Preconceptions; the 'right' pedals - and a tale of woe.

Danny-K

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 25, 2008
281
0
South West
When I first took up cycling, the conventional wisdom in the cycling press was that to achieve 'ankling', (the height of efficient pedalling), then you fitted toeclips and straps to your pedals. Eventually I fitted a pair of 'Christophe' clips and toe straps to a pair of Campagnolo Super Record road pedals, the type with a nasty pointy upturn on the outer edge of the pedal that always dug into my feet but were 'necessary' to keep your feet positioned - but they were never wide enough for my feet. I endured a decade or so of torturous pain as the must-have 'large size' toe clips dug sharply into my toes. I just thought I was one of those cyclists who complained about sore feet - others would complain about sore backs, sore hands, sore necks, sore bottoms etc.,

Time moved on and it was now the clip-less pedal era with cleats fitted to your cycling shoes - you weren't a serious cyclist unless you NOW had these. So I duly upgraded to them - and the knife-sharp pain that the old fashioned clips had seared into my toes were consigned to history. Unfortunately you have to screw the cleats into your cycling shoes to mimic the 'angle of dangle', so to speak, that your feet naturally took up when walking; I had mine both at straight ahead instead of accepting that I'm a 'ten-to-two' foot person, resulting in knee pain years later.

Fast forward to this year and my first e-bike which came fitted with basic 'beginners' pedals, no clips to aid 'ankling', just a basic pedal - the type you could never be seen on if you wished to be considered a serious cyclist. And oh what comfort. But still they were slippy, so I've just took receipt of these VP platform pedals, (£8.95 delivered), wider and longer than the current pedals, (and much lighter too) - a quick ride round the block reveals even more comfort. I'll be fitting the strapless plastic mini-clips that I find more comfortable than either the toe-clips or the clip-less variety of foot retention to gain extra power on the upstrokes when hill climbing. These are the pedals I'm on about - primarily designed for out-and-out downhill/mountain-bike work:



- And the mini clips:


It takes a long time to cease being a fashion victim.

Another thing that was 'unaccepted' on any serious lightweight cyclist's bike, was a prop stand; never had them before and like plenty of others, watched brand new beautiful paintwork get scratched, before its time, due to the preconception that serious cyclists don't add unnecessary weight to their bikes. After enjoying unprecedented convenience on my e-bike with the comes-as-standard propstand, and what a revelation! I've now gone and fitted prop stands to all my bikes, ahh... at last - the convenience of it all!
 
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Beeping-Sleauty

Esteemed Pedelecer
Dec 12, 2006
410
5
Colchester, Essex
Halfords Elite mini toe-clip

- And the mini clips:
Hi DannyK,

glad you got the pedals sorted out finally,

but i wonder if the mini-clips above will give the support you need for the 'pull up' on the pedals, i tried some of these & found them too floppy.

i use these:

Elite Bike Toe Clips from Halfords Price £6.99

it's more like a solid toe cage, you can stand up on them, and there is enough upper to make use of the up stroke, i find them immensely comfortable, and they don't 'trap' your feet.
 
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Barnowl

Esteemed Pedelecer
Sep 18, 2008
954
1
Genuine question. Is it ok to pull up with one leg and assist your other leg on the downstroke? I always used to especially uphill. Then a couple of cyclists told me it was a good way to damage my knees. I searched the internet sometime ago but couldn't find anything. :confused:
 

flecc

Member
Oct 25, 2006
52,761
30,348
Pulling up on the upstroke can be damaging as it's a completely unnatural thing to do, the knees only fit to lift one's leg, not weights.

"Ankling" is a completely different matter, assisting the rotation horizontally through the lower and upper dead points in order to maintain the achieved speed and reach the point of effective leverage more quickly.

I say long live the utility bike Danny, plain sensible large enough pedals, built in stands and all the other features that make a bike really useful and pleasant to use. My Q bike has got the lot, even a handbrake for when parking it on steep hills, leaving my hands free for locking it with ease.
.
 

John Fleet

Pedelecer
Mar 26, 2007
104
1
Whitley Bay
I like the look of these pedals - I too couldn't get on the so-called non-slip pedals fitted to the Wisper 905se; in truth they were just about the most slippery pedals I've ever come across - could you say where you bought them from?
 

Danny-K

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 25, 2008
281
0
South West
I like the look of these pedals - I too couldn't get on the so-called non-slip pedals fitted to the Wisper 905se; in truth they were just about the most slippery pedals I've ever come across - could you say where you bought them from?
John - got mine from Flandria Bikes on eBay, (£8.95 delivered is cheap!) Tried to put a link in here, but it keeps throwing up 'your payment has been sent' page so may not link properly; anyway here goes -

RARE VP-565 9/16" MTB MOUNTAIN BIKE / BMX PEDALS - NEW on eBay, also Pedals, Bike Parts, Cycling, Sporting Goods (end time 30-Nov-08 13:52:19 GMT)

If it doesn't link through then post "RARE VP-565 9/16" MTB MOUNTAIN BIKE / BMX PEDALS - NEW" in the search box and that should take you to it. Nipped out this evening on them to the shopping centre - average speed was 15 mph for the out and back run, luvvely jubbly - no feet sliding off. Whatever your footwear, (and due to e-biking, I now 'cheat' and use a variety of non-biking footwear, something I never did on my other bikes;preferring a 'locked-in' set up), the little studs find a way of locking into the sole of your footwear. Make sure whatever your choice that you choose 9/16" thread on the spindle as the other 1/2" thread type are for BMX style only cranksets. I like this particular type of pedal as it 'slants' forward of the spindle thus placing your foot a few millimetres further forward - just what I'm looking for, as my starting position on this one-size-fits-all bike has always been a bit cramped for me. And they're quite light too!


...but i wonder if the mini-clips above will give the support you need for the 'pull up' on the pedals, i tried some of these & found them too floppy.
I first fitted the strapless mini clips to my folder - that impressed with their performance I've got a second pair ready for the Salisbury, so no problems to report at all. Used 'pull-up' as a kind of shorthand when in reality they're needed for two main reasons: firstly to secure my foot from slipping off the pedal and secondly to aid ankling which would otherwise prove impossible without some method of securing the foot to the pedal; so I don't really 'pull on' them, (well I do sometimes), but when hill climbing at a slower cadence than usual they help me flip-flop my ankle on the down stroke so that my foot doesn't slip out of the pedal - it seems to get me up hills easier - I can tell the difference - not really aware of 'pulling' per see, but on killer hills it's probably there without me realising it - when rolling along at faster cadences it's almost impossible as you're virtually in toe-down position continually. Hill climbing and ankling comes into its own. So, I really do need my mini clips.

Genuine question. Is it ok to pull up with one leg and assist your other leg on the downstroke? I always used to especially uphill. Then a couple of cyclists told me it was a good way to damage my knees. I searched the internet sometime ago but couldn't find anything. :confused:

Don't really know but If you pull hard, I imagine then as Flecc says it may prove detrimental but if you have a reasonable cadence ie., you're not heaving on the upstroke pull and use it ONLY when the going gets tough and not as a 100% all-the-time method of propulsion then you probably haven't done any harm. I sometimes resort to that method myself, but not as a matter of course, preferring to 'ankle' my way up, even exaggeratedly flipping the heel down to aid the force applied to the downstroke when tired and weary.
 
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Andrew harvey

Pedelecer
Jun 13, 2008
188
0
Wyre Forest
www.smiths-cycles.com
[It takes a long time to cease being a fashion victim.]

Sorry to disappoint you but these pedals are very very fashionable with the younger rider, although to be fair you should have gone for the coloured versions to be ultra trendy.

These pedals or similar should be available from your local bike shop for around the same price.
 

Danny-K

Esteemed Pedelecer
Aug 25, 2008
281
0
South West
So, my bike starts to be considered very nickable, for no other reason than to be stripped of its 'hot' pedals. :)
 

essexman

Pedelecer
Dec 17, 2007
212
0
cb11
Glad those pedals work for you.

I have to say i went for clips and straps and then clipless, but i think i took a lot less painless route. I had nice plastic clips and soft straps (never had a problem), then sensible one sided shimano m324 clipless (which allow your feet to move), again no problems.

When i went to the kalkhoff i shagged my knees in about 2 months, mostly because i was straining to keep my feet on the pedals! My physio thought it was because i was old :(

I still use the pedals that came with my kalkhoff, but I fitted straps to them, purely to hold my foot on the pedal in wet weather. (i'm cycling in smooth soled leather soled shoes). I'm still very nervous about standing up on the bike in wet weather though. However, the utility benefits of being able to cycle in my office clothes overrides not being able to stand up on the hills.

I've been wondering about these wide spiked pedals on mountain bikes and you have me seriously interested. I've seen commuter versions which have some rubber infill, so that the spikes are less pronounced. Anyone got any opionions on these?
 

Mussels

Esteemed Pedelecer
Jun 17, 2008
3,207
8
Crowborough
I tried toe straps first believing that clipless pedals were for the cycling elite, then I bought myself a pair of cycling shoes as the firm sole made long distance riding more comfortable. With those shoes came little studs that are designed to work with the pedal and strap to create a good interface, I found out later the these are known as 'classic cleats' and are considered dangerous, which I found out when I couldn't get my feet out of them at a junction. :rolleyes:
Having my feet attached to the pedals felt much better and I wanted to persist so I revisited the previously abandoned idea of clipless pedals. I had heard about problems with the foot angle causing knee injuries but found out that most brands offer a degree of 'float' this means the foot can move from side to side on the pedal without coming loose.
I bought the fairly standard and beginner friendly SPD pedals and cleats and find them very good. I can ride with a higher cadence to prevent knee injuries and when needed pull up on the pedal as well (which doesn't feel like any strain is being put on my knees). The clipless pedals have given me more stamina and power and I don't have to worry about my feet bouncing off over bumps, they are not the ideal answer for everyone but they are far from a fashion fad.
I remember the old style pedals and I still remember the pain of the studs scraping my shins when I made a mistake, all seems a long time ago now. :)

N.B.
The main benefit I've found with clipless pedals is making higher cadences easier, this doesn't fit well with the way Panasonic motors work.