Shyheels

I’ve no doubt at all about that. I think guys in general are weary of the stifling rules for men’s fashion regarding colours and styles, and would like to inject a bit of theatre into their personal style

Oh, I agree with you that when you start to wear heels you’ll find muscles you forgot about. I differentiate between that and actual foot pain. I could walk reasonably well - hardly catwalk grace, but reasonably well - in my 10cm boots when I first got them although after a fairly short while my calf muscles seized up in quite painful cramps. These went away when I sat down and flexed and massaged the muscles and I learned quickly that small doses were the way to go when you’re first starting out. i have taken a sort of middle road - wearing 8cm blocky heels generally but also slowly building up time in my 10cm stilettos. I’m doing the same now as I try to learn to walk in my 12cm boots.

I always try to dress smartly when I’m in heels and I would do the same with leather trousers. I like contrasts in textures so I would wear them with a wool jumper or something like that

I find that too.

Yes there is something empowering about walking in heels. I always feel a bit deflated when I take mine off at the end of the day.

Yes, I also like how wearing heels feel, especially the 10cm and 12cm heights. And you’re quite right, wearing heels is like any athletic endeavour. I think that having done a lot of yoga, sabre fencing, running, skiing and cycling I had a natural advantage when it came to wearing heels. I never had any trouble at all with 7 to 8cm heels, not even from the first day. Even 10cm heels were not that hard although since I started practicing with my 12cm heels, they’ve become quite comfortable and easy. I still have to graduate to the 12cm ones ..

Yes, my heels are all quite comfortable - even my 12cm ones which I struggle to walk fluidly in, are still comfortable. I’ve experienced more pain in badly fitted and designed running shoes than I ever had with heels. But then I made certain to buy well made, well fitting heels. They absolutely don’t need to be painful

They certainly are. The history of fashion is quite an interesting topic. Until I got brave enough to try wearing heels, I never really considered the history and meanings of fashion before. The history of heels is fascinating And you’re right in the 90s and 00s it was not uncommon for men to wear leather trousers - even without a motorcycle!

It’s a pity that men seem to be so restricted in what society permits them to wear. It’s the same with knee boots - fine if there’s a horse or motorcycle in the picture, but otherwise wearing them is considered odd or effeminate. Strange, really. As for me I rather like the idea of wearing leather trousers with heels.

It is very presumptuous - but then some people just seem to be like that. I can never understand this mindset.

It's a look I'd like to try

Maybe he thinks you’re just incorrigible!

The ones I saw didn’t look fake, but at any rate the look seems very much in vogue.

A day in London yesterday, mainly in the Covent Garden, Seven Dials area and along the Strand - a lot of heels, mostly knee and OTK boots with chunky heels. A couple of stilettos and mercifully only one pair of kitten heels. A surprising number of leather trousers, which seem to be much in vogue.

There are certainly more heels here too in winter than in summer - at least in my experience. Again, boots

Your impression is probably accurate. I just passed through London today - Kings Cross Station and St Pancras - heaving with people and virtually nobody in heels.

These days with so much hypersensitivity around he was probably reluctant to open any conversation about your alternative footwear

I rode both the German and the Austrian sections, and on one of those times continued nearly to Budapest before turning off and riding down to Trieste - although after Vienna the it really isn’t the same thing. The German and Austrian parts are brilliant. I love the Donau Radveg. I’ve toured all over the world and that is one of my all time favourite rides.

Germany is such a great place to tour on a bicycle! I have ridden through the Black Forest and followed the whole length of the Donau Radveg (twice!) Not in heels though … 😊

Yes it very much depends on your pedals! I never got into the modern trend for clipless pedals and the pedals on my bicycles are all old-school quill pedals and my feet never slip on them. But a lot if cheaper bikes and rental bikes have these flat pedals with plastic platforms that can be very slippery when wet. I rodeo e once and being used to really nice bicycle, I was appalled. i think it will be fun to put in my stilettos and ride to a place where i can practice. Come spring I hope to be doing this!

It’s unlikely, but if the ball of your foot slid outwardly on the pedals and you were wearing stilettos your heel could hit the front mech on the downstroke. Unlikely, but I think it’s possible. in any event it’s perfectly possible to cycle in heels, and something I am considering so I can get to places to practice in my 12cm stilettos

There’s no way your heel should get stuck on the pedals. Your heel doesn’t touch the pedal, no matter what kind if footwear you’re wearing. It’s just the ball if your foot on the pedal. Dismounting might feel strange in heels, but that’s all. The biggest problem woukd be the risk of scuffing your nice heels on the chain if you don’t have a chain guard, or getting a long stiletto heel stuck in the front shifting mechanism. If you were careful and pedalling at a measured pace there should be no problem

I don't understand how cycling in the Netherlands can be considered challenging. The place is made for cycling. Europe in general is excellent - at least compared with Britain - and the Dutch and Danish in particular have it down to an art. The challenge with cycling in heels will depend on the type of bicycle you're riding - the classic Dutch commuter bike, with the chain guard, wouldn't pose a problem. With others there's a chance of getting a long stiletto heel scuffed on the chain or caught in the front shifting mechanism. Smooth leather soles could slip off some styles of pedals, especially in the rain, and obviously you couldn't ride clipless pedals but the old standard quill pedal should give you sufficient grip.

North shore, sure. That makes sense! Offhand I can't think of any suburbs up there beginning with New, but then riffraff like me didn't frequent the North Shore

A condo? In Newtown? We can’t be talking about the same place. The Newtown I’m thinking of in Sydney is an old neighbourhood, lots of run down old terrace houses. No condos. That’s an American thing. This was was a student ghetto near the University of Sydney, with lots of Greek, Lebanese and Asian immigrants as well, and pretty rough back in the day.