My Burley shoe covers are now starting to wear out — I repaired both with duct tape this week — and unfortunately the company does not make them any more. I am starting to look for other options. Here are two:

Showers Pass. makes a cover similar to Burley’s. I can’t vouch for them, having never used them, but here’s someone else’s review.

J&G also makes a waterproof shoe cover. Theirs is a little cheaper, and comes in more sizes.

From May to Sept. I commuted 16 to 21 miles one way 3 days a week on Crocs Caymens with Rivendell Grip King pedals. I did two bike camper weekends with 50 miles a day and the same combo. It’s winter here in Va. and I’ve switched to Samba Classics….but when warm weather returns I’ll be back in the Crocs!!!! Awesome cycling shoe and only 7.8 oz. in size 13!!!

Greg, man, that’s some serious riding and a great testimony to the utter lack of need, in most cases (especially if you’re not racing, which most of us aren’t), for special “cycling shoes.”

J&G also makes a waterproof shoe cover. Theirs is a little cheaper, and comes in more sizes.

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Hey, this is nice news. I’ve told you how much I love my Burley shoe covers — they are still keeping out rain after a couple of years of everyday-commuting use.

I have looked online for these shoe covers a couple of times and have found only odd sizes. So this is good news, from Go Bent Bikes:

“I was browsing the net to list our shoe covers on ebay. and i came across your site! Just wanted to let you know that WE still have Burley Shoe Covers! =D ( M, L, XL, XXL)”

I can’t vouch for the seller, but I CAN vouch for the shoe covers!

If there are more good sources out there for this great product, please let me know and I will pass them along.

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A little bit of a footwear ramble here: I love my Crocs. I don’t wear them to work (although one of my colleagues does!) or to church, but they’re good for just about everything else — including bike rides around town.

Grant Peterson advocates Crocs for riding, as do I, but with a few reservations.

Yesterday I rode about 6 miles through Lexington in Crocs on the XO-1 (outfitted with MKS GR-9 pedals). The Crocs fit great into the toe clips, and grip the pedals well. Plus, I love the ventilation. But after the first couple of miles, the outside of my right foot started to hurt. I’ve had a similar result with this footwear-pedal combo in the past, although, like I say, everything is fine for first couple of miles — so it’s great for most of my errands.

I’ve ridden in Crocs all over creation on my Breezer Uptown 8, pulling a trailerful of kids, and have not had any problem.

I think the difference is that the Breezer has no foot retention, so my foot is flatter on the pedal, compared with the GR-9, which puts the ball of my foot on the pedal.

If you have a pair of Crocs, don’t hesitate to ride with ‘em. If nothing else you can help dispel the myth that bike riding requires absurd shoes and silly pedals.

It’s less fun to walk around the office in your socks, while your shoes sit under your desk stuffed with newspapers, because they dry quicker that way. (Yes, I KNOW this is goofy, but I have done it.)

I’ve tried hauling an extra pair of shoes and socks on my rear rack, double-bagged with plastic shopping bags. I’ve tried keeping a dry pair of shoes and socks at work as a backup. And I have tried riding with plastic bags over my feet.

All of these methods work, to a greater or lesser extent. But by far the best things I’ve done to keep the dogs dry is to buy a pair of shoe covers.

Mine are nylon, with a zipper up the side (that’s them in the picture). They are made by Burley, and they are great; unfortunately, Burley is no longer making raingear. (If you wear an extra-small, you might be in business — Lexington’s own Pedal the Planet and this site still list the Burley shoe covers in this size.)

However, there are other options. Check here for shoe covers that look similar to mine (I have never tried any of them, but if I were going to, I would pick this one), or Peter White sells rewaterproofable waxed cotton Carradice Duxback shoe covers (see a picture of them here).

Shoe covers generally cost $30 to $50. If I were buying the covers now, I would try the Carradice model. It costs $23 from Peter (shipping not included).

This is an essential piece of gear for everyday riding, especially if you want to wear your work shoes on the bike. A good pair of shoe covers will keep your feet completely dry. I have worn the Burleys in some torrential downpours over several years and they have not failed me yet.

They did, but that was not enough to earn me a pardon for my crime against fashion.

The shoes were all-black, narrow and smooth, with sort of a rectangular shape that ovaled off on the front, and they had an orthopedic-looking sole. My sister told me that she first saw these hideous shoes sitting next to a doorway where I had left them; not knowing they were mine, she wondered what was wrong with their owner.

After wearing these “sensible” but unsightly shoes until they wore out (after which my wife told me she hated them), I got something a little more fashionable.
Fortunately, the new shoes — the Urbantrack 60311 by Skechers (right) — turned out to be cycling-friendly as well.

I got mine for less than 50 bucks at Shoe Carnival. They look nice with both jeans and khakis. You might even get away with wearing them with a shirt-and-tie outfit. Here’s why they are great for cycling:

1. The shoes easily slide in and out of toe clips, because they are fairly narrow and have thin soles. They have a flat front, which also works great with toe clips. My other everyday shoes, a pair of New Balance tennis shoes, are thicker and wider. The sides of the shoes tend to get hung up on the toe straps as I am pushing my feet into the toe clips. Then I have to reach down and free the straps while I am riding. That’s not what I want to be thinking about in traffic.
2. The shoes fit nicely into my Burley shoe covers, again, because the shoes are thin and narrow. I wear the shoe covers on rainy days to keep my feet dry; more about these in a future review. (Preview: They’re great.)
3. While they look nice enough to wear to work, they don’t get scratched up like dress shoes do.
4. The soles grip the pedals well.

I bought the Skechers mostly for their looks, and I had reservations about how long they would last.

However, I have been wearing them on and off the bike almost every weekday for at least a year now, and they are going strong. The soles are not as delicate as they look; they are holding up very well. And by the way, the shoes are quite comfortable.

Skechers has a number of shoes of a similar style and shape, in various colors.

Verdict: Highly recommended.

P.S.: I don’t use toe clips on my Breezer Uptown 8, and I don’t think I need them. I do use them on the other bike I ride to work, a Bridgestone XO-1 (that’s the bike in the picture here). The Skechers work great on both bikes.

You might be familiar with cycling-specific shoes, which have inflexible soles and are made to clip onto specially made pedals. I have never worn these, and I don’t think I ever will. They are unnecessary for my type of riding. Furthermore, Grant Peterson of Rivendell Bicycle Works, a longtime rider and veteran of the bike business, says cycling-specific shoes are unnecessary for every type of riding.