Road Pedals

Ellie82

Hi

I just wondered what the options are for pedals on a road bike. Im a newbie to road bikes and im a bit confused about what the options are. Even a link to a post (as im sure you have covers this many times)

Thanks

fnegroni

http://www.bonthronebikes.co.uk/help/pedals

Ellie82

Thats just what i wanted, thanks

kingrollo

Alot of people who are nervous about clipless - start with SPD - these are IMO easier to click in and out of - and if you buy an MTB shoes - its easier to put your footdown or walk.

I use wellgo on my commutter - with a flat pedal one side - and an SPD the other - so I can pedal without being clicked in.

On my best bike - I have spd-sl - which provides a larger cleat to click in - and much better power transfer - depends how confident you are to go for this option straight away.

Ellie82

Oh right thanks, sounds like SPD are what im looking at for then. Can always get a set now and get used to them on my mountain like while I wait for my new road bike.

spd-sl are always something to look forward in the future when im super confident if that ever happens

Ellie82

Am i right in thinking these are compatible?

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shi ... ?query=spd

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/shi ... s-ec017594

fnegroni

yes :-)

Although road shoes will not be easy to walk with. MTB shoes have a recessed cleat which makes it better for walking.

Ellie82

Look good though 8)

I will have a look at mtb shoes too

Eau Rouge

You've gone for a "worst of both worlds" approach there.
Those shoes will mean the cleats are exposed, and no easier to walk in that road cleats. The main benifit of the SPD system is that the cleats can be recessed in the shoe allowing you to walk about normally. If you're getting those shoes, you may as well go and get road cleats/pedals to go with them.

rally200

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?PartnerID=79&ModelID=28051

A520 spd pedals made for road bikes - look good and in theory the platform gives more support than a regular spd pedal

http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=product&productId=756&categoryId=81

M324 - look a bit clunky on a road bike but are great if you think you might need to cycle in your trainers occasionally.


There are Shimano "touring" spd shoes - recessed cleat & smooth soles

but any recessed spd shoe will do - best to get ratchet & velcro fasteners rather than laces, as you can adjust on the move

doyler78

I personally don't like these transitional type approaches to product choice. Personally I'd just get the right product for what you want to do and spend the time getting used to it. Spds especially dual sided ones I think just complicate the whole learning process if road pedals are what you move to as the transition to riding single sided can be just as hard as the initial process of learning to ride road specific pedals in the first place. In any case spds engagement is different to road pedal engagement so again that's another thing you have to get used to.

I personally never found spd's to be that great for me. It was only when I moved to spd-sl did I begin to enjoy riding clipless. I actually found it easier however I realise that I am in a minority on this.

If spd's are what you want because they allow you walk around with their recessed cleats then you will no doubt get along very well with them and will very likely be the best option in this circumstance however if the riding that you do involves very little walking then personally I'd say get road pedals.

vision267

My advice dont get mtb pedals,performance is not so good.Road pedals are strange at first but after a week no problem

Little Em

Hi
When I first got my road bike I went straight to road clipless pedals. I got some Look sprint ones. They are a little odd at first but there are various cleats you can get to help out. I think the red ones allow the most movement from side to side in your pedal, then the grey (which I like and have stuck with) then black. I did fall over a few times but if you sit in your hall way and lean on the wall and practice it seems to help and they really aren't that hard. From a girls point of view they did have womens ones that were a bit more pricey. I just went for the normal ones and never had any prob they are sill going strong after 3 years. But the only thing I would say is it depends how much you plan to get off and walk about when you are riding. The cleats for the clipless are not ideal to walk on as they are slippy and it gradually wears them out. I think on spd's you are more able to stroll about. Having said that my clipless have been fine to make a few cake stops ! Good luck

rally200

vision267 wrote:

My advice dont get mtb pedals,performance is not so good.Road pedals are strange at first but after a week no problem

"Road" biking is a very broad church

MTB / Road choice all depends on what you'll use the bike for . If you use the bike occasionally to get to meetings/social events where you can't wear cycle shoes then the platform option is pretty much an essential rather than a transitional measure.

If you use the bike as part of a bigger day out, visiting destinations where you'll walk about then touring SPDs make sense.

If you're on a very tight budget then the basic MTB shoes and pedals are far better than flats.

If your going to use it for purely sport/fitness then I'd agree proper road shoes and pedals are the only sensible choice.

Ellie82

Thanks everyone, only using the bike for fitness to and from home not out for days stopping different places etc so think it will be best to just go for it and get the proper one,

Just a bit daunting getting used to a road bike and pedals at the same time but im just i will get there.

Ellie82

Little Em wrote:

Hi
When I first got my road bike I went straight to road clipless pedals. I got some Look sprint ones. They are a little odd at first but there are various cleats you can get to help out. I think the red ones allow the most movement from side to side in your pedal, then the grey (which I like and have stuck with) then black. I did fall over a few times but if you sit in your hall way and lean on the wall and practice it seems to help and they really aren't that hard. From a girls point of view they did have womens ones that were a bit more pricey. I just went for the normal ones and never had any prob they are sill going strong after 3 years. But the only thing I would say is it depends how much you plan to get off and walk about when you are riding. The cleats for the clipless are not ideal to walk on as they are slippy and it gradually wears them out. I think on spd's you are more able to stroll about. Having said that my clipless have been fine to make a few cake stops ! Good luck

Thanks Em

I will have a 'look' and them, nice to get a girls point of view

Ellie82

Little Em wrote:

Hi
When I first got my road bike I went straight to road clipless pedals. I got some Look sprint ones. They are a little odd at first but there are various cleats you can get to help out. I think the red ones allow the most movement from side to side in your pedal, then the grey (which I like and have stuck with) then black. I did fall over a few times but if you sit in your hall way and lean on the wall and practice it seems to help and they really aren't that hard. From a girls point of view they did have womens ones that were a bit more pricey. I just went for the normal ones and never had any prob they are sill going strong after 3 years. But the only thing I would say is it depends how much you plan to get off and walk about when you are riding. The cleats for the clipless are not ideal to walk on as they are slippy and it gradually wears them out. I think on spd's you are more able to stroll about. Having said that my clipless have been fine to make a few cake stops ! Good luck

Thanks Em

I will have a 'look' and them, nice to get a girls point of view