Safe Speed Forums

Never understood this particular craze... when I were a lad me Mam used to buy me and me brothers and sisters some rubber flip flops from Woollies for princely sum of 2 shillin' and sixpunce - - (a half crown or a florin and an tanner) You did not wear 'em in the strreet - you wore 'em at the" baffs" or on the beach or whilst padddlin' int local stream!

Today - these same humble rubber efforts are heigh of fashion and young girlles get chilblains and cuts on their tootsies in winter.

And the odd borken ankle from tripping in 'em.



What' s 'e on about? Tis a motoring forum and not a wimmin 's fashion page!

well... it seems the humble flip flop has more to answer for than a girly breaking her ankle on the stair well or catchng her death of cold in winter.

The d-d-drive in' em! And ride b-b-bikes
in 'em!

Research has shown (as if we could not guess) that these "shoes" are the most dangerous you can drive in!

And it seems almost three quarters of drivers admit to driving in flip flops and sandals (and cyclists admit to wearing sandals (well no surprise there then! )

Experts have found that the loose fitting flip flop gets caught under the accelerator pedal or brake and that the lack of heel leads to foot slipping of fthe clutch. when changing gears. (Ah - that explains the barefoot law then!)

Norwich Union carried out the poll of 1000 drivers and got a 75% admission of flip flop driving. (Ccling Weekly did the sandal thing with cyclists a bit back)

Experts say sensible footwear is a part of the safety equation and wimmin should also avoid high helles and wedge heeled shoes.

Wildy wears ordinary canvas plimsolls with a rubber sole or a flat court shoe. Myself - decent pair of ordinary shoes.

So - who wears these naff shoes? Own up! Three quarters of us are supposed to!

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For years I resisted wearing toe clips on a push bike, until last year... I can only say in a fit of madness, I tried some - and very nearly broke my neck on two or three occasions.
However, now I am used to them, and the fact that you have to pull your feet out of them quickly at the slightest hint of trouble, I find them effective AND safe.
My point is that I suppose you could get used to wearing anything with practice, AND drive safely with them as a result, providing you make an adjustment to your "normal" style.

If you have the right equipment available, try riding a motorcycle with 4 wheel roller skates (not "inline" skates or some weired off road variety) and let me know how you get on!!

Windermere Festival had a pedal cycle, with a gearbox on the handlebars, which made it steer the opposite way to the direction in which you turned the handlebars. You stood to win £20 if you could negotiate a short course. Most managed the straight bit, SOME manged the first bend, but then things seemed to go awry when they had to return back down the course. Any ideas why?

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Not me . Deckies are my first choice in summer, but normally shoes. Builders boots if I expect to really need something for mud, but they're a nightmare to drive in. All that steel in the toecap of my right boot, you see

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Ahh, the old backwards steering bike. My dad had one of these made up at workshops on the base we used to live it, it was used at fetes for the same reason as above. After a lot of practice I was able to ride the thing around (very wobbly) and negotiate a few simple bends.
I belive its all to do with our sense of balance and the confused messages our brains receive from the reversed controls. It is possible to master but takes a heck of a lot of practice.

Can't you cross your hands and pretend you're steering with your elbows to your brain? I think that's what I'd try. This sounds like a very dangerous bit of fun

The reason it's dangerous to ride the bike, and that everyone falls off before completing the course is of course...

...there's no speed camera!

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Please forgive my apparent ignorance, but your post implies it is illegal to drive barefoot.

Is it true? Is it illegal to drive without ANY shoes?

I don't know, but I find I have slightly more control when barefoot.

I used to drive my old mini barefoot at every opportunity. It gave me the earliest possible warning of master cylinder leakage <ewwww> preempting what otherwise would be a brake or clutch failure. It worked too!

I've been led to believe that driving barefoot is indeed illegal, though I fail to see why!

I'd welcome any corrections though.

As for driving in flipflops and them getting stuck under the pedals. Floormats can do the same, but so many cars have loose ones fitted in the front.

Or you could drop something - like the Officer in Road Wars Special that placed his hand held radio in his lap while he completed a more complex section of high-speed pursuit driving - I couldn't help thinking "Idiot, why don't you give the radio to your passenger; if you brake hard that will fall under the pedals".

What's wrong with sandals?

I don't see how

is any worse than a normal shoe.

Unless of course you put socks on with them!!!!!

I drive bare foot all the time and had one young PC comment that my foot may slip off and I should be wearing shoes for that reason.

I then pointed out that with my wide size 13 feet completely covering the pedals and them some and completely filling up the foot well the only way my foot could slip of was if I punched my foot through he floor Flintstone stile.

On look down and he agreed with me

But to be honest it’s a comfort thing for me with large feet I have no room at all to move my feet about in a lot of cars so I can get cramps/stiffness in my legs but without shoes it can more about that little bit that make any long drive more comfortable and I can concentrate on the road and not my acing legs.

Drove for years in africa in flops / bare feet.found bare feet better

I agree that flip-flops would be dangerous - hell, I hate wearing the things to walk in, having to scrunch up your toes is a nightmare - but fail to see the harm of driving in sandals or barefoot. In fact, the times I've driven barefoot (only two that come to mind - both after a severe rainstorm where my socks and shoes were soaked) I've felt slightly more in control than when wearing shoes. It seems to require more force to move the pedals, and they can be moved in a much more delicate manner with a very subtle adjustment of pressure. Sure it takes about 10 seconds to get used to, but after that I fail to see the dangerous area..

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You can get a better feel driving barefoot, especially on the throttle pedal. I think it can help fine tune your throttle control. That said, it's not something I've ever made a habit of, and no, not because of smelly feet or anything like that . But having driven barefoot most of the way from Perth to Albany and back (1200km or so) I'd argue that it can be quite comfortable, not particularly risky, and interesting to see how subtly you can change your speed just by flexing your big toe.

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Ernest Marsh - I'd rather not ride in roller skates thanks, I have enough difficulty not falling off when I stop as it is (something to do with being a shortass and not being able to reach the floor properly)

Seriously though - I never got on with toe clips, but I do ride in SPDs (for those non-cycling bods out there, your foot is effectively latched onto the peddle, and you hae to twist your foot to release it). I had a couple of ... incidents early on where I toppled over in the middle of the road when trying and failing to release my foot, but now I wouldn't ride without them.

I have a minor problem driving barefoot for a similar reason - my feet are too short! I find that with my heal on the floor I'm pressing the peddles with my toes which is hard work!

As for flip flops? NOOO!!! Flipflops are the root of all evil and should be sacreficed to the gods of footwear. (that and I get really cold feet really quickly and have to wear socks all the time!)

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Hah! My comment on flip flops now vindicated

Apparently a foot surgeon based in Windsor has published a report in a medical journal warning of the dangers of constant wear of this item of footwear.

Last month - bosses warned staff that they could be sacked for wearing these. Think about it. Offices.. filing cabinets... injuries at work.

But the medics are now saying they are treating more injuries to jouints, twisted ankles, shin splints than ever before. And they blame ...

the ARRRRGH! flip flop




Now - you heard it on here first! Mad Doc above and my other comment relating to a cycling incident.



Hospital figures show that 55,100 men and women were treated for flip-flop related injuries in 2002 - and this figure is rising.

Harley Street foot surgeon Barry Francis claims he sees six patients per week with flat shoe injuries



Yes.. they are a very unstable shoe and seriously impair both driving and cycling. We would be failing in our duty if we did not stop and point this out to people.

Of course - there is another fashion icon which also causes problems for women in particular when they drive or even ride...

the high heel

Recently - per Dr Evans of the University Hospital of Wales - women have been out and about on these balmy summer evenings. They topple on the high heels and this has caused broken ankles, dislocation orf ankle joint, torn ligaments

As RoSPA points out..



Basic common sense then

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I drive barefoot almost 100% of the time.

Sweaty foot can slip on a pedal - rather it could on the old cars. That's why it was deemed "not in control" at the time. Here - we would then not necessarily have an issue with barefoot driving. But a shoe which can slip and jam under pedals - and this can be any of these mule type sandals with no strap to hold it and support and secure the foot can undermine safety and handling. We would have words with driver and cyclist alike over appropriateness of this choice of footwear.

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Take with a chuckle or a grain of salt
Drive without COAST and it's all your own fault!

A SMILE is a curve that sets everything straight (P Diller).

A Smiley Per post
FINES USfor our COAST!

Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon - but driving with a smile and a COAST calm mind.