Pedal Choice for "Red" Trails?

ride_whenever

dan shard wrote:

Oh and as for which ones. Id recommend DMR (V8 or V12) or if on a budget Welgo are pretty good replicas for half the price

:roll:

Wellgo make the dmr ones... there are much better pedals available for less/the same direct from wellgo.

Anonymous

^

Wellgo B54s are also good if you don't mind the large size of them. They're Uber grippy especially when combined with Five Tens (fit all the pins though as by default the middle ones aren't screwed in).

nickel

dan shard wrote:

Id always use flays but like it says its personal. I like to be able to dab a foot down on a fast / flat corner if I need to, or be able to create distance between the bike and me if I think a jump is going wrong.

imho the worst part of falling off is being tangled up in my bike and end up with aluminium bars in places where aluminium bars should never go!

Personally I think SPDs are a darn site nicer to use than being flayed thank you very much :P

tenfoot

I rode the red single track at Bedgebury before christmas with my spds on. I didn't have any issues, but next time I go, think I'll take my V8s too and see which I prefer.

When it comes to which I feel better on - I spent the first half of my cycling life riding unclipped pedals and learnt a hell of a lot on BMX bikes with Shimano DX pedals. I've spent the second half of my cycling life on spd pedals. Both feel natural, but as I haven't used my flats for a while, it would be interesting to see if maybe I prefer them now.

wicked2627

I persevered with SPD's for a few months but I was always too afraid to try anything new as I was always afraid I couldn't clip out in time. Sometimes i'd clip out before approaching obstacles, which in itself makes the bike a lot more unstable.

Also, when the pedals became full of crud, it was harder to both clip in and out.

Went to flats and have never looked back. Yes, it takes more effort going uphill but I found I was enjoying it a lot more. I also have an adjustable seatpost that helps when on the road.

I'd personally go for flats and you could swap back in the future.

WierdBeard

The ol' spd versus flats debate again.

Its down to personal preference and what you feel comfortable with. Try both and see which you prefer. Some people ride different type trails with different pedals so trial and error really.

I personally ride flats, superstar nano techs with shimano am40 shoes and they are super sticky.

Without being offensive i do find it humerous when spd users stop and cant get their feet out the pedals and fall to the side in slow motion.

HebdenBiker

Update:

Rode the red trail at Gisburn today using V8s. Yes I was a lot more confident, yes I had more fun, but I went slower uphill and on the flat. You definitely waste energy keeping your feet on the pedals when you're pedalling flats.

Actually today has opened up a can of worms. I currently ride a small frame with long stem and long seatpost. This is perfect for the bridleways and farm tracks near where I live, but I'm realising a bigger frame and a shorter stem is the way to go for riding technical trails...

Northwind

HebdenBiker wrote:

You definitely waste energy keeping your feet on the pedals when you're pedalling flats.

Really not sure what this means... You shouldn't be needing to use any energy to keep your feet on the pedals, it's a passive thing.

HebdenBiker

Northwind wrote:

Really not sure what this means... You shouldn't be needing to use any energy to keep your feet on the pedals, it's a passive thing.

OK putting it another way, you can push down with greater force when using clipless.

Think about it. If flat pedals were the most efficient foot/bike interface, then no-one would have invented toe clips, or indeed clipless systems.

Some people think that the only advantage of clipless is the ability to "pull up" as well as "push down". But that's not the whole story.

Anonymous

It's not even part of the story let alone half of it. True, the soles of flat shoes are squidgier, and some energry is expended in squidging it, because the shoe/pedal interface isn't as stiff as a clipped system, but still, you shouldn't need to expend any energy keeping your feet on the pedals.

HebdenBiker

yeehaamcgee wrote:

It's not even part of the story let alone half of it. True, the soles of flat shoes are squidgier, and some energry is expended in squidging it, because the shoe/pedal interface isn't as stiff as a clipped system, but still, you shouldn't need to expend any energy keeping your feet on the pedals.

OK maybe I expressed myself badly. What I meant was that I couldn't push the pedals with the same amount of force as when I use clipless.

Anonymous

Can't say I'm fussed about my own peddling efficiency. I'm too busy enjoying hurtling down trails.

The pros of flats isn't about energy efficiency. Depends what you ride though and what's important to you.

HebdenBiker wrote:

OK maybe I expressed myself badly. What I meant was that I couldn't push the pedals with the same amount of force as when I use clipless.

Not sure why that should be.

Also, there's a misunderstanding with flats vs clipless that you can only pull with clipless. Good flats with big pins and good shoes allow you to apply a bit of power on the back foot at the top of the rise before it goes over and you push down.

Though not everyone is using flats or clipless efficiently anyway.

phz

if you're pedalling good circles and not just stomping up and down then it is still possible to apply pedalling power on flats for most of the entire pedal stroke

admittedly not as efficiently as you can when clipped in though...

slainte rob

angry_bird

I just moved back to flats properly after a couple of years on clipless. Have to say I forgot how much nicer it is, trying to remember why I stuck with SPDs in the first place.

thelodge

Ask a rider who learnt to bunnyhop with spd's to get on a bike with flats and bunnyhop, one of the funniest things you will ever see.

The point is if you like spd's thats fine but basic bike handling skills should be learnt on flats prior to riding spd's.

you cant go wrong with Shimano dx imo.

angry_bird

thelodge wrote:

Ask a rider who learnt to bunnyhop with spd's to get on a bike with flats and bunnyhop, one of the funniest things you will ever see.

The point is if you like spd's thats fine but basic bike handling skills should be learnt on flats prior to riding spd's.

you cant go wrong with Shimano dx imo.

I didn't find it a problem first time on the new flats, albeit I can't remember whether I could bunny hop before I started using clipless or not, but still spent the past couple of years being lazy and pulling up

WierdBeard

deadkenny wrote:

Can't say I'm fussed about my own peddling efficiency. I'm too busy enjoying hurtling down trails.

Never really thought about energy efficency riding flats. I seem to keep up with spd users on my flats. As qouted previously by someone else if you have desent shoes and good pins then your feet stick to the pedal anyway.

HebdenBiker

Considering going with flats and toe clips. Best of both worlds, young man

Anonymous

Toe clips? You're kidding right? All the disadvantages of both systems combined into une unltra-hell.

angry_bird

yeehaamcgee wrote:

Toe clips? You're kidding right? All the disadvantages of both systems combined into une unltra-hell.

More importantly they look stupid.

Anonymous

At this point a comment on lycra is probably in order :P

Anonymous

Lycra pedals? Don't be daft!

kirby700

I admit toe clips are a bit odd looking but after crushing my scaphoid and chipping another bone theres no way I'll ever do Spds on or off road. 12 weeks of no biking, no car, no xbox and 7 days in hospital outpatients getting casts removed re-xrayed etc etc. At least with clips you can slip your feet out on dodgy areas.

Anonymous

kirby700 wrote:

I admit toe clips are a bit odd looking but after crushing my scaphoid and chipping another bone theres no way I'll ever do Spds on or off road. 12 weeks of no biking, no car, no xbox and 7 days in hospital outpatients getting casts removed re-xrayed etc etc. At least with clips you can slip your feet out on dodgy areas.

If you can slip your feet out of toe clips, then you're not using them properly. They're meant to be tight, to the point that you have to undo the strap to get your feet out.

Just use flats.

kirby700

True, but on any particular rocky parts just reach down and flick the straps, works for me.

HebdenBiker

yeehaamcgee wrote:

If you can slip your feet out of toe clips, then you're not using them properly. They're meant to be tight, to the point that you have to undo the strap to get your feet out.

Just use flats.

Clips with loose straps enable you to push into the clips, thus remedying the pedalling efficiency problem with flats I was talking about earlier. Not as efficient as clipless, but a half-way house.

I love toe clips - they work for me. Although admittedly they are unfashionable

lazyarsehole

As many people have said before me, it's all down to personal preference. I use both dependant on which bike I am using and where I am riding. Also, I use the DX pedal which has the outer body so when I come across a section I am unfamiliar with or not confident on, I can unclip one foot and use the pedals platform.

I'd say keep your options open ... use whatever suits the ride you're heading out on

Anonymous

HebdenBiker wrote:

Clips with loose straps enable you to push into the clips, thus remedying the pedalling efficiency problem with flats

Decent shoes and good flat pedals allow you to do that anyway.

angry_bird

yeehaamcgee wrote:

HebdenBiker wrote:

Clips with loose straps enable you to push into the clips, thus remedying the pedalling efficiency problem with flats

Decent shoes and good flat pedals allow you to do that anyway.

+ flat potato

WierdBeard

Bloody hell, Toe clips! Didnt think they had been around since raleigh mustangs where about.

But whatever you feel comfortable with, dont worry what anyone else thinks.

Its about your ride being fun.