Driving barefoot / without shoes....

coolsats · 27th June 2007, 23:31

Hello friends,
I ve been a silent observer of this website for quite sometime now, and must confess that i ve leart so much from the Gurus here in this forum.
Half of my office time is spent going through the different threads in here

I've just learnt driving and ve been driving for the past 3 months on my newly Suzuki Swift VXI. My problem is that i just cannot drive with shoes on and find it more comfortable without shoes (bare feet with nothing on) and commands better control on the car. Is this normal. Does anybody of u ve similar symptoms of driving without shoes.
According to you guys which is better with or without shoes.
Thanks for all your help in advance...

Regards

aah78 · 28th June 2007, 03:34

I had a friend with the same issue.
Ever since he learned driving, he just couldn't drive with his shoes on. Said he didn't get the proper feel with footwear.
Now, he does drive with footwear - it's just a matter of getting used to.

Try it in a safe and open place. It doesn't take a whole lot of effort. Do your shoe-soles slip off the pedals? If thats the case, then you probably need to get better footwear, or change the rubber on the pedals

.

Just make sure you wear shoes and not slippers. Slippers are known to slip-off feet and get stuck under pedals, causing a disastrous condition.

I prefer keeping my shoes on. No slippers though - prefer barefeet than slippers.

Mayavi · 28th June 2007, 04:18

Just buy better pair of shoes.
I never understood why people drive without footwear. If you can walk with shoes then you can depress the pedals, no?

rr_zen · 28th June 2007, 05:42

I bet you learnt driving from a driving school. When I learnt driving 14 years back, my stupid driving instructor insisted that I drive bare foot. I was too reluctant but then had to give in. I have to admit it was quite a good experience to drive with bare foot. I felt absolutely at control without shoes and when I started driving on my own I couldnt get over it. It was an arduous task to keep removing foot wear everytime I drove and put them back on when getting down. Finally I vowed that I would get over it. I tried wearing shoes and buckled foot wear like our Bata Quovadis and believe me, within a week got over the habit of shoeless driving...

1100D · 28th June 2007, 05:46

Shoes increase your Foot width which can be a boon. But driving barefoot on a congested road gets really painful on the left leg (operating the clutch)

CrAzY dRiVeR · 28th June 2007, 07:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by coolsats

I've just learnt driving and ve been driving for the past 3 months on my newly Suzuki Swift VXI. My problem is that i just cannot drive with shoes on and find it more comfortable without shoes (bare feet with nothing on) and commands better control on the car. Is this normal. Does anybody of u ve similar symptoms of driving without shoes.
According to you guys which is better with or without shoes.
Thanks for all your help in advance...

Its just a matter of getting used to. Since you have learned only three months back, its perfectly understandable.

Many of my friends and family members have this problem. I used to feel nervous while driving with shoes, but am perfectly ok now.

My suggestion is that you should practice driving with shoes, when you are driving in low-traffic conditions (night, holidays etc). After few days, you'll feel a lot better driving with shoes.

One more thing- There is no difference driving with or without shoes. Its just a matter of yourself getting comfortable with the thought of not being able to 'feel' the pedals.

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 28th June 2007, 07:36

I use foot wear only when walking. I have this way of [often unobtrusively] removing my feet from foot wear while seated. This means, I rarely, if ever, use shoes.
And there are plenty of people who drive without any footwear; Pujaris, females (high heels are not comfortable for driving), orthodox people driving bare chest to the nearest temple on an early morning ....

The bottom line is that there is no such correct or appropriate answer. Use whatever footwear you are comfortable with.

bottle · 28th June 2007, 08:33

i find it harder to drive bare foot lol , both my driving instructor and my driver who taught me for a while too insisted i learn with shoes on

Spinnerr · 28th June 2007, 08:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by coolsats

Hello friends,
I've just learnt driving and ve been driving for the past 3 months on my newly Suzuki Swift VXI. My problem is that i just cannot drive with shoes on a

Hay, like people of have been suggesting, its all a matter of getting used to the 'driving' part. A couple of months more, we would have you zipping arnd even with hiking boots.

Just a thought, say the footwear you have tried with, does that have a big heel? or does that have a thick bottom? if yes, that is the reason why you feel 'not so confident' with shoes.

For starters, i would suggest, you try riding with those Sports sandles, no those WOODLAND ones with 3 inch thick sole. Something with a FLAT sole and which is very thin. The thinner it is the better. You would get a feel of the pedals with this.

Then try with some shoes with flat bottom, and a sole that is not so thick, something like those slip-on ones. but do not wear oversized ones, they add to your woe.

Try this, it ought 2 work out.

mainak · 28th June 2007, 08:53

This is exactly the same problem that i faced when i learned driving. Alas I had learned from a driving school. Started offdriving with shoes on an old car with nothing to lose even if I banged it

now driving without shoes ain't possible for me !

deepak_ms · 28th June 2007, 09:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by rr_zen

I bet you learnt driving from a driving school. When I learnt driving 14 years back, my stupid driving instructor insisted that I drive bare foot. I was too reluctant but then had to give in. I have to admit it was quite a good experience to drive with bare foot. I felt absolutely at control without shoes and when I started driving on my own I couldnt get over it. It was an arduous task to keep removing foot wear everytime I drove and put them back on when getting down. Finally I vowed that I would get over it. I tried wearing shoes and buckled foot wear like our Bata Quovadis and believe me, within a week got over the habit of shoeless driving...

because of the instructor i drove bare foot.. now i drive bare footed... tried few times but am not able to drive with shoes...

ad75 · 28th June 2007, 10:23

its the driving school instructors who ask people to lern driving bare foot. it does give you a better feel of control but combersome to remove the foot wear every time you drive & put it back on while to get down.

you also have to keep your footwear under the seat or on the passenger side to avoid them getting under the pedals in case of hard braking.

initially try using footwear with thin soles once you are comfortable, use normal ones.it just requires some getting used to.

mclaren1885 · 28th June 2007, 10:38

I guess at the beginning of their journey most drove barefoot. I did too, though you get a good feel of the pedal after a certain period legs begin to hurt. And its tough to go hard on the brakes without footwear. Slowly but steadily (I guess about 1 week) I did start to drive with slippers, shoes and haven't looked back still. However there are occasions when I drive barefoot when my legs get excessively slippery owing to the heat. But Id prefer driving with footwear. Besides, you can do heel toe, left foot braking, go karting, track days, drag racing only if you wear footwear right?

bruty · 28th June 2007, 11:05

guys my personal experience is that driving with shoes gives a feeling of great control and with shoes the contact area also increase. i have experienced that if you drive with bare foot you have to apply more pressue on break paddle to get the desired breaking effact. More over it will be very tiresome to open teh shoes to drive car and then again wear them

SRK · 28th June 2007, 11:07

I never drove without my foot wear..
One the 1st day of my driving I wore shoes with huge soles..

I think when driving barefoot..you get to know how much pressure you need to apply..But when you use shoes..you dont feel the pressure..and no feeling to your skin..which means new drivers will press the accelerator more..
Thats what I experienced...

Its better if you use thin sole footwear..
I think F1 drivers too use thin footwear na?

27th June 2007, 23:31	#1
coolsats Newbie Join Date: May 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 12 Thanked: Once	Driving barefoot / without shoes.... Hello friends, I ve been a silent observer of this website for quite sometime now, and must confess that i ve leart so much from the Gurus here in this forum. Half of my office time is spent going through the different threads in here I've just learnt driving and ve been driving for the past 3 months on my newly Suzuki Swift VXI. My problem is that i just cannot drive with shoes on and find it more comfortable without shoes (bare feet with nothing on) and commands better control on the car. Is this normal. Does anybody of u ve similar symptoms of driving without shoes. According to you guys which is better with or without shoes. Thanks for all your help in advance... Regards
	(1) Thanks

28th June 2007, 03:34	#2
aah78 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: NYC / BOM Posts: 4,726 Thanked: 3,409 Times View My Garage	I had a friend with the same issue. Ever since he learned driving, he just couldn't drive with his shoes on. Said he didn't get the proper feel with footwear. Now, he does drive with footwear - it's just a matter of getting used to. Try it in a safe and open place. It doesn't take a whole lot of effort. Do your shoe-soles slip off the pedals? If thats the case, then you probably need to get better footwear, or change the rubber on the pedals . Just make sure you wear shoes and not slippers. Slippers are known to slip-off feet and get stuck under pedals, causing a disastrous condition. I prefer keeping my shoes on. No slippers though - prefer barefeet than slippers. Last edited by aah78 : 28th June 2007 at 03:36.
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 04:18	#3
Mayavi BHPian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Scottsdale Posts: 683 Thanked: 10 Times View My Garage	Just buy better pair of shoes. I never understood why people drive without footwear. If you can walk with shoes then you can depress the pedals, no?
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 05:42	#4
rr_zen Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 1,810 Thanked: 423 Times View My Garage	I bet you learnt driving from a driving school. When I learnt driving 14 years back, my stupid driving instructor insisted that I drive bare foot. I was too reluctant but then had to give in. I have to admit it was quite a good experience to drive with bare foot. I felt absolutely at control without shoes and when I started driving on my own I couldnt get over it. It was an arduous task to keep removing foot wear everytime I drove and put them back on when getting down. Finally I vowed that I would get over it. I tried wearing shoes and buckled foot wear like our Bata Quovadis and believe me, within a week got over the habit of shoeless driving... Last edited by rr_zen : 28th June 2007 at 05:50.
	(2) Thanks

28th June 2007, 05:46	#5
1100D Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Calcutta Posts: 4,390 Thanked: 4,116 Times View My Garage	Shoes increase your Foot width which can be a boon. But driving barefoot on a congested road gets really painful on the left leg (operating the clutch)
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 07:36	#7
BaCkSeAtDrIVeR Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Kochi Posts: 2,540 Thanked: 758 Times	I use foot wear only when walking. I have this way of [often unobtrusively] removing my feet from foot wear while seated. This means, I rarely, if ever, use shoes. And there are plenty of people who drive without any footwear; Pujaris, females (high heels are not comfortable for driving), orthodox people driving bare chest to the nearest temple on an early morning .... The bottom line is that there is no such correct or appropriate answer. Use whatever footwear you are comfortable with.
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 08:33	#8
bottle Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,641 Thanked: 293 Times View My Garage	i find it harder to drive bare foot lol , both my driving instructor and my driver who taught me for a while too insisted i learn with shoes on
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 08:53	#10
mainak BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Mumbai Posts: 90 Thanked: 0 Times	This is exactly the same problem that i faced when i learned driving. Alas I had learned from a driving school. Started offdriving with shoes on an old car with nothing to lose even if I banged it now driving without shoes ain't possible for me !
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 10:23	#12
ad75 BHPian Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Noida Posts: 272 Thanked: 25 Times View My Garage	its the driving school instructors who ask people to lern driving bare foot. it does give you a better feel of control but combersome to remove the foot wear every time you drive & put it back on while to get down. you also have to keep your footwear under the seat or on the passenger side to avoid them getting under the pedals in case of hard braking. initially try using footwear with thin soles once you are comfortable, use normal ones.it just requires some getting used to.
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 10:38	#13
mclaren1885 BANNED Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Bangalore (the city of modded cars) !! Posts: 4,818 Thanked: 46 Times View My Garage Infractions: 0/1 (10)	I guess at the beginning of their journey most drove barefoot. I did too, though you get a good feel of the pedal after a certain period legs begin to hurt. And its tough to go hard on the brakes without footwear. Slowly but steadily (I guess about 1 week) I did start to drive with slippers, shoes and haven't looked back still. However there are occasions when I drive barefoot when my legs get excessively slippery owing to the heat. But Id prefer driving with footwear. Besides, you can do heel toe, left foot braking, go karting, track days, drag racing only if you wear footwear right? Last edited by mclaren1885 : 28th June 2007 at 10:40.
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 11:05	#14
bruty BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Delhi Posts: 241 Thanked: 10 Times View My Garage	guys my personal experience is that driving with shoes gives a feeling of great control and with shoes the contact area also increase. i have experienced that if you drive with bare foot you have to apply more pressue on break paddle to get the desired breaking effact. More over it will be very tiresome to open teh shoes to drive car and then again wear them
	() Thanks

28th June 2007, 11:07	#15
SRK Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Mumbai Posts: 1,206 Thanked: 536 Times	I never drove without my foot wear.. One the 1st day of my driving I wore shoes with huge soles.. I think when driving barefoot..you get to know how much pressure you need to apply..But when you use shoes..you dont feel the pressure..and no feeling to your skin..which means new drivers will press the accelerator more.. Thats what I experienced... Its better if you use thin sole footwear.. I think F1 drivers too use thin footwear na?
	() Thanks