Clipless or flat?

rapid_uphill

i agree spuds are fantastic for making chips...mmmmm well tasty :P

infoxicated

I have slightly ropey knees, so that's my biggest concern with them - I'm hoping there's enough float to stop them from aching.

richen

i have had better results with the time's than with spd's in that regard but i used to just ride the spd's loose and it was not a problem. as someone said earlier you don't pop out that often unless your trying o bunny hop just useing the pedals, thats painful!
:oops:

Flynny2010

I have a slightly dodgy right knee as well, too much rugby and road running!

I will see how it goes!

konadawg

It's a positive progression to SPDs

I even use them for really gnarly bits, they give you the confidence that your feet are not coming off the pedals, and besides, if you do fall off the always seem to unclip fine!

In fact if I don't manage to clip in on some steep and hairy bit, that's where I really feel unsafe.

I realise how much I use them because if I try to ride hard on flats, my feet tend to fly off the pedals through the effort that I'm making.

Flynny2010

I sure it all comes with confidence!

Only thing is with all this snow and ice and having to ride home from the bike shop on Monday i don't think its the best conditions to be refreshing my memory. Might have to take the van

Northwind

konadawg wrote:

I realise how much I use them because if I try to ride hard on flats, my feet tend to fly off the pedals through the effort that I'm making.

Don't take this the wrong way, but that's either a hardware or technique issue, you only have to look at the downhillers to use flats to see that if you're doing it right, your feet don't come off. The sme techniques that keep you on flats are also useful for SPDs so it's worth developing them.

morleyman200

well i went for the top answer
i got them because i went to a shop and i was telling them, when i was on long rides, 15 miles + my knees would really start to hurt, and it was my right one only. this guy told me how he had the same problem, and he was saying its to do with the angle of your ankle. he was saying how specialized have recognized this, and they angle the sole of there shoes ever so slightly so it corrects the angle of the ankle, but it only works with SDPs and quite honestly they make riding much easier, and more powerful, plus over rivets and bumps, so much more control in where you feet are and your pedaling.
would recommend them to anyone.

tom

joshtp

i set up a similar thread a few months back, when i was considering it. search for a thread called "can of worms *pops of lid*
i went for it in the end, an di dont regret it, sure they arnt as good for mega tech stuff, but i still love them, and wouldnt change back.... not for general riding anyway....
and i have DX shoes, and big platformed pedals, so i can unclip and stay ride as on flats when i need to, like on mega tech stuff.

Matt N

Thanks loads for the responces...i'm going to get some entry level ones to start and see how it goes

Anonymous

Other than the benefit for climbs, I don't really see the benefit, especially if you do a lot of singletrack and downhill.

I'm not keen on being clipped in whilst going head first over the bars! I want to be as far away from the bike as possible when that happens and not have it follow me, or my legs snapping in the process! :shock:

But other than that, what's the problem with keeping your feet on the peddles with flats? I rarely lose my footing. Maybe it's the shoes, though I'm just using old trainers. The tread perhaps is good for the grips on the peddles. Also I've found I can get some upstroke power if I angle the foot down.

The only problem I have is more when I get off, or fall off and the peddles get knocked, fly round and give me a fresh set of dents in the shins . Shin guards are the solution there.

infoxicated

Sorry for dredging up a seven month old topic, but I finally got my SPD's and shoes today, after six months of waiting for the shoes I wanted to come in.

I could have had them a few months back, but the supplier for my LBS only had the shoes in brown and I have a bit of a dislike of that particular colour, so I decided to hold off seeing as I'd waited 20 years worth of cycling to get SPD's anyway!

At first I just couldn't get clipped into the pedals, and that was just leaning against a wall in the bike shop, never mind out on the trails. Turned out that you push toward your toe, rather than straight down - nobody had mentioned that to me, but once I clipped in a few times it made sense.

So off I went on a short 10k ride and I have to say I really liked the experience. Really felt like I could put the power down and using that upstroke again will help loads on the longer rides. They didn't cause me to fall at all, even though I had a dog walk in front of me in the woods and had to unclip sharpish.

I'm due to go on a 2 hour off road ride on Tuesday night and I'm debating whether to use the new shoes or not. I got the type of pedals with the cage where the clip lies down under pressure if you're wearing flatties instead of the SPD shoes, so that does give me a get out clause.

On first ride I do think they're going to be a benefit in the long term, though.

Neil Fat man on a bike

I'm riding spd's on the hard tail and just fitted some flatties to the fs......UNDECIDED as to whch I preffer.
Very impressed by the flats, incredibly grippy and great just to jump on and off the bike without changing footware (nipping to the shops or taking the dog out) but my feet have 'bounced' off them a couple of times when clattering through the rough.
Equally well I have found my feet popping out of the spds for no apparent reason, this is a real pain, so I've probably over compensated by turning up the tension on the pedals, I need to check cleat wear.

I'm heading out with clippies today.

mattyboy199

i bought a set of wellgo MG-1 pedals i then ordered DMR pedal pimp set (the pins are longer). The trainers i ride in feel very secure & planted to the pedal, probably no where near as good as SPD's but if your looking for a flat pedal with decent grip i recommend them, their lighter & cheaper than DMR V12 mags, you can also get a ti axle version / conversion to make them even lighter. I was running mk1 DMR V12 previously & these are so much better !

Anonymous

Wellgo B54 gets a big thumbs up from me for grippy flats. I couldn't imagine SPDs for the kind of off-road I do. It's too technical trail / semi-DH and I'd just be in the bushes still clipped in half the time. DH with SPD must be just plain madness.

I feel SPD goes with "proper" XC, lycra and obsessions about bike weight :P. Pyjama wearers and those in baggies, always flats