Saturday, February 13, 2010

Saturday Upshifting


*toe shifter.



What you do is rest your heel on the motorbike's foot peg and in the same motion step down on the toe shifter to klunk the transmission into first gear. That's done with the sole of the shoe. However to up-shift, because you don't want to be riding around all day at 5mph, you finagle your toe "under" the toe shifter and lift up on the toe shifter.



Therein lies the rub. As the photo attests, work shoes don't fair well used as riding shoes. After a few thousand up-shifts, the toe shifter has gashed the leather hide layered over the steel toe. The question is whether I should pay to have the tear in the leather stitched up, or just buy a brand new pair of work shoes. It needs a resole also. But oh da comfortable.



I bought this neoprene "sock" today specifically designed to slip over a motobike's toe shifter. It's similar to a body glove that skin divers wear.




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