Clipless pedals: why you don’t need to be scared of switching | Environment | Spd Pedals

“When people ask ‘What flat pedals?’ on the internet, these aren’t an option I’ve seen put forward before. More’s the pity, because I’m finding them great – even in the worst weather the UK has to offer. Perhaps that’s because NS Bikes’ home in Poland has a less temperate climate than the UK. First introduced in 2014, Radiance flat pedals seem to have had few to no revisions apart from the colours and a five gram reduction in claimed weight (395 down to 390g)…” Read the full review here.

The trails here are quite different to where I usually ride, though. Leafy, wooded undulating chalk land is pretty scarce in the corner of the Pennines I call home. I’m more used to wide open moorland, liberally strewn with rocks. Calderdale in Yorkshire has woods, sure, but mostly precipitously steep ones, with weirdly grippy Millstone Grit under tyre and sardonic Yorkshiremen in flat caps eating chips cooked in dripping commenting impenetrably as I inevitably hurtle over something foolish. There are steps. There is weather. All of the weather. Frequently, all of the weather at once. My local riding has incrementally become something of a gnar-fest. Granted, my enthusiasm usually outweighs my competence, but riding for any length of time in Calderdale gently massages you down a greasy chute of tech. Of course, there’s plenty of non-technical riding too, but a ride’s not a *proper* ride unless there are liberal helpings of thrutch, a couple of ‘oof’s and (usually) more than one whimper.

Similarly, when the holidays roll around, you don’t need to spend a fortune to delight the cyclist in your life with a gift. Forget the $2,000 carbon wheelset. Here are a few gifts you can buy with the tiny balance sitting in that Paypal account you forgot you had.

The cartridge-style axle assembly is widely used in Shimano’s pedal range, and offers well-proven durability. When needed, it’s also very easy to service.

Five Ten Sam Hill Named after the formidable EWS Champ, these shoes are designed to stomp stages. The soles are so thick they look like short hiking boots from a distance and are likely just as durable. Claimed weight 549g. $160 USD.

“With nylon bodies, the Race Face Chesters were one of only two plastic pedals on test. Nylon isn’t the absolute toughest plastic, but it is cheap, tough, and can be molded in a lot of different colours. I don’t think anything else in this grouptest comes in the seven colour array Chesters do, so if you’re primarily looking for…” Read the full review here.

Even the cheapest pedals have never really been better than now, and prove they don’t have to be generic to come in under a budget. At the more expensive end of the scale, companies are engineering everything right down to the smallest details, experimenting with and creating features that might become standard in future.

One of the other advantages of clipless pedals is that you can get more power out of your legs by being able to pull up on the pedal stroke in addition to pushing down however, this highlights the disadvantage of multi-release cleats since if you pulled up on these your foot would come out of the pedal. 

I’ve been in the Vancouver bike club for 11 years. For 10 years, I rode carbon road bikes. Four months ago I bought an e-bike and I love it. I used to hate going up hills and getting dropped by the faster group. Now I can ride with anybody. Even though I don’t commute, it would be an outstanding way to commute because you don’t get all sweaty and you can climb hills in a breeze. You also can get the same workout you did on your other bike; you just keep it in the lower assist modes. A number of the older (60-plus) people in the club are switching to e-bikes, so they can still ride with the club and enjoy it. I’m 71.

The Maltese Falcon has a skate-style feel similar to the company’s Freerider Pro but is a bit narrower and has a stiffer feeling sole. Despite the narrower last, it’s still roomier than other comparable shoes, but the padding around the ankle and on the tongue keeps the fit snug. This shoe excels at repelling mud and water, and even when it does end up in a puddle, it dries pretty quickly. While out riding, the only time I was able to notice a major difference between the Freerider Pro and Maltese Falcon was on rock gardens; the SPD cleat on the latter gave me that little extra from each pedal stroke to get me through.

You notice their lack of weight when pedalling, but what really grabs your attention is the impressive power transfer. Stamp hard on the pedals and there’s no hint of flex. The shoes are super stable too when you’re pushing on the pedals. It’s very positive and rewards those cyclists that like to push hard on the pedals all the time. 

Shimano shoes are generally quite generous with who they fit, and the XC5’s relaxed nature only adds to this reputation. With a more open heel design, a forgiving upper and a pliable sole, there’s certainly more leeway here than with a race shoe. However, a lack of width choices is perhaps as much a sign of the price as it is of demand. If your foot shape is at one extreme of the bell-curve, you’ll likely want to pursue something with additional width options.