Over the years I've used Lake and Shimano SPD sandals. When it was time for a new pair I decide to give Keen a try. My walkabout sandals were Keen Newports and I liked them very much. So I figured I'd get the bike Keens in the same size and ordered a pair of first generation Keen Commuter Sandals in US size 11.5 (Euro 45.5) last September.
1st generation Commuters
The 11.5 Commuters didn't fit too badly for walking but riding was a different story. While riding my foot was able to slide backwards right out of the sole. Maybe my skinny ankle is the problem. I tried to fix the problem by wearing socks. Everyone knows that sock and sandals is a cool look;-) Recently I wore the sandals with socks on a mountain ride and got them wet. This made matters even worse and there was literally an inch of empty space in the toe box. I decided to take advantage of Performance's 100% satisfaction guarantee and return them for a full refund; a generous poilcy considering I'd probably ordered the wrong size and used them for six months.
2nd generation Commuters
A google search quickly brought up that REI was carrying the new generation Commuter 2 sandals. Notice the new ankle strap;-) I got a set of US size 11 this time and things are much better. I can cinch down the new ankle strap and my skinny heel stays in the shoe now for the most part. I have 2 nits to pick though:
- I wish the ankle strap was on the back of the ankle instead of in the front. That'd hold my skinny heel forward even better.
- The cleat plate steel is soft and easy to strip out. I had to steal a cleat plate from an old shoe and put it in the Keen because I stripped out the Keen cleat plate. I know you think it's my fault for stripping it out, but I've been using Shimano SPDs since 1992 and have gone though at least a dozen pairs of shoes. The Keens were the first cleat mount strip-outs in my SPD career.
No comments:
Post a Comment