Sean F

I bought a pair of Puma racing shoes recently for my first club race and I hate them. They seem to be optimized for an open wheel car with really close/narrow pedals. The sole is extremly narrow and I had a lot of trouble with heel/toe. Can anyone recommend a racing shoe (nomex) that had a really wide sole and maybe even a outside edge that is built up for heel/toe?

Nordschleife

Look at the shoes the professional racers wear - Pumas, Sparco etc - they are not built like Walmart shoes (what you are describing).

Its easier to rotate your ankle if you are not too far away from the pedals.

Piloti make shoes you could go waterskiing in - maybe you should try them

R+C

Sean F

Thanks for the tip, I do like to waterski.

bobt993

Sean, Maybe said in a different way. Most shoes are pretty narrow and if you ever decide to LFB, you will need them to be snug and small. Try rotating your ankle (use the ball of your foot) as described rather than rolling your foot. If you can get used to this, you will be able to h/t in any car you jump in.

mdrums

Piloti has shoes that are wider like a typical tennis shoe but with a rounded heel to make rotating from brake the throttle easier. They have Nomex models too.

cooleyjb

Another one to look at that is wider than your normal driving shoe that is still legal for all types of racing is the DC Shoes Pro Spec 1. They are designed for rally drivers and they are a bit wider, more similar to a normal shoe.

As for racing shoes they generally going to be like the Pumas you bought. They are all designed to be in pedal box where all the pedals are close to eachother.

Another thing to look at would be to adjust the pedals to fit where your feet go.

Sean F

Thanks guys. Even with the aftermarket pedals, I still have trouble. Small feet don't help. I realize it is the case that soles will be narrow with all racing shoes, however, the Pumas are smaller than most. Was really looking for something in between the waterskiing shoe and the Puma. The soles on the Puma don't even make it to the outer edge of the shoe itself. I do rotate on the ball of my foot rather than rolling. I wouldn't get close rolling. That is the problem. Using that technique, the area of the sole that should make contact is vary narrow on the Puma.

I left foot brake with my current wide shoes (Piloti ).

srf506

I wear Simpson or Sparco personally, but I have another friend who weas all leather wrestling shoes. Don't know if they're any wider on the soles or not, but he says he likes "the feel."

You might also ask your mechanic if the pedals can be better adjusted for H/T. I find in most production cars when you've got the accelerator depressed and try to roll over to brake it can be a little high. On the P-car you can adjust that height somewhat.

Good luck,
Jim

lawjdc

You might give the Oakleys a try - I was not comfortable at all in the Pumas, but the Oakleys are wider and have been wonderful. I saw that Nike has made some shoes also, but I haven't had a chance to try a pair of those on yet.

smlporsche

I use Simpsons and I have "D" width feet.
Very comfortable but as in most driving shoes no arch support.

Gary R.

How about these.. comfy AND patriotic!

Sean F

Thanks Gary, but I already have a pair of those. They're not fireproof.

PPo

I had very similar issues. I have VERY wide feet. EEEEEE or 6E!!

The only Nomex shoe that worked was the Sparco Rally Shoe. After trying many different shoes, these are the widest and most comfortable.

Hope this helps,
Patrick

BostonDMD

Sean, I bought a pair of piloti nomex lined which are work well with heel and toe, check them out....

rabjohns

I have very wide feet and the same problem. I ended up with Diadora from northstar. Great shoes.