Bike Socks: Short and Sweet for Your Feet

Why are there special socks for bicycling?
Can’t I just wear my regular athletic socks for biking?
Thanks in advance,
Jenny

Hello Jenny,
Nice to read your question. Some people suspect that the real reason bicyclists wear such short, bootie-like socks is because they like to show off their strong, clean-shaven legs.There might be a modicum of truth to this speculation, but there is more than simple vanity to the reason bicyclists wear socks, even on the hottest days of summer.

Bike socks are one of the few essentials of bicycling gear and clothing that probably don’t contribute significantly to either speed or safety. True, if a speeding bicyclist wore big, heavy, and sagging hiking socks that fell in loose folds around his/her ankles, they might pose a safety problem or even contribute to drag, but that would be extremely unlikely.In fact, bike socks do not affect either speed or safety. They do affect comfort.

Why Care About Bike Socks?

Feet, you may have noticed, sweat, sometimes a lot.Good bicycling socks will wick this unwanted moisture away from your skin to let it evaporate.Your skin will thank you for doing this.If you have ever done a long, active session of any major athletic endeavor with inadequately ventilated footwear, you may remember how disgusting your feet looked (and smelled!) when you peeled off your shoes and socks afterward.This kind of moisture is not a good condition in which to raise happy feet.

Bike socks also perform the very important function of eliminating friction between your feet and your shoes.A bicyclist’s feet may seem pretty stationery and unmoving because they’re confined to the platform of your pedals, but in truth, the movement of pedaling produces a constant wear on the surface of your feet, otherwise known as your skin.Socks protect your skin.A good pair of dry socks will prevent nearly all blistering if your socks and shoes fit well.

Beyond White and Shapeless: Today’s Biking Socks

It used to be that all bike socks were short and white, but that has changed a lot in the last decade, since mountain bikers have influenced style.Once Tour de France champion and legend Lance Armstrong was seen with black bike socks, socks started appearing in all colors, as well as with decorations of cartoon characters, rock stars, and, of course, any bike team logo you might crave.

These old white socks, made of cotton or nylon, used to be notorious for their shapelessness and the unfortunate habit they had after several launderings of slipping off the heel of the moving foot and bunching up under the arch of the luckless rider’s foot for the duration of the ride.This was really unpleasant.Today’s socks don’t do this.Whether you are wearing socks made of a wool blend or synthetics, the socks made for bicyclists today keep their shape and their size very well.They’ll keep you cool in the heat and warm in the cold.

There are lots of good sock brands on the market internationally.Companies like DeFeet and SmartWool specialize in socks for athletics, while the big athletic clothing manufacturers like Nike and Adidas and Pearl Izumi make great socks in addition to their shoes and clothing lines.You still can’t go wrong with small and classic white bike socks; they’ll be around as long as the sport is.They will never look as shapeless as the white socks of a decade ago, but they will definitely get just as dirty, mostly because of the tendency of road bicyclists to take off their cleated shoes and walk around in their socks after a hard ride!Solve this problem by bringing along some flip-flops!

Why are they so short?We all have our own theories. My best theory is that bicyclists already have such strange tan lines from their long shorts and sleeved jerseys that they’re unwilling to add one more obvious line up past their ankle. Wear bike socks whenever you ride. Be good to your feet.