You are about to read about my small adventure in buying soccer shoes.  There is an adventure invovled, you ask? Well, yes, shoe-ry, there was.

I am the stepmom of a 9 year old boy who has been playing soccer for a few years now, and baseball just once.  Soccer seems to be where his heart is...for now anyway.  I have always bought him soccer shoes - plural because you parents all know how fast kids' feet grow.  Nearly all the cleats he outgrows end up on Ebay, barely even scuffed!

The reason I mentioned baseball above is that for one short, hot Arizona season, played baseball and simply wore his soccer cleats.  I figured, what's the difference?  Right?  And, he had no problems with them.  Nor did anyone else.

So, when this soccer season rolled around, I ran out to the nearest sporting goods store (uh oh, his first practice is tonight?  You need shoes!) and bought him a pair of cleats that were on the clearance shelf for $15.  Whoohoo!  A deal.

Practice goes on for a couple of weeks, and then it's time for game day.  Suit up, shoes on, to the field we go.

"Wait," the field officials say.  "Those are football cleats.  You need soccer cleats."

Did you catch the first part?  It's GAME DAY.  WE ARE ALREADY ON THE FIELD - TAKE YOUR POSITIONS!

Well, in my defense, they were NOT football cleats.  They were baseball cleats.  Luckily, our assistant coach had brought along some extra cleats and had a pair that fit my son so he could play.

Here is what I have learned about buying cleats - and I am passing it on to you, oh loyal Ebayer...

Cleats are different because of the pegs on the bottom.  (I call them pegs, because I know of no other name for them).  I know that in most youth sports, kids cannot wear steel cleats.    I am at least that smart.  I am also aware that the patterns are different on the bottom.  But, I didn't know that it mattered.

Other than some pegs being rectangular in shape, and others being round, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of difference.  Except one.

Apparently, baseball cleats (maybe even football) have a front toe peg.

front peg = baseball cleats

no front peg = SOCCER cleats

The placement of the pegs, for the most part, seem to be similar on most cleats, regardless of the sport.  There tends to be four around the heel, and pegs lining the sides of the shoe with a few on the ball area of the foot for traction.  But this one little toe peg means I had to go shopping last night for new shoes.