cheap and painfully thin sole.

 

You can rock those - But you won't be very cool at the PCA events. I mean how are we to know you are a real driver?

 

Very comfortable Prada lace ups for Guard Red or black.

 

they are cool but the pair I have is no lighter than the piloti prototipos.

 

Wrestling shoes are a lot like karting/driving shoes.

 

About a year ago I injured the base of my Achilles tendon on the back of my heel and driving farther than an hour or so was causing me a lot of pain. In the middle of a road trip it became quite bad so I stopped at a sporting goods store in a small town in hopes of finding something that would put less pressure on the back of my heel when driving.

I came to realize that a big difference between a shoe for walking/running and a shoe for driving is that while driving you continuously put pressure on the back of your heel, not as much on the bottom of your foot.

Luckily I found just the right thing. Now a favorite casual shoe of mine when driving now are Under Armour SlingRides. Most of the models are very lightweight (8.55 ounces) and are made from either mesh or a durable flexible fabric. Most importantly is the inside of the shoe has no seams at the back of the heel or in the bottom in general, just a nice smooth cup that cradles my heel perfectly with no pressure hotspots. The back of the shoe around the tendon is also very soft and flexible. On the road trip my heel pain quickly subsided to something very manageable with these and I've used them for longer drives (and more) ever since. They have models of it that look more like a casual shoe than a sports shoe too which I find to be a plus.

Here is a photo of the inside cup of this shoe, you can see the nicely shaped seamless cup and the thin flexible back of the shoe. I can imagine nothing better for heel comfort. There are other looks available as well, but here is one of the less tennis-shoe looking variants. While not a "real" driving shoe, I thought these were worth mentioning since I've found them to be such a good match for driving comfort and appearance and in places where my Simpson racing shoes would look a bit too weird.

 

Thanks for that education Eduardo! So is there anywhere else to get 'The original car shoe", or just through Prada now?

 

I'm also a Puma guy. Have been wearing speed cats for quite a long time.

 

Geox makes a few driving style shoes, I think they also do some professional models for the Red Bull team. I have a couple of their slip on leather loafer types, they have a rounded rubber heal on the back, so that takes the wear/tear and also gives a good pivot point. I still like my Puma's but the Geox's are a bit more 'dressy'

 

I doubt Prada is doing private label
stuff, so we might all be stuck with
going the Prada way.

And Prada has an alternative driving
shoe now. When I was in Düsseldorf
in 2015, I bought a pair of Prada's
'Driver Shoes' in that city's beautiful
Königsallee shopping zone.



These 'drivers' have a totally different
kind of sole than 'The Original Car Shoe',
so they are easier to walk in.







I frankly had not seen that quality
of thick leather in years & reminds
me of the original Gucci loafers from
my youth (that I still own). And not
surprisingly, the quality of the leather
& workmanship has its high cost! They
sold originally in Europe for 470 Euros!





Saludos,
Eduardo
Scottsdale

 

Awesome ideas, I think I'm set, thanks guys!!!

 

I wear 14 running shoes and the soles are too wide for the pedal box, especially on a manual car. I wear wrestling shoes and they are perfect for driving, except maybe low on style

 

i wear tod's loafers until the nubs get all worn down on the ball and heel, and then I relegate them to spirited driving duty.

 

I really like Merrell Parkway minimalist shoes for driving. Thin sole, "natural" shape that fits my widish feet without adding extra length like most pointed designs, and just slightly odd looking.

 

if you want a nice sneaker that will last a life time, i wear mine all the time when driving, john lobb "foundry", light and well made. if its a loafer style i love my tods and pradas, no laces tho, both are light and flexible