Need new racing shoe.....

[Allan31]

30 years ago I was using the Simpson leather boot. I still have my old pair I keep as back-up.

After my hiatus from racing I bought the same boot and have used them now 4-5 years. The bottom is now unglued and I tried re-gluing and it didn't work so well.

Extended family is demanding a xmas list and I thought the boots would be a good listed item.
I have no idea what is a better boot and thought who better to ask than you guys !!

Please chime in with your suggestions, need soon as the natives here are getting restless.....

[DaveW]

30 years ago I was using the Simpson leather boot. I still have my old pair I keep as back-up.

After my hiatus from racing I bought the same boot and have used them now 4-5 years. The bottom is now unglued and I tried re-gluing and it didn't work so well.

Extended family is demanding a xmas list and I thought the boots would be a good listed item.
I have no idea what is a better boot and thought who better to ask than you guys !!

Please chime in with your suggestions, need soon as the natives here are getting restless.....

No particular recommendations, but several (10?) years back, Simpson had an issue with the Chinese rubber (urethane?) soles - they basically delaminated from the shoe and also fell apart. Simpson would not warrantee them even though they had been used for only a couple of races. My old ones from 20+ years ago are still my spares.

[Allan31]

No particular recommendations, but several (10?) years back, Simpson had an issue with the Chinese rubber (urethane?) soles - they basically delaminated from the shoe and also fell apart. Simpson would not warrantee them even though they had been used for only a couple of races. My old ones from 20+ years ago are still my spares.

Yea, that's funny, I'm in exactly the same situation, the olde ones from 30 years ago are still going strong, new ones, not so much....
What ones are you using now and do you like 'em?

[teamwisconsin]

Yea, that's funny, I'm in exactly the same situation, the olde ones from 30 years ago are still going strong, new ones, not so much....
What ones are you using now and do you like 'em?

I’ve gone through 5 different brands of shoe over the past few years, trying to find one that will hang together AND provide the pedal feel I like. Sparco, Simpson, Alpinestars, and OMP all came apart, some after just a few weekends. I’m in a lot of different racecars for clients and the cars where the foot box heat is high really causes the shoes to come apart quickly. The only ones that have hung in there have been the Adidas Daytona. The styling is a bit much for my taste but the performance has been excellent from GP cars to FF’s and even in the torture chamber that is the footbox of my Super 7.

[Allan31]

Heel and toe is somewhat important but I very rarely use the clutch.



Does anyone have any thoughts on these?

[EYERACE]

I was surprised to find that no new shoe's sole was as narrow as my old shoes that had the sole come unglued. The width caused a problem in the foot box for feeling of the pedal separation. I ordered and returned 2 or 3 pairs before I kept a pair of Sparco X-Light even though they were not as narrow as my old pair. They're OK after racing with them twice....but the Shoe-Goo repair of the old ones using clamps and broad pieces of wood after applying the goo and waiting about 48 hours are yet the ones I'm racing in. The new Sparco are the back ups.

By the way Allan31, you don't look like you'd pass the 'stick test'

[Allan31]

I was surprised to find that no new shoe's sole was as narrow as my old shoes that had the sole come unglued. The width caused a problem in the foot box for feeling of the pedal separation. I ordered and returned 2 or 3 pairs before I kept a pair of Sparco X-Light even though they were not as narrow as my old pair. They're OK after racing with them twice....but the Shoe-Goo repair of the old ones using clamps and broad pieces of wood after applying the goo and waiting about 48 hours are yet the ones I'm racing in. The new Sparco are the back ups.

By the way Allan31, you don't look like you'd pass the 'stick test'

"Stick test", do you mean my helmet height below the top of the roll bar? If so, yes, I do pass. As an FFCS board member, I ABSOLUTELY have to pass it !!

[JHerscher]

Ran Simpson low top shoes for years and had to replace mine a few years back.

I had to trim the rubber sole of my new right shoe to be able to use them and not have my right foot snag between the brake and throttle. Trimmed with a SHARP blade, sanded smooth with a 2” coarse disc on a pneumatic 1/4” right angle grinder. Go slowly and just take off what is needed. Worked great.

[BeerBudgetRacing]

Heel and toe is somewhat important but I very rarely use the clutch.



Does anyone have any thoughts on these?

Those look identical to my old Pyrotech shoes. 8 years old. I have 1 small area of sole separation that I believe happened because they were jammed and twisted in my bag.

I suspect several of these are made in the same factory..

[stonebridge20]

I still use the Simpsons that my mom bought me for Christmas in 1987 I've never raced a car in another pair of shoes except the 10 races I did in a DB4 where I had to cram size 12 feet into size 8 Simpsons.

Shoe Goo is your friend !

Google it.

[halcyon]

Stand21 is my preference. I get about 5 seasons out of a pair, running 15-20 weekends per year. AlpineStars have been the worst...these lasted 2 weekends before falling apart.

[DaveW]

Yea, that's funny, I'm in exactly the same situation, the olde ones from 30 years ago are still going strong, new ones, not so much....
What ones are you using now and do you like 'em?

Sparco RB-8's

I really liked the Simpsons better - a bit more flexible and just a simple shoelace but the Sparco's are OK. They are more expensive than the Simpsons.

[RussMcB]

Like others, I liked my old Simpsons, then had to by a new pair in 2019, bought new Simpsons and they are already coming apart. Disappointing.

[stonebridge20]

https://www.acehardware.com/departme...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

[TimH]

https://www.acehardware.com/departme...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

Shoe Goo is working remarkably well on two different pairs of shoes that are otherwise fine. Apparently all brands of the lower-end (and some high-end) shoes are coming out of the same China factory.

[DaveW]

The issue with the Simpson soles is that the urethane absorbs moisture from the air and slowly reverts to its pre-cured state losing most of its tensile strength. Some urethane formulations are more susceptible to this than others.

So even if you glue it back on, the sole will still fall apart.

This is not the only time I've seen that sort of chemical reaction.

I had some noise absorbing/insulating urethane foam sheets on the inside of my '74 Chevy van's bare steel body. After 15 years or so it reverted to a sticky mess which was very hard to clean up.

From the Internet:
PU foams can deteriorate rapidly; visible consequences of degradation can appear after years of natural degradation. The main visual signs of degradation are discoloration, loss of flexibility, and crumbling, which occur under influence of moisture, heat, and light.

[R. Pare]

"Stick test", do you mean my helmet height below the top of the roll bar? If so, yes, I do pass. As an FFCS board member, I ABSOLUTELY have to pass it !!

The test - for the SCCA at least (unless it has been changed) - is that you have to be below a stick that is placed both on top of the main roll bar and the top of the dash hoop.

[DaveW]

ROLL CAGES FOR FORMULA CARS AND SPORTS RACING CARS

The main hoop shall not be less than 2 inches above the driver’s helmet, seated normally and restrained by seat belt/shoulder harness. A straight line drawn from the top of the main hoop to the top of the front hoop shall pass over the driver’s helmet.

[Bernard Bradpiece]

The test - for the SCCA at least (unless it has been changed) - is that you have to be below a stick that is placed both on top of the main roll bar and the top of the dash hoop.

Allan's car runs to the 1972 GCR.

Maybe one reason the vintage guys (Formula Ford that is, you know, the Cortina engined cars - all carburetors and such like) get 40 cars at an average meeting and the SCCA gets about 2. But lets not get started on the competence level of SCCA and its disastrous effect on open wheel racing generally, yet another new chapter of which is unfolding as we write.

[FVRacer21]

For off the norm

has anyone tried either the Crow

https://www.wescoperformance.com/aurashbycr.html

or team di

https://www.teamdi.com/product/teamd...o-racing-shoe/

ChrisZ