out with the old and in with the new. well, it is not the new year yet and it actually felt more like christmas. let me explain.
my cycling shoes (both mountain and road) have been wearing out. I have been reluctant to get new ones thinking "they are not that bad" and "new shoes are so expensive". I don't tend to pay alot for footwear. My past shoes have been either lower quality or purchased on clearance. My feet are a bit small also, so it is hard to come by my size. anyway, I got an email from georgena terry (of Terry Cycles). She wanted me to know that they had shoes on clearance. They also happened to be Sidi. Chris is a big Sidi shoe fan and has been nudging me to purchase a pair, but they are not cheap. I went to Racer's Cycle Service because he tends to carry top end cycling accessories which includes Sidi shoes. I tried on some to get a feel for what size I might wear. Most of what he had was a bit big but it gave me a good idea on what would fit. Luckily georgena was dumping exactly what I needed. After a couple years and 100's of miles the soul's of my Nike's have been slowly separating from the body of the shoe. Each shoe also had a whole that was gradually getting bigger where my big toes were even though I do tend to keep my toe nails trimmed.
I have not had a chance to try these Sidi's yet. I plan on taking them on their maiden voyage tomorrow. Don't make fun of me, but they are actually Tri shoes which is why the velcro is backwards. Inspite of being made for triathletes which I am not, I think they will be good. After several centuries and countless races, these Nike's were ripping on the lateral side and loosing their stability. The velcro was also old and would not stick like it should. I loved these shoes. They have been my favorites to this point.
I wore the new Sidi's in St. George this past weekend. They were not too bad. The first 10 minutes of my ride they were a bit uncomfortable. After that they were fine until about the third hour then the hurt my toes. I think they just need some 'breaking in."

On a side note, subaru may not be doing the sponsorship next year...anyone want to hook me up for 2008? I plan on riding hard and racing as much as this past year.