Crankbrothers Stamp 2, 3, 7 and 11 flat pedals | Bike Self Locking Pedals

And so we set off. It’s very, very (very) moist, but thankfully not actually raining. Breath condenses in curlicues of cloud as we head up the drive that I sloshed my way down in the rain last night; we cross the main road, and then head over a field. It’s at this point, as the terrain dips downwards and speed picks up, that I realise two things – one, that it’s really rather bloody cold, and two, wet chalk is famously less grippy than Yorkshire grit. It’s actually rather greasier than an oiled ferret selling used cars. I make it down to the gate with my front wheel ahead of my back one more by luck than judgement, and giving silent thanks that I removed a couple of psi from the Maxxis Forekaster tyres.

The relatively low price of Xpresso 2s makes them a sensible place to start if you’re a newcomer to road-specific click-in pedals. They’re light, easy to use and very easy to adjust to different foot position and release preferences, though they’re not the most durable.

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The pre-production pedals we’ve been testing arrived sans pins, though production versions will come with 2.5mm tall steel pins that thread in from the backside for durability. They can be run with washers to shrink them to 1.85mm, or removed completely.

Going to unbox the missus’ set soon and try lubing the spring and see if it’s easier from the get-go (took me a while to pick up that tip). 

Speedplay pedals are always touted as being super light, but the cleat on the shoe looks like it weighs a lot more than a simple plastic look type cleat. Out of interest what is the total system weight including cleats for the lightest from each brand?

Shimano’s single-sided PD-A600 SPD road pedal isn’t new; far from it, in fact. First introduced in 2010, it was originally billed as an Ultegra-level alternative for roadies who wanted the stability of a traditional three-bolt system but the walking convenience of a recessed two-bolt cleat.

More commonly used by mountain bikers and commuters, SPDs have been around for 20 years and they’ve seen little change since.

In case you’re wondering why they’re called clipless pedals, it’s because pedals used to have metal cages, called toe clips, and leather straps to hold the shoe in place. Racing shoes had cleats that were slotted to fit the cage of the pedal. To get out, you had to loosen the strap. Falling over at traffic lights behind a busload of schoolkids was not unknown.

Lots of riders struggle to get used to clipless pedals for fear they’ll fall because they won’t be able to get out of them. But there’s a secret that makes life much easier and safer for clipless beginners.

Staff at The Arizona Republic took on a carless commute to explore public transit options in the Phoenix area. (Photo: Joshua Bowling/The Republic)

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