Second that. I have a fairly wide, low volume foot with a narrow heel and the S-Works Torch was the first shoe that properly fit me, since most manufacturers confuse ”wide” with “high volume” or “high instep”.
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I’m eagerly waiting for Specialized to trickle down their new “natural” foot shape (introduced with their Ares 2) to the lower levels.
If you check out their latest Gen 2 footbeds, this tells the story of where they seem to be heading with shape. https://www.specialized.com/gb/en/body-geometry-sl-insoles-gen-2/p/1000236397?color=1000241180-1000236397
Ive got reasonably ‘specialized’ feet and prefer northwave for my medium/wide shape.
Keen to try the new sidi ‘millennium fit’ which is a big departure from the old shape apparently.
thank you all for your replies! Love the ideas.
To clarify, without the mik.fit orthotics the shimano s-phyres 45 are kind of ok width wise, but I still get toe numbness (no hotspots or anything like) within one hour of riding. I normally would ride with the cleats about 15mm behind the 1st mtp joint, but I tried pushing them all the way back and the issue persists, which is annoying. Also, while the width of the midfoot and ball of the foot seems correct, I still keep hitting my pinkies against the sides of the shoe, as well as the big toe against the other side. I believe my foot might be more “curved” than the shimano last requires.
I had previously ridden for a long time using lake cx332s, which I had no problem with but always found there to be too much volume and the heel way too loose for me.
I’ll keep in mind your suggestions, and keep searching!
Another vote for Lake shoes. Narrow heel and relatively wide front end here, I’ve got five pairs of Lake shoes (mountain, CX, road) and all of them fit brilliantly.
Not sure about the curved foot thing.
Another vote for S-Works Torch. I have the lace version. I have duck feet and high arches. With the toe box and heel (plus G8 insoles) they are by far my favourite shoe.
Hi,
I can’t see it covered in the thread, so just for clarity did you suffer with numbness before the mik fit insoles were used? If you take the original shoe insoles and stand on them (when not in the shoe), do your feet overhang them?
Thanks for helping me troubleshoot!
Before buying the shimanos (and the orthotics) I was using a pair of lake cx332 in 44.5, and never had numbness issues, although they did feel a bit loose. Rode with that set up for a couple of years. Then went for a bike fit at Cyclefit in London changed position slightly, changed shoes and got the orthotics done from Mik. Since then, toe numbness, FHL tenosynovitis and pain just behind the 1st mtp joint. I have been living in rwanda for the last 3 years so a bit tricky to change stuff often, but moving back to Europe in 2 weeks so hopefully that’ll help with the fiddling.
The shimano stock insole fits me well, no overhanging. The only issue is my big toe gets squished towards the center, but width at the widest point is ok.
I think I’d be tempted to remove the orthotics and see what happens. Change one thing at a time.
How was the cleat position changed, I assume further back? A possible increase in toe pressure and therefore numbness could arise if it went forward.
If the big toe isn’t overhanging the stock insole but is getting squished towards the centre, is that the height of the toe box pushing it, or are the orthotics curled over perhaps or something else?
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May I suggest DMT knit shoes.
I broke my foot and have never been able to wear my Lake wide shoes. They were great for years but my foot changed. DMT has a good rough piece of fabric that holds your heal in place. I had to put shoe stretchers in them for a few weeks. The stretchers are the kind that has the plastic buttons that you position so you get a stretch where you need it.(little toe in my case). I put a sock under it to stretch the shoe above my arch. After 2 months they are now adapted to my foot.
Bonus : they come in Pogi Pink