Review: The huge Shimano Deore XT PD-M8040 flat pedals come with vicious pins, but not all of them made it | Bike Self Locking Pedals

Actually, I needn’t have worried. The trails soon venture into the woods proper, and traction issues largely disappear. All that chalk is hidden under layer upon layer of leaf mulch, and as lacking in traction as it is, it’s much more of a known quantity for my delicate Northern sensibilities – and it’s no match for the tyres. It’s gratifying to be able to lean the bike over into corners and accelerate out the other side without worrying (too much). The trails are everything I’d imagined them to be – a happy flowing middle ground where there’s fun to be had riding them gently, and fun to be had riding them hard. Short, flattering climbs lead onto flowy, bermy descents. A short, steep chute gives a few of us pause, before we decide that our collective confidence is up to the task, and we ride it anyway. And, once again, grip was there in unexpected but welcome profusion.

And that’s happening, she said, with bike infrastructure more commonly incorporated into project developments — just not as fast as bike advocates might prefer.

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The release on both systems is distinct, and neither leads to unwanted exit. Due to its Iclic system, once the Time releases, it doesn’t feel like it wants to pull you back in if you are unclipping slow before a stop. The Look, on the other hand, always wants to maintain its closed position.

My understanding of current thinking is that you should not be trying to pull up (damaging to knees being the reason) only "getting your feet out of the way" during the up stroke. You should still be actively kicking forward at the top of the stroke and pulling your foot back at the bottom – these would be sensible reasons why a cleat would seem to be an advantage over flat pedals. Having said that good flat pedals with decent raised grips (the little bolt style ones especially) used with flat rubber-soled shoes are nearly as good for kicking  forward and pulling back.

Lohmeyer said he was aware of the wear issue and expected the steel version to be the best choice going forward.

With the tension adjustment left untouched for my first couple of rides, I found unclipping tricky. Even with the tension screw backed off completely, things still felt quite tight. Thankfully, after a few more days on the trails, the mechanism bedded in, things loosened up and clipping in and out became easier.

The fit is superb, the size 45 shoes fitting my feet as good as any other top-end shoe I’ve ever tested and sizing well compared to other brands. The twin Boa dials let you adjust the fit with precision and pressure is spread very evenly over the entire foot. There are no hot spots or pinch points. The Boa dials can be easily tightened and loosed on the fly too, and popping them up releases the tension so you can easily and quickly get out of them.

The Hellcats work fine, even with Eggbeater pedals. However, they feel even better with a clipless pedal with a bit more platform. photo: Leah Barber

For obvious reasons, I’m doing all my riding in winter boots at the moment. I treated myself to a pair of Shimano MW7 boots. Nice and comfy, stiff soled, but not impressed with the new design. I used to be able to get away with the odd ‘dab in a stream’ with my old MW80’s, but the new ones have a lycra tongue hidden under a flap which quickly lets water in when they’re submerged, as opposed to the older design with a waterproof leather tongue. Summer riding is done in a pair of Lake SPD boots.

Looking for more information to help you make your mountain bike shoe buying decision? Check out this article on choosing the right MTB shoes.

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