Hi guys. I have a pair of Bontrager Velocis wide that is sweating like mad everytime I’m riding indoors for longer than 1.5 hours. I can feel the sweat start to soak into the fabric and my insert, and pretty soon there is a squelching sensation as I continue to ride. Then, the sweat will actually start to come out the bottom of my shoes in a line right underneath my pedal stroke…
Obviously not a good time. The shoes themselves have no problem drying in an hour after I’m done riding, as long as I put toilet paper/tissue paper into the shoe and turn a fan on them. But obviously I don’t want to have them get wet on the ride in the first place.
Oddly enough, my Bontrager Circuit shoes never did this, even though I would ride in the exact same conditions for 3 hours straight! What is it about the shoe that could cause this to be happening? If anything I thought the Bontrager Velocis shoes would be more breathable, since they’re higher end and an even wider size with more room.
Is there anything I can do to remedy this? I would like to continue to use the Velocis shoes as they are very comfortable and I don’t get hot foot anymore. But with the sweating it’s not very feasible.
I’m riding indoors in ~95 F degree temps. Yes, I know it’s hot, and yes, I have multiple fans blowing on me. Like I said though, other pairs of shoes do not pool up sweat.
So far I’m going to try gold bond foot powder to reduce foot sweat, a calf sweatband to collect sweat before it drops down into shoe, and moisture wicking/breathable light socks.
The fan isn’t going to do a lot for cooling your feet, though aiming fans directly at your feet might help a little. It’s odd that the Velocis is worse than the Circuit shoes, since from appearances the Velocis have more ventilation. Bontrager products have a 30 day satisfaction guarantee so you if you’re within that time you still have the option to return them and look for something that is better ventilated.
I sometimes use shoe dryers if I need to get my cycling shoes dry faster.
Yes, but I got the Velocis shoes used/second hand, so I wonder if that has something to do with why they get wet more easy? I don’t see how a gently worn shoe could cause this over a brand new one though…
I can’t think of what else it would be though. The Circuit shoes which I had before never had any problems with sweating… and I was using the same inserts in those which I’m using in the Velocis now.
That is puzzling. I would not think used shoes would matter. Is there a liner inside the outer fabric in the Velocis but not the Circuit? Since they’re not returnable you might consider drilling larger holes in the fabric. And more fans or AC. You’re working out in pretty extreme heat.
Other options for indoor-specific shoes with more ventilation. Shimano are fairly wide in the toe in my experience. Not as wide as Lake.
hmmm the Circuit road shoes do seem to have a much “harder” outside shell than the Velocis does. The Velocis outer part is basically very soft and pliable at this point. Maybe that’s because it’s worn down a lot more?
I also noticed that the Circuit shoe has a dedicated meshed “air vent” port on the bottom of the shoe, whereas the Velocis only has a slight triangle cutout that doesn’t seem nearly as breathable. Maybe that’s it?
I don’t know how to troubleshoot this any further than to try different shoes and see if the issue persists. At this point I’ll probably try to get an additional pair of really breathable looking shoes and see if they do the same thing. If not, then I’ll know that it was the used Velocis pair that is causing the issue.
I don’t think it’s an abnormal amount of foot sweat that’s causing the issue, because I’ve used the Circuit road shoes for 2 years now and for much longer duration rides and never had a problem!