bike shoe fit

[Onno]

I've been trying to replace my old, cheap and heavy road cycling shoes for a while. Makes sense to have top notch shoes if you have a top notch bike, seems to me. The LBS has very little in stock, though, so it's virtually impossible for me to try on a lot of different shoes. I recently ordered 2 pairs of Adidas Adistar Pro road carbon shoes, in the two sizes I normally fluctuate between. The shoes seem great in all respects, but both sizes feel a little narrow.

So my question is, how snugly should bike shoes fit? My previous pair are pretty stretched out, and it's difficult to get them snug at all. The Adidas are so snug that, while my feet don't go numb wearing them, I do feel some relief in taking them off. Will they stretch? Is snugness a good thing?

If these shoes are simply too narrow, which is what I fear, who makes a similar shoe that is wider? I've ordered a few other pairs over the past year that I've had to return because they were even narrower--Pearl Izumi and Shimano. I hear Sidis are also very narrow.

Thanks for any help...
Onno

[stevep]

you gotta go to a shop that stocks shoes and try them on and then give them the courtesy of buying from them... they deserve the sale.
lots of shops stock plenty of shoes..even if you have to drive some.

[1centaur]

Sidi makes Mega for wider toe boxes. Carnac used to be great for wider feet but I believe changed their last in the "last" two years.

If there truly is no LBS with stock to try on, you'll need to find an Internet place that's way fine with returns of uncleated shoes - there must be some, or they'd never sell shoes. And no, I would not expect 95% of cycling shoes to stretch. Try them on in the afternoon when your feet are swollen and wait until your feet go, "Ahhh!" before you settle on your preferred maker.

[manet]

Onno, i wear sidi, and have always had them stretched a bit to
compensate for inserts. not much, but enough to get that hockey
skate feeling to go away. this summer in the hunt for a new pair,
i tried on a pair of fancy shimanos. the toe box felt a bit more spacious,
and the overall feel very similar to sidi. to keep control of life's
variables i kept with sidi, and as it turns out i wouldn't have
been allowed to wear them on the new red steel rig anyhow so....

... the point is i think the two brands are interchangeable.

(regular width, good arches, 46)

[manet]

oh _ and diadora didn't do what i had hoped for.