walking in cycling shoes (newbie)

just got some cycling shoes, cleats and pedals this week, been out in them a few times now and i'm slowly getting used to them. however when i have to stop for traffic etc.. i like to keep one foot clipped in and push off the ground with theother to get going again. With cycling shoes i don't have any grip, underneath the toe is just shiney hard plastic no grip what so ever. Is there any type of rubber cover or something i can buy to help me toe off and simply walk easier in these things? my shoes only have a rubber knob on th heal to help me walk. thanks

 

I'm afraid thats just how road shoes are ...I don't know of anything around that you can put on them for more traction.
two suggestions
1. practice "pedaling" off instead of pushing off..that way the lack of traction in the shoe wont effect you as much.
2. if you really need traction/do alot of walking, you might consider MTB style pedals/shoes/cleats..these usually have inset cleats and the shoes have treads.

 

I bought sixsixone shoes(mtb). they have traction soles, not as lite weight as reg. road shoes but i use them for road and mountain. BTW i really like having one pr. for both bikes and they are really comfortable

 

I would take the shoes to a shoe repair shop. They often attach traction pads to smooth soled street shoes. These are just a thin peice of rubber that is glued to the sole of the shoe, usually one at the toe and one at the heel, although I doubt that you could use the one for the heel. It is a pretty standard modification and probably would be quite inexpensive.

 

You can use 3M stair tread. It is adhesive and can be trimmed to fit. It doesn't last super long, but is cheap and easily replaced as needed.

Actually some road shoe brands have softer rubber parts to improve grip (Sidi and specialized to name 2).

 

+1.

Pedaling off is how I do it irrespective of what shoes or bike.

 

go to a skate shop & buy some grip tape... the stuff that skate boarders use on the top of thier boards.

 

Just wanted to point out that one of the advantages of bike shoes is that you can easily backpedal the clipped in foot round to the top of the downstroke, where you'll have maximum push off power.

 

I also just pedal off, though I do use shimano road shoes/cleats so they're plastic and grip the ground "ok", but I use it merely for balance. Upon red light I just weight the foot already clipped in and since it's at the 12:00 position, I can get half a stroke in to get speed, clip in, and bob's your uncle.