By Steve Forbes, PCI #473
University of Guelph Campus Community Police
Guelph, Ontario, Canada

What is one part of your body that makes the rest of your body miserable? (Hint: read the title.) That's right, your feet! If your feet are cold, the rest of your body feels cold; same for the heat. As a cyclist, you need to be comfortable on the job and there is no better place to start than with your tootsies.

Cycling-specific clothing is not new. There are companies that spend millions on research and development to help us stay cool when cycling, but using these items on duty can be tricky. You just can't wear your Lycra shorts and your bright orange cycling jersey while out on patrol.

I have been on a bike patrol unit for about nine years now, and when I look back to the beginning, I am always amazed on how patrol units have progressed. Here in Canada we operate our bike patrol unit year round. Our weather can be either sweltering or freezing. Back when the bike patrol started, the SOP stated that "all members that are on bicycle patrol in uniform will wear dark socks at all times." This usually meant black cotton tube socks, just like the ones everyone else wore. I hated wearing them - they stained your skin, and they were unbelievably hot in combination with the standard-issue police shoes. I remember one summer while on patrol; I actually scaled the tops of my feet from the sun beating down on my sweaty feet.

That all changed after a bike show in Toronto, where I saw a booth promoting "cycling socks". The salesperson told me how great these socks were and assured me that the problems I was describing would magically disappear if I began wearing them. Being inherently cheap, I was very hesitant to spend $15 Canadian on a pair of socks; that is about 16 pair of black cotton ones from Wal-Mart! So I persuaded the sales person to give me a pair for test. I took them back to work and tried them. It was like heaven - no more sweaty feet, no more feeling like my feet were going to explode. They were great and even made my feet feel comfortable in those police shoes. These "miraculous" socks are made by DeFeet.

DeFeet is a company that specializes in sport socks. Their blend of knit and layering technology makes their socks stand above many other brands. The quality of workmanship has always been high. They dry very quickly and make cold or hot feet a thing of the past.

DeFeet socks are available in many different colors, patterns and styles; they even have blue socks with the word "police" stitched on them. They even offer custom orders, so if your department would like a unique design, no problem.

If you have never tried or bought a pair of cycling socks or you are still using the good ol' black tube socks, you owe it to yourself to try cycling socks. Come to think of it, they never asked for the test socks back, hmmm, wonder if they still want them?

Find out more about DeFeet by visiting their website at www.defeet.com or by calling 800-688-3067 or 828-397-7025.

Steve, an IPMBA PC Instructor and Ontario Mountain Bike Instructor, races in the Ontario Cup Downhill Racing Series, and has been wearing DeFeet since 1999. He can be reached at sforbes@sec.uoguelph.ca.

© 2005 IPMBA. This review appeared in the Winter 2005 issue of IPMBA News.