"Why do millions of cyclists have to walk like ducks?": Could this "walkable cleat" revolutionise cycling shoe design?

Ever waddled across a slippery cafe floor amid a mid-ride coffee stop and questioned why road cycling shoes can be so impractical when doing any distance of walking? Well, one road.cc reader thinks he's come up with the solution — no, not switching to mountain bike pedals and cleats — instead, a new third shoe and cleat design to offer riders the same old road shoes and pedals we've been using for years, but with the added practicality of mountain bike cleats. Introducing the "walkable cleat"...

Designed with one very specific activity in mind, road cycling cleats and the shoe sole design they work with, aren't very practical before and after your pedalling. Step off the bike as you head back inside your house, or worse up steep stairs to your flat, or across that shop's smooth, slippery flooring and suddenly you'll begin that hobbling/waddle you've probably all perfected and don't even think about any more. It's that same clip-clopping shuffle that your office colleagues, family, friends and complete strangers can be so interested in too.

Or maybe you don't have that problem at all because you use mountain bike pedals and can walk untroubled by a cleat making your progress continually treacherous, loud and impractical? But, not wanting to have to use mountain bike cleats, as he has on his road bike for the past 30 years, road.cc reader Hugo Suy got in touch with a new "third design" of cycling shoe that he thinks could potentially bridge the gap and offer road cyclists the option of continuing to use the same pedals we've used up until now, just without all the "walking like ducks". 

Hugo's been trying to get the cycling industry to take notice for 10 years now and tells us being "as stubborn as a mule" means he just can't give the idea up. Now recently retired, he's got the time for his "project" and formalised his description of, as he sees it, the problem and solution, including the homemade "silly tests" you'll see throughout this article.

[Credit: Hugo Suy]

Having bought and ridden Sidi shoes for 25 years, he has long since wondered why road cycling soles and cleats are designed the way they are and if, rather than simply switching to mountain bike shoes and pedals, cycling brands could offer us roadies a third type of sole?

As he puts it: "Why do millions and millions of cyclists have to walk like ducks when shoes are made for only a few thousands of competition cyclists?"

"For several years I've tried to explain why we need a third type of sole for cycling shoes so we can continue with the race pedals we've used until now," Hugo tells us. "Shoe manufacturers (only) have to make a third type of injection mould and it's done!"

"So, if you can convince a cycling shoe manufacturer to make the third type of sole, I'll be very glad and I'll buy immediately, even if it isn't Sidi..."

 We thought we'd brainstorm what cycling shoe brands would probably say about this design. 

We imagine there would be comments about extra weight from the added material, an often non-negotiable area when designing cycling kit. Then, we'd assume, any brand would also point out their range of mountain bike shoes that essentially do the same thing as what Hugo suggests, something like Sidi's MTB Eagle 10 for example.

However, during his decade-long pursuit of the design, Hugo has put it to figures in the cycling industry, a former Ritchey employee apparently telling him he liked the design, while another suggested it sounded like "the perfect gravel shoe". Hugo also contacted two French brands Véloland and Culture Vélo to see if they'd make him a few pairs, but to no avail.

Back in 2016, Speedplay released its Zero Aero Walkable cleats which we reviewed as a "much-improved cleat that makes walking easier and reduces clogging problems", however of course the Speedplay pedal design, while having the same issues when trying to walk in a shoe featuring its cleat, is different to the three-bolt Shimano SPD-SL-style cleat we're talking about here.

Likewise, brands like CHPT3 and Adidas have brought walkable cycling shoes to the market through the Transit 2.0 and Velosamba, although both of those are aimed at more casual riding or commuting, and both call upon SPD compatibility.

Ultimately, Hugo just wants to keep using his road shoes, with road pedals and cleats, but would quite like to be able to walk when off the bike. 

We contacted Sidi to ask if we could put this to a designer to see what they think, but were told the brand didn't want to get involved with this one. So, it seems, Hugo's walkable cleat-less cycling life will continue... unless any brands fancy hooking him up with a few pairs of his own designs?

What do you reckon? Is there any need for the "third design"? Would you buy it? Or is it a solution that already exists in the form of mountain bike pedals and shoes? As ever, let us know what you think in the comments...