This is the time of year when you may be looking for new shoes for next year. I know what riders are like, they buy cycling shoes because their favorite rider uses them or the shoes are shiny! The shoe needs to fit and be comfortable, everyones feet are different and they are not going to fit in every shoes.
Shoes have been the bain of my life as there is not much volume to my feet and as such i haven't been able tighten my shoes up any more, laces come right up, straps come right over and flap in the wind and buckles just close up. I found the best thing for me is to use an extra insole (even 2 thinner ones)under my normal footbed, I've got a selection of extra insoles that are fairly flat to put underneath my footbed, this has made a big differnece to how my shoes feel and fit. If you have the same problem, good walking shops sell thing's called a volume reducers, a firm insole that will go under your own insole. I think Greg Lemond used to butcher his shoes, cutting them away and adding extra straps to get them to fit how he wanted.
Get fitted properly, don't just buy over the Internet because they are a good price, try a few pairs on, not just the ones that look the best (shiny)!!
If you use footbeds or orthotics, take them with you and if you have the same problem as me take some volume reducers/insoles.
Take your own cycling socks with you, don't turn up in your walking socks!
Get fitted at the end of the day when you've been on your feet a bit and not first thing in the morning when they are cold, remember your feet will expand in warmer weather while cycling. This is really important for shoes that you heat up and then mould to your feet, such as Bont or Shimano, get them moulded to cold feet and there will be less room for your feet to expand when it gets hot.
Some shoes come in width fittings, so if you have wide feet search these out.
Just think how many hours and miles you're going to do in your shoes, your shoes need to fit and not just look shiny ;o)
UPDATE. Also when you try your shoes on in the shop don't just stand upright in them to see how they feel, this just places your weight in the heel of the shoe, when most of the weight is in the forefoot when riding, when I fit someone I place a block of wood under the heels of the shoes, this sets the shoe closer to most people's pedalling angle and I then get the person to squat a little, this places more weight on the forefoot area of the shoe, more replicating the feel you will get on the bike. This is also what you should do when you are trying to find the 1st metatarsal to mark the shoe when you are looking to place the cleats in the right fore and aft position, because if you just stand up in your shoes especially with cleats on, you will be marking the 1st metatarsal further back than where it is during pedalling stroke, to see what I mean place your shoe on a flat surface and look at it from the side, not many will pedal with the heel dropped that much, most heels are above the cleat.
