Lake Wide Cycling Shoes - Experiences?

[Oregonic]

I'm tired of fighting narrow shoes, and have been leaning towards picking up some Lake MTB shoes in a wide fit. Unfortunately, no one seems to carry them in a retail store, so I'm resolved to buying online, and trying to gather a bit of info before I do.

Anybody else out there with fat flippers try these out? If so, what specific model or last did you get? Did you like them? How'd they fit compared to other brands? Thanks in advance for any advice you can give...

[ultraman6970]

Bont

[Oregonic]

They were on my list as well, but they're even harder to find in a retail store than the Lake's...

[JStonebarger]

I've had Lake road shoes in the past. About the widest cycling shoe I've owned and very comfortable. I bought some of their mtb shoes in wide recently for my partner -- she has bunions on both feet that are painful in narrow shoes -- she absolutely loves her Lakes.

As you said, they can be hard to find in stores. I bought my partner's online, though, and got lucky with the sizing. Still, I think most online retailers are good about returns -- they pretty much have to be if they expect to sell shoes.

[ultraman6970]

True :( u can get a new pair for 100 bucks in merlin cycles uk.

[abr5]

I've had Lake road shoes in the past. About the widest cycling shoe I've owned and very comfortable. I bought some of their mtb shoes in wide recently for my partner -- she has bunions on both feet that are painful in narrow shoes -- she absolutely loves her Lakes.
.
Yup, I have a pair of CX237s in normal width, but they are still a good 3/8" wider than Empires, R321's, probably 3/16-1/4"+ wider than S-Works 6 for size 44's.. Might want to try on some normal width lakes if you haven't already, just to see if they are wide enough as is.

[adrien]

Ha! Flippers...

Mine are big. I have both wide and very high feet. As a reference, Sidis feel like flip-flops, and I can barely close them. I can't even close Specialized shoes in my size.

I found Lakes a couple years ago. First off, they have a lot of volume. Second, they can be had in very stiff MTB shoes -- in fact, their higher end MTB shoes are the same as their road shoes but just have a rubber "pontoon" glued to the bottom. Third, I really like real leather and a Boa. Once broken in, they are incredible.

And, if you keep an eye out, they can be had cheap. They aren't patent like Sidis, but the quality is very high and they do last well if you take care of them (again, they are leather, so a little waterproofing spray after cleaning, plus a little polish).

I have MX 237s. Great, great shoes. Retail for $300 and can be had for less than half of that.

[kingpin75s]

Wide feet here. Only run Sidi Mega shoes and do have a pair of wide Lake Winter cycling boots. Have not worn them much, but they fit nice right out of box so should be good as they will be wider than the standard stuff. Good luck!

[Oregonic]

True :( u can get a new pair for 100 bucks in merlin cycles uk.

Dang - you got me excited to try them out - but they have very few sizes, no where near what I need. Bummer.

[Oregonic]

Wide feet here. Only run Sidi Mega shoes and do have a pair of wide Lake Winter cycling boots. Have not worn them much, but they fit nice right out of box so should be good as they will be wider than the standard stuff. Good luck!

I've had Sidi Megas for years as well. I spill out over the edges of the soles. I've kept them because...

1. they were pretty 'spensive (boo)...
2. they've been incredibly durable (yay)...

But, they've never really been comfy for me. I get some numbness on long rides, and I have to throw in a shoe stretcher every time I get home to make sure they'll fit on the next ride.

[ultraman6970]

Which number??? I see they have pretty much almost all the sizes from like 36 up to 50 in blitz

Dang - you got me excited to try them out - but they have very few sizes, no where near what I need. Bummer.

[ColonelJLloyd]

My Lake CX170s are wide. They've been great and I will replace them with Lake most likely. I use SPDs.

[Oregonic]

Which number??? I see they have pretty much almost all the sizes from like 36 up to 50 in blitz

There are about 3 sizes total available in the MTB shoes, from what I can find.

[ctcyclistbob]

Another vote for Lake wide shoes. They fit my feet great, are very comfortable, and seem to last.

It's nice that we have some wide shoe options in both cycling and non-cycling footwear these days. It hasn't always been this way.

[deechee]

Could never find Lakes here, pointless although their measuring chart was super detailed if I remember correctly.

2E Asics, I'm very happy with my Shimano R320's in Wide but the Bontrager RxLs I have are even wider (but warmer - a LOT warmer).

[donevwil]

Lake all the way, only 50 wide out there. Wider than Sidi and Shimano without the heel being too wide. Try Nashbar (http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/CategoryDisplay?storeId=10053&catalogId=10052&langId=-1&orderBy=&searchTerm=&beginIndex=0&pageSize=16&categoryId=204700&metaData=bWZOYW1lX250a19jczpMYWtl), they have some CX-160s for $70. I bought some 175s from them a few years ago for $50 just to try and ended up riding them every day. Later picked up some 331s moldables for $125. Lakes fit me true to size. I'm a 15 EEEE in walking shoes and a 50 "very" wide in cycling shoes.

[54ny77]

15 EEEE? Dang! Do you work under a tent by chance?

http://f.tqn.com/y/netforbeginners/1/W/d/a/Tarna-clownshoes.jpg

;)

Lake all the way, only 50 wide out there. Wider than Sidi and Shimano without the heel being too wide. Try Nashbar (http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/CategoryDisplay?storeId=10053&catalogId=10052&langId=-1&orderBy=&searchTerm=&beginIndex=0&pageSize=16&categoryId=204700&metaData=bWZOYW1lX250a19jczpMYWtl), they have some CX-160s for $70. I bought some 175s from them a few years ago for $50 just to try and ended up riding them every day. Later picked up some 331s moldables for $125. Lakes fit me true to size. I'm a 15 EEEE in walking shoes and a 50 "very" wide in cycling shoes.

[doomridesout]

I'm a fan. I don't need a wide size but I can't do the Italian dress shoe fit of most brands regular sizes either. Switched to Lake CX237s and MX237s last year and I'm very satisfied.

[donevwil]

15 EEEE? Dang! Do you work under a tent by chance?

http://f.tqn.com/y/netforbeginners/1/W/d/a/Tarna-clownshoes.jpg

;)

Put some cleats on those bad boys and I'm in.

My feet are the right size for me at 6'5" & 240#. I have a 6'7" friend who wears 17 narrows and isn't in the NBA, talk about a hard time finding shoes.

[ultraman6970]

Ops sorry... my bad :(

There are about 3 sizes total available in the MTB shoes, from what I can find.

[wildboar]

I'm tired of fighting narrow shoes, and have been leaning towards picking up some Lake MTB shoes in a wide fit.

Competitive Cyclist has the Shimano XC90's wides on clearance right now if you are looking for a MTB shoe. They fit the same as the R320/321.

Shimano road R321's are also on clearance on Competitive Cyclist and Excel. Easy returns.

Lakes would be nice in a wide but I've never seen them in a store. I was told by a shop that Bont won't even let you return a special order wide if it didn't work out. No thanks.

[Coaster]

I had some Sidi Megas that I liked and switched to a wide specialized (that feel narrower) once the sidis died. Was thinking about a high volume giro - any feedback on how those widths compare to the megas?

[Likes2ridefar]

Love lake wide 237. I also have the wide cross model 3 series. They fit narrower than the 237, and it says that on lakes site.

[owly]

ThePro'sCloset on Ebay currently has a very large stock range of new Lakes at what I feel are fairly good prices for new shoes.

You might find something there.

[Gern]

I have the 237 wide road shoes. They are more comfortable than my >10 y/o Sidi megas. I think the construction is slightly less robust than my Sidis. Sizing note: with my orthotic, I wear a 45.5 Sidi mega and a 45.5 Lake 237 wide.

[ceolwulf]

Happy Lake user here as well. I couldn't find any at stores. My local shop couldn't get any in my size as the distributor was out of stock until the next season at that time. I went according to their sizing chart and it was completely correct. Got very lucky and found some new no box on clearance on eBay.