[subraiyr]

I learnt to drive barefoot. My father beat it onto my feet when he taught me. In fact, some of the drivers I came across in my hometown were barefoot specialists. This meant that they would grip the clutch pedal with the toes of their left foot. I did try this for some time, however, your toes do tend to get strained. This was specifically in Ambassador clutches which were not from the floor of the vehicle.

As such I love the feel of barefoot and the pedals. With a hard clutch in my truck, it becomes a bit tough, but I do manage to drive barefoot whenever possible

For office runs, it's with formal shoes, but the drive is less than or close to 30 minutes which I feel is fine

For regular city runs, it is again Crocs or Birkenstock flip-flops. Very rarely I wear casual shoes to drive. And sports shoes are strictly for sporting activities

For long drives, highway marathons, it's barefoot or Crocs slip ons. The slip ons go in for an hour or so at the max and after that it is barefoot.

Somehow, the top of the pedal is now worn out and shoes don't offer much grip.

[ais]

Originally Posted by Mpower

Driving barefoot is not recomended because you cannot apply maximum pressure to the brake during an emergency/panic stop. I feel this is true for me.....what do you guys think?

Driving barefoot is an offence in several countries, and if I'm not mistaken, even in India as per the new MV act. Not sure, but worth looking for.

Now for the technical bit. Sorry, I don't mean to offend any co forum members, so I'll explain as best as I can, as a Squash coach.

In sports, while coaching, one of the principles of learning is to create a concious link between 'performance' and 'outcome' of that performance. So while learning to hit the ball in a particular direction at a particular speed, say soft straight volleys, a beginner will need to focus on 'feeling' the racket in his hand, the ball on the strings, the muscles of the arm and hand, and then relate it to what happens to the ball (outcome). The player needs to shift his attention between performace and outcome aspects, and therefore set up a feedback in his neuromuscular system, and keep improving. Once the player reaches a high level of competence (autonomous stage), he no longer needs to worry about the performance. He just thinks of the outcome- where he wants the ball to go in a particular manner, and the nueromuscular performance happens automatically. In a match, the last thing a player needs to be thinking about is his technique, performance (grip, swing etc). The focus should be on tactics.

So those drivers who need to "feel" the pedals with bare feet- get more practice! At a higher level of expertise, you will only need to think of the outcome as what you want the car to do, and the feet will not need to feel. If your attention is on feeling the pedals or on the feet, it's at the wrong place. Your attention should be on the road and traffic- ie the variables, and attention should be free to gather all the information required to evaluate and avoid hazzards (decision making). Feel for enjoyment- of course comes from the steering, seat, vibrations, sound etc. But not the pedals, where there are no variables, no information!

Also, we don't need 'grip', especially on the throttle pedal. Since the heel is in contact with the floor, there needs to be some degree of slip between the shoe and pedal.

So touchwood, no accidents in 40 years of driving, including at 220kmph.

I wear sports shoes by the way!

[Mile_muncher]

Wow! Could never imagine that such a thread would exist. This forum continues to amaze me and deeper I dive - WOW factor just goes north.
Coming to footwear - anything but barefoot.

[r-a-s]

Learnt Driving Barefoot and still comfortable only with Barefoot. Never tried with footwear.

[foby.sebastian]

Who all prefer wing-tips? Leather or Synthetic the classic design footwear is so easy to move between pedals. I have been using this EVA foam (Ethylene-Vinyl Acetate) wing-tips for quite some time now. Nice comfy one with excellent grip. Bought on internet.

[chittybang]

I cannot drive barefoot. It hurts my inner soles. I actually prefer a hard sole shoe. I use the keen walking shoe as it gives me good grip and since I am used to it, the shoe feels like an extension of my feet.

I used to think anything will do but a long drive with a footwear with poor grip just taught me a lesson for life. My leg slipped off the break during a sudden break incident. I got away with it but never ever wore that shoe again. This was partly because the grip on the edge of the brake pedal of my XUV had worn off as well. So I think along with shoes we need to ensure the pedals are in top shape.

[agbenny]

I use Crocs moccasins (Loafers- Santa cruz) for the last 7 years. The most comfortable one and settled with this.

[Kiran Joshi]

Originally Posted by prkothan

Bare foot or just with socks. I feel control ismore important than style!! . With bare foots I have good feel on accelerator and brakes.

Same for me. I am simply unable to control A pedal with shoes on. I must feel pedals directly for precise control. With shoes I feel like losing control of car or over speeding it. So I always remove my shoes while driving (in city and on highways as well).

[Andaleeb]

I started with barefoot and moved on to shoes.
I have never been specific about shoes, mostly because I am in sports shoes 95% of the time and occasionally in formals.
Recently tried one borrowed pair from brother and found them to be extremely comfortable for driving with good feedback.
I shared my feedback with brother and he ordered one for me from Amazon.




This is how it looks.
There was one more from Liberty with thin sole, which I found good for long drives.
Here is the Amazon link for the Liberty One - Link.

[anachronix]

Great thread.

When its dry/sunny, I prefer the basic rubber thong sandals from Bata for long distance.



During wet weather, when there is need for additional grip, I use the other model from Bata. Both are very comfortable.

[Dead_Pedal]

Simple slippers that offer good grip and provide enough friction with the soles(right mainly). I like slippers that are flexible and can bend. I absolutely cannot drive with thick and inflexible footwear, becomes extremely cumbersome and causes ankle pain.

[Risky4327]

Apart from comfort and grip factors, is there regulation which prescribe a certain type of footwear for driving?
I came to know that shoes are mandatory for riding a bike and slippers or floaters are not allowed.

[haisaikat]

During my last long trip to Kashmir (FALL in love with Kashmir | A 5500 km Innova Crysta venture from Kolkata) from Kolkata I was driving for up to 21 hours at one go and I got very good results using Neeman's Wool Loafers.

So far in earlier long trips my preference had been regular chappals / sandals which served the purpose fine however for pitstops where there were dust it did not offer cover to the feet. Regular shoes / flip flops were ruled out as they were not completely airy and could not solve the sweating of the feet although for short distances (less than 5 hours) they can work fine.

The wool loafers on the other hand were extremely airy such that there was not a single moment of sweating realized as I was checking regularly by rubbing the toes against each other. Moreover they have a flexible textured narrow bottom sole which provides adequate operating grip on the paddles and being narrow the bottom of the feet also remains airy and dry. Most important of all, no need to wear socks, something I always advocated against in the past. I have not tried wool loafers from other brands, wish to check out in the future.

What these are not meant for are lot of walking / running and also wearing on watery surfaces including dewed grasses as they tend to become wet very quickly. Also since they need to be wore barefooted hence it is duty of the person wearing them to keep clean feet before wearing or the inner sole with become dirty soon although the shoes themselves are completely washable.

[StarrySky]

I don't like driving barefoot. Too much feel for my liking

Otherwise, I don't have any preferences on footwear while driving. If it is comfortable for me to wear, it is usually comfortable for me to drive in.

[arjab]

Guys & Gals: who are old dinosaurs like me will remember our good old school P.T. Class shoes? The white "keds" from Bata with that green piping and lace-up closure.

Try driving with that on. Grippy, feelsome, light and easily washable & dry-able. The flat sole design ensures no discomfort or odd angle of the foot while "heeling and toe-ing"
I've tried many shoes but somehow come back to this for my driving preference. All for 400 odd rupees.