedals. My shoes are Speed Cats, and they're excellent driving shoes, and very comfortable to walk in as well.
>>
>> BCNU,
>> Rob in Dago

Hi Vanwall,
Thanks for the info.
I visited there. Yes, there are lots of nice driving shoes!

 

I generally have black with a white stripe Pumas, so I like the top pair. That's my next buy, BTW. I've worn almost nothing except Pumas for years, except for dress shoes. keep an eye on Eastbay.com - they have sales on Speed Cats every so often.

As for driving gloves, I used to use string-backs when I was doing a lot of twisties in my old 1275S, and now that I'm back to that kinda thing, I got a pair of driving gloves again. I don't give a s't what other's say, I like 'em, so I'll use 'em.

Have fun with your new shoes!

BCNU,
Rob in Dago

 

Anything by adidas!

 

so...what i said is what "most people would consider a driving shoe" and to most people a racing boot is not an option...now the pumas that Luthier posted would be what "most people would consider a driving shoe"

Your totally entitled to think the MINI shoes are ugly, just as I am entitled to love them...same as the car color argument - different strokes for different folks.

Now my point about the shoes you mentioned is most people would not be happy with them as an everyday driving shoe....for autox yes, but for normal driving i don't think they would like them as most would want a shoe they can wear around as well and not have to change each time you get in and out of the car....now some might not car and be in love with the feel of the true racing shoes which is great too.

Why I posted what i said is i didn't want to see everyone run out and drop 125 bucks on a sparco/puma racing shoe and find out it doesn't fit their needs.

Cheerio Bud
Casey

>>actually casey, they are produced and technically called, "driving shoes".
>>
>>The Mini Puma's are the ugliest shoes this side of a sheepskin boot.
>>Who thought those would look retailable? ACK
>>
>>And of all companies, PUMA who already makes a fantastic driving shoe.
>>
>>Sorry I have to disagree with you. Mini Shoes = Horrid

 

I have two pairs of Donald J Pliner drivers; one black and one red. They are the most comfortable shoes I've ever owned...I bought them locally (on sale); here is one website Pliner Drivers; there are many others.

 

Puma Monster mesh... very comfy....

Speed Cats... i will have to say, they are very wearable... daily ... for even a stroll through the mall... but the NEW Monster Mesh is even MORE Comfy... not fireretardant though.

The Speedcats come in low, mid and high.

I recommend anyone shopping for a driving shoe, to try a pair on before y'all "run out and drop 125 bucks on a sparco/puma racing shoe and find out it doesn't fit their needs".... DUH


this thread is all about driving shoes anyhow... and so far we have seen 4 or 5 TRUE driving shoes.

A word about barefoot driving, some places it is not legal. I remember once in PHX I was reprimanded by CHP about it. SHEESH! I was driving at a higher rate of speed anyway.

Good Luck and Enjoy the Drive.

 

>>Puma Monster mesh... very comfy....
>>
>>Speed Cats... i will have to say, they are very wearable... daily ... for even a stroll through the mall... but the NEW Monster Mesh is even MORE Comfy... not fireretardant though.
>>
>>The Speedcats come in low, mid and high.
>>
>>I recommend anyone shopping for a driving shoe, to try a pair on before y'all "run out and drop 125 bucks on a sparco/puma racing shoe and find out it doesn't fit their needs".... DUH

No need to be rude! - for alot of people it is hard to be able to try them as they don't live in a city with a race shop and most footlockers don't carry these unfortuntely (would be great though wouldn't it?) Thus why i posted that.


>>
>>
>>this thread is all about driving shoes anyhow... and so far we have seen 4 or 5 TRUE driving shoes.

Yup - there has been several but I still don't consider the shoes you posted in your first post on this thread to be what most people would want to use as a daily driving shoe.


>>
>>A word about barefoot driving, some places it is not legal. I remember once in PHX I was reprimanded by CHP about it. SHEESH! I was driving at a higher rate of speed anyway.

Really? Everything I have read including some laws in some states(not all) is that this is purely a myth...apprently PHX it isn't...thanks for the heads up...I know in both MN and TX it is legal.

>>
>>Good Luck and Enjoy the Drive.
>>

 

Get a pair of Adidas Gazelles. These have to be one of my all time favorite shoes. They are part of Adidas original line and the shoe dates back to the 60s. Very comfortable, flat bottomed, vanilla tread pattern (which makes it good on the pedals), like Converse, they come in a variety of colors....and they're not very expensive either.

Check them out
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/harputsa...dgazshoes.html

Erik

 

>>>>Puma Monster mesh... very comfy....
>>>>
>>>>Speed Cats... i will have to say, they are very wearable... daily ... for even a stroll through the mall... but the NEW Monster Mesh is even MORE Comfy... not fireretardant though.
>>>>
>>>>The Speedcats come in low, mid and high.
>>>>
>>>>I recommend anyone shopping for a driving shoe, to try a pair on before y'all "run out >>>>and drop 125 bucks on a sparco/puma racing shoe and find out it doesn't fit their >>>>needs".... DUH
>>>>

>>No need to be rude! - for alot of people it is hard to be able to try them as they don't live >>in a city with a race shop and most footlockers don't carry these unfortuntely (would be >>great though wouldn't it?) Thus why i posted that.


Actually that's a good point Casey - I know someone who did drop some serious cash on driving shoes only to find out that they're feet were too wide to fit in them comfortably. Not everyone can try on different riving shoes. I know if I didn't live in a major city I'd be out of luck when it comes to trying on 99% of shoes I'm usually in the market for.

_________________

 

My choice

# 1 Puma speedcats they are fantastic soo comfy and perfect for heal and toe...

# 2 Pilotis very comfortable but a little bit clunky compared to the speedcats

Now these ones are mostly for the streets and thats Ok... they do look the part thou..

peter

 

I would go with th wrestling boots that is what i use in our race car and they cost alot less than the alpinestars .... un less u really want a nambrand driving shoe... otherwise i use adidas and they work great in the wet or dry ... they look good to . thats my opinion

 

>>No need to be rude! - for alot of people it is hard to be able to try them as they don't live in a city with a race shop and most footlockers don't carry these unfortuntely (would be great though wouldn't it?) Thus why i posted that.

race shop? I just found Sparcos AND Speedcats in a shoe store in the mall!

they are very popular.

I say again... Try them on... before you buy them.

Of course the shoe store I found them in was neither payless or FootLocker, it was a little more high end than either.
The Speedcats in dark brown are awesome... good looking leather finish, fire retardant... but then again you can fire retard any article of clothing with the flame retardant solution. I fire retarded a bunch of Ultraman Monster costumes once, believe it or not.

Racing shoes have the smaller sole, rounded heel, which make the heel/toe driving more comfortable. If you are used to going barefoot, you will feel more control with a good racingshoe, it is millimeeter's of material between your foot and the peddles.

 

PS - Low Cut Speedcats are under $100

My Cole Hahns cost more!
My Oakley Flip Flops cost nearly that much!
A good pair of Nikes, Addidas, Puma, D&G cost more

 

On some show on MTV they said the law saying it was illegal to drive barefoot was a myth...

 

tell that to the AZHP that yanked me off the road.. but I did say I was young...
so that could have been as long as ( EDITED DUE TO SHOCKING NUMBER ) years ago.

 

hey mighty - don't edit those shocking numbers - they are fun to see :smile: :smile:

The speedcat low cuts I could see making a great driving shoe, but I just can't see using a boot - i've tried and i'm typically pretty over the top with car stuff and they were too much of a hassle. Speedcats are great shoes though.

I have never seen a driving or racing shoe in a store outside of a few race shops I knew in MN. This included the mall of america though been prolly 2 years since i've been there. Considering i've lived in rural MN and now rural TX there isn't a whole lot of stores around to see these products in so you end up having to order online and get a few different pairs and send back the ones you don't want - but have to find a place that has a return policy that won't send you through loops.

hmmm...maybe we should bring back jelly shoes or aqua socks(the all-weather driving shoe)

sorry but i have to ask - why did you fire retard some monster suits? and why do you need a 100 dollar pair of flip flops? do they massage your feet? :smile: :smile:

 

>>
>>race shop? I just found Sparcos AND Speedcats in a shoe store in the mall!

 

>>sorry but i have to ask - why did you fire retard some monster suits?
Well... If you HAVE to ask, they were monster suits for the bad bad bad american version of Ultraman made in 93... Well fire retarding them was like an extra bit of insurance for the performer inside... if an explosion went off wrong and sent some flares into it/on it... It would not catch fire. Neato eh?

>>>and why do you need a 100 dollar pair of flip flops?
Cuz they are Nice and they are MY feet!