When first learning how to ride a bike, most of us started out with regular shoes, and they seemed to work just fine. Does that mean regular shoes work well for mountain biking too? While you can wear regular shoes to mountain bike, you will be missing out on some great features built into mountain bike specific shoes. From better pedal grip to more efficient pedaling and superior foot protection, once you try MTB shoes we doubt you’ll want to ride in anything else.
Benefits of mountain bike shoes
Grip
One of the main benefits of mountain bike shoes is the extra grip they provide on your pedals. This is true for clipless mountain bike shoes, where your feet are clipped to your pedals, and also for flat pedal shoes.
The added grip from mountain bike shoes provide you with a locked-in feeling on your bike, especially compared to regular shoes. This locked-in feeling, and knowing your feet have a solid connection to your pedals, can be great for your confidence on the trails.
Rough terrain
The added grip of mountain bike shoes is especially noticeable when riding over rugged terrain like rocks and roots. With regular shoes, these rougher sections of trail can cause your feet to bounce around on the pedals. These same rocky, rooty sections of trail don’t cause near as much movement of your feet on the pedals when you’re wearing mountain bike specific shoes.
Jumps and drops
Features like jumps and drops are other places where the extra grip provided by mountain bike shoes come in handy. For one, that extra grip gives you an increased feeling of control and confidence as you approach the feature. And on landing, the extra grip is very helpful at keeping you on your pedals and in control, even if you don’t land perfectly.
Weather conditions
When riding in less favorable conditions, like riding in snow, or on wet and muddy trails, it becomes much harder to maintain good grip on your pedals when you wear regular shoes. The extra grip from mountain bike shoes helps to keep your feet from sliding around near as much, since they provide much better contact with the pedals, either from being attached to the pedal with clipless shoes or from the specialized, grippy rubber compounds they use
Slips
Those who choose to go mountain biking with regular shoes are at a much greater risk of having their feet slip off their pedals completely. This can be simply from riding rough terrain and having your feet bounce and slide off the pedals, or from a rough, off-balance landing from a jump that causes the same.
It can also be caused by riding on wet days or through snow, and having your feet slip from the moisture on the pedals. With proper mountain biking shoes, your feet are much less likely to slip, even with slippery pedals because the rubber compounds used in flat pedal shoes, and the attachment to the pedals with clipless shoes, help to keep your feet firmly in place regardless of your pedals being wet.
Foot support and power transfer
Another major benefit you get from wearing MTB specific shoes is superior foot support and a better power transfer from the yourself to the pedals. The main reason for this is the stiff soles built into mountain bike shoes.
When you try on your first pair of mountain biking shoes, you will notice that they are noticeably stiff shoes to walk around in. This stiffness in the soles provides for a more efficient transfer of power to the pedals, since energy is not wasted from the shoe having too much give. This allows you to get more power out of each pedal stroke, helping you to pedal faster while exerting yourself less.
Protection
Most mountain bike shoes come built with good foot protection, and just about all purpose built MTB shoes will be more protective for your feet compared to normal shoes.
Many mountain bike shoes come with reinforced, impact resistant areas to protect your toes and heels from impacts upon striking rocks, trees, roots and anything else they may collide with while you ride.
Water Resistant
Most mountain bike shoes are also water resistant, to help keep your feet feeling good even when you decide to venture out in wet conditions or get caught in the rain.
Can you mountain bike with normal shoes?
You can mountain bike with normal shoes, but its not ideal. Riders have been known to ride with anything from skate shoes, tennis shoes and hiking shoes.
Skate shoes and tennis shoes have relatively flat soles making them well suited to riding with compared to other types of shoes. With that being said, they still do not measure up to quality purpose built mountain bike shoes in terms of grip, foot support, power transfer, protection or water resistance.
Flat pedal vs clipless shoes
If you’re looking to purchase mountain bike shoes, you will have a choice between two main categories, flat pedal shoes, and clipless shoes.
Flat pedal shoes
Flat pedal shoes, as the name implies, are designed to be ridden on flat pedals – which are essentially just ordinary bike pedals that can be ridden even with regular shoes.
Flat pedal shoes’ grip on the pedals mainly comes from the specialized rubber compounds their soles are built with, in addition to any extra grip built into the pedals themselves.
A solid pair of flat pedal shoes will keep your feet firmly in contact with the pedals and prevent them from moving around and slipping while you ride.
Our favorite flat pedal mountain bike shoes of the year can be found here.
Related: Five Ten Freerider Review
Clipless shoes
Clipless MTB shoes are designed specifically to be ridden on clipless pedals.
Clipless pedals are actually a system with specialized pedals and cleats designed to attach to the soles of clipless mountain bike shoes.
By having your feet attached to the pedals you don’t need to worry about your feet sliding around and slipping off, and your feet stay locked in an optimal position on the pedals when using them.
To learn more about the different pedal types check out our breakdown of riding clipless vs flat pedals.
Frequently asked questions
Mountain bike shoes are better than regular shoes for mountain biking because of their better grip on the pedals, superior power transfer and pedaling efficiency, and the improved protection they provide your feet.
While you can use running shoes for mountain biking, it’s not recommended.
Running shoes generally don’t have a totally flat sole, so they won’t grip your pedals as well as flatter-soled shoes like skate shoes or tennis shoes. And compared to mountain bike shoes, they will have much less grip and worse power transfer and foot protection.
Absolutely. Switching to wearing mountain bike specific shoes from regular shoes can make a huge difference in your riding! You will probably notice the stiffer soles give you more efficient pedaling and a better feel on your bike, but you will notice the added grip on your pedals even more.
Your feet will also be better protected against impacts if you’re wearing a good pair of mountain bike shoes.
Clipless pedals are a type of pedal with cleats designed to attach to the soles of clipless mountain bike shoes. They keep your feet physically attached to the pedals while you ride, locking your feet in place, but still allow you to detach if needed.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for shoes to improve your mountain biking performance, or just want better protection and pedal grip, purpose built mountain bike shoes are definitely worth the investment. Take your riding to the next level and be sure to get yourself a pair!
Rubbish. This is for people who are always looking for an excuse to spend money on a hobby. Get a pair of Van’s and call it a day.
Having ridden in skate shoes in the past, I was blown away by the difference proper flat pedal mountain bike shoes made for me when I first tried them. Not only the grip, but the comfort and sole stiffness make them well worth it. You don’t know what you’re missing until you try them. Shoes like Vans can work okay if you’re on a budget.