Driv'n Shoes (From the Barefoot'n thread)
 

As Yucca pointed out there is no substitute for a good pair of driving shoes. As an advocate for bare foot driving I am curious what shoes everyone uses, keep in mind I'm asking about driving shoes. Love the feel of the pedals beneath my toes but have heard that driving shoes bring about an even more commanding feel.

I've got a pair of Pumas in brown. Very comfortable and the feet just dance on the pedals. The big difference is no stubbed toes on quick gear changes.

I tried getting a pair of Pumas yesterday. Couldn't fit in them. Size 11 was cut for about a B wide foot. My quadruple D would not fit. :lol:

I wear Chuck Taylors or Vans slip-ons for work, play, motoring....they're light, comfy, flat, breathe well and aren't huge!:thumbsup: That's all I want.:cool:

I have these:

http://i24.ebayimg.com/02/i/07/13/9f/c3_1_sbl.JPG
http://i7.ebayimg.com/01/i/07/11/08/4f_1_sbl.JPG

They don't make this particular model anymore. I hear great things about Piloti's, but I cannot justify $100 just for driving shoes.

I've had a pair of G-Force nomex low-top racing shoes for four or five years that I only use for autocrossing. They fit great and allow for easy transition to left foot braking, but if I wore them for much besides racing, the soles would wear out very quickly.

For trips and casual driving, I've been wearing a pair of casual leather loafer/moccasin style driving shoes from LL Bean. I wear them without socks, they are very comfortable, and have stood up to years of wear, both in and out of the car. When they wear out, I'll get another pair, they were around $80 IIRC.

I just bought a pair of Piloti Spyders a couple of months ago. I was a bit leary of spending $75-80 online for a pair of shoes that may not fit correctly or feel correctly, but I found a place selling them for 30% off, and picked them up for less than $60. My feet are still getting used to them, but for a driving/racing(autocross)/street shoe, it seems to be a good choice so far.

-Keith

G16's

http://www.piloti.com/prod_images/large/PR13-7.jpg

I haven't gotten a pair yet, but I hope to get some Puma's soon. I tried getting them a while ago, but couldn't find them.

-Cody

I bought some ADDIDAS/Goodyear a couple of months ago in anticipation of my MINI. They are wonderful, though I think next time around I will get Piloti's. I picked them up on sale at Journey's in the mall for $55 and they are comfortable enough to wear on occasion. I did a 1,500 mile road trip this weekend and these were the only shoes I wore (except at the wedding) and was comfortable almost the whole time. They begin to hurt the back of my right heel after extended wear, but that's not what they are designed for.

All that aside, I think that for HARD driving, it is almost essential to have a good pair of shoes. Something as thin and compact as your foot will allow, something with good rubber soles that won't slip off the pedals until you want them to, shoes that have areas designed for heel/toe shifting, etc.

It makes a world of a difference going from my dressy shoes I wear for work into these. My size 11/11.5 foot has issues with the tips of shoes not having enough room, my ADDIDAS fixed that problem though!

Drew

i wear an old pair of vans that's about 10 years old, a pair of classic adidas, or an old pair of pumas.

All have slim soles, lightweight and leather.

Ok, where do you guys get your shoes? I looked at puma.com but they have NO stores in Ohio....figures. Anyway, I would order them online from puma.com, that isn't a problem....but I obviously need to try some on first. I'm open to other options as well. Puma, goodyear, Piloti's, etc. but what I like about Puma is that they are driving shoes, but also can be worn to run in the store real quick, etc.

-Cody

I like indoor soccer shoes for driving. Wrestling shoes also make great driving shoes. Very light and snug fitting.

eBay :thumbsup:

i got mine from here... im local so just drove up. You really need to
try them out first.

http://www.northstarmotorsports.com/...ing_shoes.html

Anyone ever use the RBK ones? There only $20. :cool:

http://www.finishline.com/store/cata...ategoryId=null

-Cody

I actually have the RBK's in Black and white. They have held up pretty good but, I didnt pay $20. (Kicking myself in the butt!!!!) I also have a pair of Sketchers that are pull-ons that feel just like the Puma's but cheaper!

So would you recommend me trying the RBK's? I reallllly don't have money to spend on Puma's or Piloti's...$70-80. I would much rather spend $20 to "see" if I like them.

And another good thing about them is that they are at Finish Line, which means I can run down to the mall and try them on...to see which size, then order them off of the website for cheap! :razz:

-Cody

I have some pumas, but is there an actual puma driving shoe? I need to try driving barefoot though. I've missed wearing my flip flops...

Yes, Puma have several driving shoes. They have a rally shoe, F1 shoe, and the more casual driving shoe (like the Speed Cat's).

-Cody

HPUdrew, i also have the addidas goodyear shoes, and fidn them to be very comfortorable, in fact there my day to day shoe. personally i wouldnt recommend them for a true driving shoe, because theres still a little too much, like shoe between your foot and the pedal, but they are very comfortorabl from my experience, and still are a decent driving shoe.

though id also like to say im not completely sure there true intent is for driving, i think they are running shoes (though ive found runnign sheos tend to make fine driving shoes) and thay may explain why i found them a bit lacking for "driving"

Personally, I really find driving in the wrong shoes to be very uncomfortable. I own a lot of leather sole formal shoes and driving in these can be difficult at times.

Normally I drive in a pair of Puma Speedcats (my preferred shoes to drive in), a pair of leather Geox driving loafers (look a little bit more dressy but not quite as comfortable as the Speedcats), or a pair of old beat-up Asics running shoes (very comfortable but still not up to my "Speedcat" standard).

I've often debated how people who have to dress formally for work drive manual cars. Sometimes I feel like a bit of a weirdo, but I almost always put on a pair of my "preferred" shoes (above) before I'm about to drive and change into a formal pair of shoes in the parking lot....

I'm lusting after a pair of tods driving loafers (despite reviews stating that the rubber nubbed soles wear out quite quickly) - I have a feeling these may be my "ultimate" driving shoe...

If you can justify $150 for a shift knob, you can justify the shoes. Remember that you use two parts of your body to motor: your feet and your hands. You've got the right tool for your hands, now get the tools you need for your feet! :):):)

Those GoodYear's look pretty neat though!

Those look nice, especially for a blue MINI! :thumbsup:

But I think I will go ahead and order a replacement pair of the grey/black Monaco's. If the quality is still the same as my last pair that I bought in 2002 and am only now replacing, they should last 3-4 years.

In all honesty, the left shoe is in great shape, but it seems my right foot is made of lead because the sole of the right shoe is severely worn down! :nod::nod::nod:

http://www.piloti.com/prod_images/large/PRO5-1.jpg

^^ yah, the blue compliments the color of my car. :) i like those suede
Monaco's too.

Does anybody know of any place discounting Piloti's? I just looked at about 20 stores and all of them had identical pricing for the Monaco's. I'll just order them directly from Piloti to make sure I don't get slowed down with a small tuner not having my size.. . .

Occasionally Speedgear has discounts on some versions...maybe 10%. I got mine direct from Piloti. Very quick service and a terrific shoe.