New Shoes? (what rudder?)

[juswonnafly]

I have recently purchased a new pair of shoes for work (no big deal I hear you say). They are Clarks and have 'air soles' (No jokes!).

I have found that they remove virtually all tactile feel through the soles of the feet and give the impression of poking the rudder bars with two stumps of dead meat.

I was teaching rudder/aileron co-ordination yesterday and must say that the exercise was not so straight forward as usual due to the 'dead feeling'. Now, whilst I was able to deal with this it did occur to me how a student might get on with the same problem.

Moving on a step further (sorry) this might account for some students who have real difficulty using the rudder accurately and sympathetically. What type of footwaer are they wearing?

Has anyone else come across this phenomenon before?

JWF

[Kermit 180]

Yup, big soled shoes can prevent a proper 'feel' as you describe it. I myself notice the change when changing from my work shoes to casual shoes for those weekend private flights. Also once had a female student turn up in high-heels, a complete nightmare.

Kermie <img src="rolleyes.gif" border="0">

[Chuck Ellsworth]

Kermit:

Did she have a short dress, nylons and a garter belt on?

That may make up for any problems she had flying. :) :) :) :)

[tacpot]

When I did my RAF Flying Scholarship in '82, along with equipment like a stopwatch, I was told to bring along a pair of thin-soled shoes.

Since taking up flying again, I've kept a pair of old shoes (soles worn thin) just for flying. Therefore my shabby appearance in not carelessness or excessive thrift, it is very carefully thought out :)

Thin soles aid feel, no doubt about it.

[yxcapt]

When I first started flying I used the same shoes all the time. More of a fear, I guess, of not having the feel.

Now I don't care about shoes, other than I have them on. It doesn't matter what shoes or aircraft for that matter, I just can't fly bare foot.

[DOC.400]

I try and wear deck shoes, though admit one summer I flew bare feet. Also drive bare feet in summer -wonderful!!

DOC

[Luke SkyToddler]

Be careful with that DOC - there's something sharp under the RH pedals (of the C152 anyway) - I've gone through several pairs of instructing shoes that have all ended up with a large, vertical slash in the right hand side of the right hand shoe, just about the 4th toe.

I'm ******ed if I know what it is though, and it's not just my company aircraft (at least it's happened to me in two separate fleets of aircraft in two separate countries ...)

[Throtlemonkey]

The best flying shoe's ive found are RM William's riding boots which have thin leather souls, (no laces either maybe i'm just lazy) I'm also guilty of flying bare foot quite often cause its just to hot for shoe's.

[VictorBravo]

Definitely yes.

When I started to learn I wore a pair of extremely comfortable but chunky high top sneakers, and kept wearing them until they died (they were very very comfy!). Since I've swopped to a pair of thin leather lace up boots, and the difference is amazing. I can feel much more through the pedals. Just wished I'd realised it earlier!