Equipment is Important! New D2 Shoes

For those of you that know me, you know that I pay attention to most every detail - training, nutrition, recovery, and equipment. As my friend Pete put it, 'I don't obsess over it, but I enjoy it.' However after my stinging 1 second loss last weekend, maybe I should pay just a little more attention to equipment choice?

These shoes are the latest addition to my equipment arsenal. Now, I've been riding D2's shoes for over 2 years now and I absolutely love them. However after crashing and messing up my right shoe this Spring, I needed a replacement pair. I would rate my D2s 1st in equipment that I wouldn't ride without, 2nd being my power meter ;). When I got my first pair I went out to the D2 factory, got a tour and met Dan and Don (hence the D2 name). These guys truly care about their craft. They began making custom ski boots years ago and through their love of cycling branched out into the cycling arena. They worked on Project 96 and showed me some pretty sweet protoypes that were developed just for the Olympics over 10 years ago. All of this technology goes into each pair of custom shoes that they design and produce. You may also recognize these shoes from the TdF last year - Will Frishkorn rides them.

I have very wide feet - 9 EEEEE, so custom shoes are almost a necessity for me. Straight out of the box these babies fit like a glove, are super stiff (they have the thickest, stiffest carbon sole on the market with tri-directional hand laid carbon fiber soles), and cool (the new model features fully perforated uppers, and the all-white color helps deflect solar heating). They weigh about 120g less than my old Sidis, and while there are lighter shoes on the market I think the custom design and stiffness outweigh an extra 100g any day. I can crank the triple velcro down as tight as I want and can ride for up to 4 hours with no hot spots or pain. The interesting thing is that I also used to have toe and knee problems. All of these issues went away within weeks of riding these shoes and have not returned since! All in all, I simply find these shoes amazing and can't recommend them highly enough. They are pricey, but absolutely worth every penny when you consider the anatomical, efficiency, and comfort that they provide. The only other part of your bike that is more 'intimate' would be your saddle, and until they start making these custom molded, take some time and check out D2's website: www.d2shoe.com