Cycling in Heels

[Bread Heel]

Has, or does, anyone cycle in heels?

I was thinking about it as an alternative to street walking: The joy of being out in a heel; the excitement of potentially being spotted; but with the ability to speed away from any uncomfortable or unwanted situations.

Even though most discussions on the topic are aimed at women (sadly for obvious reasons), there was one man whose comments at the end of this blog post suggest I’m not the only one who has thought about it. Although, he’s actually done it; not just thought about it.

http://www.copenhagencyclechic.com/2012/04/stiletto-heals.html?m=1

[Shyheels]

I cycle a lot but have not tried it in heels. I could certainly do it because I’ve a classic tourer with flat pedals. I’ve never gone clipless. I  guess one concern I have, with stilettos at any rate, is the chance of getting the heel caught between the front derailleur and the chainring. That would not be fun.

I have seen women, only a couple, cycling in stilettos, in London, and looking quite elegant. One was aboard a classic Dutch commuter with a chain guard and so there would be no worries about getting the heel caught. She was quite graceful and well dressed and clearly an experienced cyclist. I think the other was also on an old style bike with chain guard as well.

I could certainly do it in my Cuban heeled ankle boots. No problem at all. I might give it a whirl, in fact.

Edited September 9, 2020 by Shyheels

[Bread Heel]

There are quite a few blogs with dos and don’ts for cycling in heels. Plenty of them mention the placement of the heel and whether or not it will damage the shoe, but haven’t come across any concerns with catching it on the chain. It’s worth considering, though.

If you do venture out, you’ll have to let us know how you get on. 

[Shyheels]

I had no idea about the blogs discussing cycling in heels.

I go out very early in the morning - and I mean very early - so I could no doubt wear anything I liked without attracting any notice. I’ve always been an early rider and go out well before dawn, usually seeing the sunrise some miles from home. It’s nice to be out then, everything so quiet. I could certainly wear heels.

Edited September 10, 2020 by Shyheels

[Shyheels]

On 9/9/2020 at 10:32 PM, Oakeetoes said:

There are quite a few blogs with dos and don’ts for cycling in heels. Plenty of them mention the placement of the heel and whether or not it will damage the shoe, but haven’t come across any concerns with catching it on the chain. It’s worth considering, though.

If you do venture out, you’ll have to let us know how you get on. 

I managed to find some of those blogs that discuss cycling in heels. It appears it is much more common on the Continent - quelle surprise! 

I did go for a spin in my high heeled ankle boots - to be honest, I really didn’t notice any difference. One is on the balls of ones feet anyway when pedalling and so you really don’t notice you’re in heels until you climb off. But if course there is still the sense of daring and elegance.

 

[Bread Heel]

I’m glad you managed it. Did you not notice any difference in distance from the pedals? I know there’s no difference in terms of placement of foot on the pedal, but I would have thought the angle of your foot may have made a difference.

What type of heel do you have on your ankle boots and how high are they?

[Shyheels]

My ankle boots have 3.5” Cuban heels.

I didn’t really notice any difference at all. Because the ball of my foot rests flat on the pedals there was no observable difference in angle.

Its a good thing I am old school with my bicycles - all flat pedals, no clipless, so I can wear any type of shoe, boot or sandal I please.

[Puffer]

I suppose cycling in heels (as you have described it) is somewhat like walking up stairs in heels - very little 'heel awareness', even if the heels do not project much below the stair tread (If you see what I mean).   One's ankles are in a position akin to wearing heels whilst ascending - and without the feeling of ground beneath the heel.   Going  down stairs (or sloping ground) is quite another matter, however!

[Puffer]

On 9/16/2020 at 7:54 PM, Shyheels said:

My ankle boots have 3.5” Cuban heels.

...

Those boots sound interesting.   Can you tell usd more about them, please - size, style and source?   I have not found it easy to source a wearable boot with a heel higher than 3" that is properly-sized for a UK11-12 foot, at least not at an affordable price.

[Shyheels]

2 hours ago, Puffer said:

Those boots sound interesting.   Can you tell usd more about them, please - size, style and source?   I have not found it easy to source a wearable boot with a heel higher than 3" that is properly-sized for a UK11-12 foot, at least not at an affordable price.

Ah, yes - well these are from Shoes of Prey, a company now sadly no longer in business. They had quite a novel set up where you could customise your order - toe shape, colour (wide range!), leather or suede, heel shape etc and they had a wide range of styles. They were not cheap, but for what you got and the fact that you could customise your shoes or boots to your taste, it was worth it They had a generous returns policy too. And they ran to large sizes - genuine UK12 in anything they offered. And they were plesant to deal with. 

They were probably just a bit too generous in everything and commercial realities jumped up and bit them. They are no more. I am very glad to have two pair of their ankle boots.