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Shoes and pedals

Righto girls and boys, I've decided to bite the bullet and retire my splendidly excellent toe clips for some shiny new clipless pedals and triathlon shoes. The pedals need to be easy to get out of as I'm missing a ligament in my right ankle that helps it go sideways and I don't want to fall over to get out - although i guess if i practice i can just leave them clipped in and take my feet out. Can anyone recommend any shoe-pedal combos in particular.

Cheers

JB

Comments

  • maltesermalteser Posts: 25
    I was told by someone at Evans cycles that MTB pedals were the way to go for beginners (and was about to make a similar investment myself) ... will bow to Conehead's superior knowledge especially when it comes to Triathlon usage but am just curious for a bit more detail as to why MTB pedals and shoes are not the way to go
  • JellybabyJellybaby Posts: 180
    I wasn't actually thinking about using MTB shoes and pedals, as I figured the racing/tri specific ones would be better as they have a more rigid sole, therefore transferring power more effectively to the pedal. The Shimano TR31 looks like a reasonable shoe, but I don't have a clue when it comes to the pedals themselves.
  • willtriwilltri Posts: 436
    I made the mistake of getting mtb pedals - pretty good for the commute into london but guess i'm missing out on something....

    Do you get the same amount of play (side to side) in a shimano road pedal (compared to the shimano mtb's) - got slightly dodgy knees and don't want them being made any worse!!
  • BlurredgirlBlurredgirl Posts: 292
    My twopenneth:

    MTB systems - easy to clip in and out of, but lack the stability and nice big platform essential for effective road cycling.

    I recently upgraded from the above to Look Keo pedals and use Scott Comp shoes for riding and training and Vittoria retro tri shoes for racing.

    As regards play - the Look pedals come with a standard set of cleats that provide an average amount of float. If you want to change this, Look also sell cleats that provide a lot of float, or almost none at all - depending on what you prefer. For dodgy knees - the cleats that come with the pedals are probably right as this allows for natural movement.

    But any combo of either Look or Shimano 3 bolt systems with whichever shoe is comfortable/takes your fancy will probably do the job. The magic lies in getting the cleat position right, and ultimately, your position on the bike, not so much in individual products.

    Hope this helps....

    blurredgirl
  • BlurredgirlBlurredgirl Posts: 292
    Oh, should have also said that I find the Keos significantly easier to get in and out of that the MTB ones and I really like the platform - lots of nice power transfer going on now that I didn't have before.

    blurredgirl
  • BlinkybazBlinkybaz Posts: 1,144
    You will need to try these shoe things on in a shop as shimano and others come up small.

    Also as above dont get mountain bike ones!
    SPD are the way foward as you get a bigger area of contact with the pedal1
  • cammykcammyk Posts: 36
    Shimano and get the stiffest shoes you can afford. They make a huge difference but it does take a bit of getting used to getting into and out of and the new pedals. They also take a while to loosen off even at the lowest setting(that may be just as my technique is getting better). I don't use tri shoes just normal cycling ones so I have 3 straps to deal with but I'm not trying to shave 10 seconds off in transition as much as I'm trying to get fitter.
  • willtriwilltri Posts: 436
    Was thinking of these?

    I have no idea what i'm looking at so any recommendations/advice would be great!

    Shimano 105 SPD-SL Pedals

    http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shi ... s-ec008665
  • JellybabyJellybaby Posts: 180
    If you're going to buy them, don't buy from evans. Much cheaper on ebay or from ribble. Evans always put everything at the MRRP or higher it seems. I think they're about £10 cheaper at ribble.
  • steviedonssteviedons Posts: 10
    I just recently got some pedals and shoes, I was on a bit of a budget so ended up with these:

    Pedals:
    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Shima ... 360011753/

    Shoes:
    http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/shimano- ... 45134.html

    Apart from a fall on my first ride , I haven't had any problems with them and did my first sprint tri in them a few weeks back.
  • willtriwilltri Posts: 436
    If you're going to buy them, don't buy from evans. Much cheaper on ebay or from ribble. Evans always put everything at the MRRP or higher it seems. I think they're about £10 cheaper at ribble.
    Your very much right.

    £54.99 on evans and £38.66 on ribble....

    Does anyone know if these shoes will fit a road cleat.... i'm guessing not

    http://www.cyclesurgery.com/1027632/Spe ... -Shoe.html
  • md6md6 Posts: 969
    I have the Shimano 105 pedals and i haven't had any problems with them, although my shoes (adidas tri star) had a small problem with the thread going in the front hole, which i managed to get sorted.
    The shoes in the link wouldn't fit 3 bolt cleats like the shimano 105 or Look ones mentioned.
  • willtriwilltri Posts: 436
    The shoes in the link wouldn't fit 3 bolt cleats like the shimano 105 or Look ones mentioned.
    That's a shame - i'm going to have to keep on using them for the commute (they are pretty good considering how many times i need to unclip) and if/when i get a race bike - get some nice road shoes then...

    Damn mtb background!!

    May well have a problem with the WAT she is starting to become very suspicious of the ever increasing pile of kit!!
  • Probably just repeating what others have said, but..

    Go for Road/Tri shoes as these are more rigid. Get whichever fit you best and best suit your needs ie do you prefer the ease of putting on/taking off of a Tri shoe, or the secure fit of a road shoe? I have he NorthWave Tri shoes which seem well though out and do a great job.

    Then choose pedals/cleats that fit the holes on the bottom of the shoes. I can't fault my Shimano 105 pedals with the yellow cleats. The yellow cleats offer some 'float' if you are worried about sore knees (Red cleats hae no float) and you can adjust how tight the pedals are.
  • hamiltonhamilton Posts: 7
    I've used both.
    Depending on how seriously you want to take things, you might be fine with MTB shoes and clips. Whilst there's probably a difference between MTB and road shoes in terms of stiffness, the difference is (much?) less than the difference between e.g. trainers and MTB shoes.
    At spin class, I used to get bad cramping in my calves until i started using my MTB shoes (the spin bikes had the combined flat/SPD cleats)... using the MTB shoes, no calve worries.

    The other (potentially big) advantage of MTB shoes is that you can actually walk a sensible distance in them, unlike tri shoes which are frankly impractical, being very slippery on a smooth office floor, and subject to significant wear if used outside on pavements.

    you can also readily get combined flat/MTB cleats... allows you to use normal or MTB shoes - I'm not sure whether you can get an equivalent for road cleats.

    good luck either way!
  • gdh250467gdh250467 Posts: 237
    Firstly, can I ask why you are walking around the office in your Tri shoes.

    Secondly, you can get non-slip cleats for your road / Tri shoes, that have little rubber bits and give a lot better grip. However, I'm sure that one of the more experienced Forumers will soon wade in and say that you don't need to walk in Tri shoes, they should be left clipped onto your pedals at T1 and T2.
  • hamiltonhamilton Posts: 7
    Well,
    I'd like to ride my road bike to/from work.... and I'd rather not have to lump my work shoes as well as my suit in my backpack... so I have to get from the gym in the basement, to my desk on the 10th floor, across an ocean of polished marble, and up some escalators.
    ok, so I _could_ change jobs... point I was trying to make was that SPD shoes are semi-practical, in a way that tri shoes aren't.
    I'll look into cleat covers though...

    and as for remaining clipped in... actually no, it does rather depend on the nature of the transition (the further you have to run, the better it is to leave the shoes clipped in.... but for short distances, the difference is marginal)
  • MrSquishyMrSquishy Posts: 277
    hamilton wrote:
    so I have to get from the gym in the basement, to my desk on the 10th floor, across an ocean of polished marble, and up some escalators.
    Innocent question, but why don't you take your shoes off? Or buy some cheap lightweight flip flops?
  • JulesJules Posts: 987
    I've finally got some clip in pedals and shoes.

    The shoes are reasonable, but I got some cheap second hand Wellgo road pedals on ebay, which I'm intending to upgrade eventually.

    One problem I've noticed is that when I unclip from the pedals, they flip upside down. Do all one sided pedals do this or will better ones stay they right way up?
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