can of worms *pops off lid*

joshtp

Hey all. this is one of the arguments up there with HT vs FS, natural Vs Trail center......
i am seriously thinking about SPD's (shock horror), i'v always considered my self a hardened Ht rider on flats (gnarly, dude) but im fed up of crashing, or having to slow right down, and not be able to get back up to speed properly becouse i cant pedal on bumpy ground as my feet just get bounced of the pedals. im also attracted to the extra power in the sprints.
however the idea of having special shoes is one i dont like. and im worried my um, "funky" riding style may not be compatible with them, im not sure being un able to unclip in mid crash would be fun.
also i made a pact with one of my "hardcore" riding budy's that we would both always ride HT's and flats. (although he has now got a FS so i dont feel do bad breaking it)

Please help! i cant decide!
(if i do go with spuds, wht shoes should i get on my imensly small budget.(i dont even know if i would stick with them))

Mancunianfightingcat

Do it!

People will tell you that riding flats makes you a better rider.

Well, Lewis Hamilton has a semi automatic gear box, traction control, etc etc, so is my Granddad a better driver in his Suzuki Alto?.......

Alex

Buy 5.10s for playbiking.

Buy clips for XC.

No-one ever said you weren't allowed to do both.

supersonic

Try them out and use what feels best. There is no right and wrong in what you should or shouldn't use.

Soul Boy

You again?

I came from SPD's and was fine on them, but never really was an 'air' person. Found last year in the Alps that although they did stop my feet moving off the pedals, I felt a little resticted.

Came home, bought some MG-1s and 5-10's and haven't really* looked back.

This year in Les Arc I had much more fun, hitting jumps on the downhill, bashing my way down 'Black 8' (810m decent over 10km's), doing the intermediate North Shore stuff (some of the advanced is outrageous!). My feet didn't leave the pedals unless I wanted them to and all this on my Soul

I'm not a racer, I'm just out for fun and I think I have more fun on flats.

*would have been nice on the way up the Wall, Whites Level......

dave_hill

FFS...

joshtp

i think ill try them, i can always change back i supose. what i may do is make the pedal spaner a good friend and just keep on the spd's most off the time, but stick on some flats when im feeling a bit "airy" or if im doing a day of DH or am generally mucking around.

joshtp

dave_hill wrote:

FFS...

What????

MacAndCheese

Alex wrote:

Buy 5.10s for playbiking.

Buy clips for XC.

No-one ever said you weren't allowed to do both.

+1, my thoughts exactly

supersonic

Or ride XC on flats, or playbike on SPDs ;-)

RealMan

I've been well tempted to put spds on my BMX recently. Just to try it out...

SPDs for everything, anyway. Except maybe jump bike.

supersonic

Many BMX racers do use SPDs.

RealMan

Yeah that's why I've been thinking of doing it.

llamafarmer

supersonic wrote:

Try them out and use what feels best. There is no right and wrong in what you should or shouldn't use.

This

captainfly

Just keep some weight on the pedals over the bumpy stuff. If you are pedaling your feet won't bounce off, if you are sat on your saddle with your feet not weighed on the pedal it won't make the slightest difference having sticky soles on flats.
Clips or flats is personal thing but using them to cover bad habits is not cool.

MilitantGraham

Try one of each.
Which side do you normally crash on ?
Put the flat pedal on that side and the SPD on the other.

VWsurfbum

MilitantGraham wrote:

Try one of each.
Which side do you normally crash on ?
Put the flat pedal on that side and the SPD on the other.

Genius! i always come off on my left hand side!

joshtp

im not doing it to cover bad habits! i dontr sit down to pedal on rough stuff! but you have to aggree that its hard to pedal fast on really bumpy ground, when your feet arnt atatched to the pedals, you can get any proper power down, you just get knocked all over the place. i think i wil try spd's, but to stat with i may go one of each!!!!

cgarossi

For MTB I would recommend Crank Brothers style clipless pedals. You get more float on your foot and they feel more natural than Shimano ones. Also theres less to go wrong. I've converted to them from the traditional Shimano SPD pedal.

You WILL fall off, or rather, just comedically topple over from time to time but you'll get used to them. I will never go back to flats but as stated theres no reason why you can't have both sets to suit your riding style.

I just feel more stable on the bike and I can be assured that my foot position is always correct reducing the chances of cramp in my calves. Also power on the upstroke is a big advantage for speed and power on the climbs.

Generally they have a lot of advantages over flats for XC riding and im not affraid to use them when going fast downhill either, I have no problems kicking out of the clips if I need to (its now second nature) so theres nothing to be afraid of. The benefits outweigh the disadvantages (if any).

Do it!

joshtp

im just worried about jumping on clips, brechfa black aline tables on clips?ouch!

bomberesque

Give it a go
as for shoes, I'd have a look at Shimano MT31s. pretty good shoe, cheap-as and don't even look too spakky.

Thewaylander

SPD's are for losers.

Or people who hit those lovely lips on evey trail at 3 miles an hour. :P

Stick with flats and show you can really ride! hehe

cgarossi

joshtp/mbukman wrote:

im just worried about jumping on clips, brechfa black aline tables on clips?ouch!

I don't have a problem with jumping per se. Although I wouldn't use SPDs for big jumps, they do help with bunny hopping though and smaller jumps.

Thewaylander

cgarossi wrote:

joshtp/mbukman wrote:

im just worried about jumping on clips, brechfa black aline tables on clips?ouch!

I don't have a problem with jumping per se. Although I wouldn't use SPDs for big jumps, they do help with bunny hopping though and smaller jumps.

No they don't they just allow to you cheat for bunnyhoping with out developing correct technique, there for stunting your maximum potential height. my previous post was a bit of a joke. but for bunnyhoping the only way to learn is to learn on flats.

cgarossi

Who cares? I don't. Fact is I can hop over stuff easily than with flats.

joshtp

i can already bunyhop a respectable height with flats, i ride Trials for peats sake!

cgarossi

Steve Peat?

joshtp

is th world champion! woohooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(what poit were you trying to make?)

cgarossi

Nothing really

Anyway, SPDs = Good. Theres no reason not to try them and I'll think you'll find them full of advantages.

joshtp

ok, il try SPD'S, but ill keep the pedal spaner and my trusty V8's handy, i may well swap back.....
but i dont know if i have the guts to suddenly start riding the trails i normaly ride fully attatched to the bike, im worried im just gonna go flying! :oops:

cgarossi

You're not fully attached to the bike, just more secure. Which is what you need if you're going over bumps and still need power. Your feet wont fly off when negotiating rocks, especially on uphills.

Practice kicking in and out while riding around a car park, and personally I advise going for Crank Brothers, they need no adjustment and have more float, which makes them feel more natural. For me anyway. The cleats are brass and wear out a bit quicker but because its a softer metal its easier to clip in and out. But try both and see which you prefer.

Within a couple of days you won't even notice you have them, I assure you.