Vintage Red Wings

[RD.]

Wow, that's a lot of leather! Are you telling me that you don't have a comfy smelly old pair of trainers that you don't love to slip into once in a while, lol.

Typically only on warm summer days, otherwise it's almost always boots. And honestly RW are pretty much entry level if one is serious about their boots. In the US some of the premier boot makers in the Northwest charge $400-500 US and up, for their custom made boots. JK Boots - The Best Handmade Custom Boots
Frank's Boots (franksboots.com) Nicks Handmade Boots - Best Work Boots on the Market | Nicks Boots

And then you have the Viberg boots, made here in the Canadian Northwest. Classic AW23 – VIBERG
4 pairs of those would cost more than your bike did. lol

 

[esoxlucius]

VIBERG
4 pairs of those would cost more than your bike did. lol

Jesus, never mind the boots, four pairs of them damn slippers would cost more than my bike did!!!

Please don't tell me you have a $900 pair of slippers too? Lol.

 

[RD.]

Real men don't wear slippers.

 

[esoxlucius]

Real men don't wear slippers.

Not in Canada anyway, they can't afford them! lol.

And jjohnwm certainly ain't buying no slippers, not at any price, the cheapskate, lol. I heard he makes his slippers out of the skins of roadkill, lol.

 

[jjohnwm]

Had a pair of comfortable waterproof boots made by Caterpillar. Everytime I opened my locker fruit flies would show up

Yeah, my work boots attract flies...but they're house flies and bluebottles...

Jesus, never mind the boots, four pairs of them damn slippers would cost more than my bike did!!!

Your feet spend hours each day in your boots...but your butt only sits for a couple hours maybe on your bike. Footwear is one area where scrimping and cheaping out just doesn't make sense. The difference that quality, comfortable boots can make to a day on your feet has to be experienced to be believed.

Real men don't wear slippers.

I think slippers are essential for loafing around the house doing nothing.

If I ever try that, I might get a pair.

And jjohnwm certainly ain't buying no slippers, not at any price, the cheapskate, lol. I heard he makes his slippers out of the skins of roadkill, lol.

Well...yes and no...

I will spend money for good footwear; like RD. I am a Redwing fan and have worn nothing else for the past decade while on the job. Now fully retired, I still wear 'em just about daily except in the depths of winter. I actually picked up another pair when I was in the states recently, now that I no longer need the Canadian-gummint-approval stickers and patches and such. I prefer the pull-on style rather than the laced/zipped ones RD. wears; too lazy to bend over...

But...slippers? I don't wear slippers per se, but I have a few pairs of moccasins made from self-harvested deer and moose hides (no, not road-kill ) and stitched together by a local Metis lady who knows what she is doing. They're not $900 or even close to that, but they ain't cheap...and that's with me supplying the tanned leather for her to make them with. I have indoor and outdoor sets, so I suppose the indoor ones could be classified as manly slippers...

And, of course...Crocs are pretty general purpose wear around the yard in nice weather as well.

Being a cheapskate simply means saving your money to spend on the things that are important...

 

[esoxlucius]

Your feet spend hours each day in your boots...but your butt only sits for a couple hours maybe on your bike.

It seems we're both actually striving for perfect comfort, you for your feet, me for my arse!!

You've seen modern day racing bike saddles haven't you? One slip on those bad boys and you'll be disembowelled in quick order, lol.

A good comfy fully supporting saddle for a skinny arsed biker such as myself is worth its weight in gold.

I'm glad there are good quality saddles out there because if there wasn't I'd be sorely tempted to attach one of them there comfy boots you have to my bike and park my skinny arse in one of those. I suspect that would be a rather comfy ride, if not a bit smelly, and I'm pretty sure i'd soon get fed up of the flies too!! Lol.

 

[jjohnwm]

Well...I always assumed that those razor-thin, butt-crack-cleaving "racing" saddles were designed that way on purpose. You get on the bike...you dang sure can't sit on the supposed seat...so you race as fast as you can to your destination so that you can get off the miserable contraption...

 

[esoxlucius]

Us cyclists have a little secret up our sleeves, though actually that is incorrect, we have a little secret in our pants!! No, the conversation isn't about to get all weird, lol.

We have a back up plan to cope with the dodgy saddles in the form of a thick padded sponge insert in our cycling attire. There is a lot of science that goes into the padded material, its shape, and its positioning within the clothing.

A good saddle, along with a quality padded insert in your cycling shorts can make riding one of those bone rattling racing bikes as comfy as sitting in your armchair at home, only the scenery is different, lol.

 

[jjohnwm]

Us cyclists have a little secret up our sleeves, though actually that is incorrect, we have a little secret in our pants!! No, the conversation isn't about to get all weird, lol.

We have a back up plan to cope with the dodgy saddles in the form of a thick padded sponge insert in our cycling attire. There is a lot of science that goes into the padded material, its shape, and its positioning within the clothing.

A good saddle, along with a quality padded insert in your cycling shorts can make riding one of those bone rattling racing bikes as comfy as sitting in your armchair at home, only the scenery is different, lol.

Yeah, I'm sure it's not really that much of a secret to those around you...although I suspect that most bystanders must think that you're walking around wearing a loaded diaper...

 

[esoxlucius]

It's a running joke between us cyclists, of a certain age, we refer to ourselves as "MAMIL's". Middle aged men in lycra! Lol.

Sounds ridiculous doesn't it. Well sounding ridiculous is nothing compared to what we actual LOOK like! especially when we dismount and start walking around.

Cycling shoes are something to behold. Fantastic on the bike, you can really put some power down, and up, on the peddles because you're actually attached to them?

The front sole has a mechanism attached called a cleat and this is what "clips in" to the actual peddle. But it protrudes, it stands quite proud of the actual sole, and so walking on them becomes quite difficult, and ridiculous looking, especially when you add to the mix the rest of our attire, figure hugging lycra!

Once I start a ride I'm on the bike until i get back home, usually. This saves any embarrassment of dismounting half way through a ride and looking like a right plank.

But of course if you don't fuel up properly, or run out of liquids during a longer ride, then you have to stop at the shop to stock up, which I've had to do on occasion.

Imagine walking, no, waddling more like, through a store dressed in lycra. Trust me, it looks as ridiculous as it sounds, lol.

The saving grace is that those daft helmets we wear, along with our cycling glasses, mean that we are quite inconspicuous, from a facial point of view anyway, lol. So if you were to pass someone you knew they wouldn't recognise you anyway!

Sorry RD. Thread derailment on an epic scale...again! Lol.