‘Traditional’ racing pedals v knees

[ACS]

I have been trying without any success to find the correct cleat position so that my left knee is not tender at the end of a run out. I would be interested to know if anyone made the transition from ‘traditional’ racing pedals with cage and straps to a clip-less system and back again and the reasons why.
I am scared that if I continue to ride without resolving this alignment problem soon I will cause lasting damage and I will be lost to the sport because the SWMBO will kill me for continually raiding the piggy bank (n=n+1)

 

[Scoosh]

C+ had a couple of excellent articles all about knees and how to look after them, in July and August last year.

Pt 1 is here .....
and Pt 2 is here.

I found these to be very useful and hope yooo dooo tooooo

 

[gbb]

I havnt made the transition back SB, but i do run both systems...cages on my winter hack, clipless on the good bike.
What would concern me in your case SB, is there some underlying knee problem that cycling is aggravating, not causing. Does that make sense. I think i'd be seeing the doctor.

 

[ACS]

C+ had a couple of excellent articles all about knees and how to look after them, in July and August last year.

Pt 1 is here .....
and Pt 2 is here.

I found these to be very useful and hope yooo dooo tooooo

Hope your well. Thanks for this I will read them tomorrow (at work ), need my bed after this evening battle with the wind.

 

[HLaB]

I had spd's on my bike then I moved closer to work and decided normal shoes were better for the short distance, after a while though I converted back.

 

[montage]

Check out what Peanut says in this thread : http://www.cyclechat.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=32306

 

[montage]

And double check saddle height

 

[accountantpete]

You might consider the bottom bracket Budgie. Normally the left side offers greater leverage but if the BB is naff then the effect is reversed and the left leg has to work harder than the right.

 

[ASC1951]

You might consider the bottom bracket Budgie. Normally the left side offers greater leverage..

I've never heard of this. How can it be? Aren't the cranks the same length?

 

[jimboalee]

I have a pair of Trois Stella plates. These are for the Miche quills on my Pug.

They have the plates nailed to the sole, so when the LBS did the measuring in 1975, that was it, no adjustment from then on.

My LBS man was Tom Crowther and he got it right.

When I changed to SPD and SPD-SL cleats, I simply made an exact copy of my 3Star plates and everything is fine.

What you need is a good LBS man to measure you up for the cleats.

 

[ChrisKH]

Consider whether you need lateral movement on one or both sides when pedalling. I found that SPD's were too inflexible in this respect and switched to Frog pedals which gave me some degree of movement on the pedal without affecting control, etc. Still getting used to them, but the knee problem has lessened. Can't seem to get rid of it entirely though, so am in the same boat when I exceed 50 miles in a day.

 

[jimboalee]

In the 'Good ole days' when everyone had their feet in rat traps, your LBS man would have to make a good job of positioning the plates.
On the road and on the track, where the shoe was strapped in tight and NO lateral movement was possible, it was IMPOSSIBLE for the young and inexperienced cyclist to get their foot position correct.

Sadly, there are very few LBS men around nowadays to get a 'proper fitting'.
Like most of the bike fitting stuff, its all on a computer programme where 10 minutes of training makes a LBS oik an expert.
If this is your only course of action, it's better than messing around yourself with the 'trial and error' technique.

 

[ACS]

I came to the sport about 25 years ago from a Triathlon back ground. Almost everyone used traditional cage and strap set ups. The 'Look' clipless system was an emerging technology and at the time expensive.

Not knowing any different I found a LBS (dark, dusty place on the back streets of Doncaster with road bikes in the window and sweaty roadies sitting in the corner drinking tea) took some free advice leaving with a pair of lace up cycling shoes, pedals etc and off I went. I did discover that if a used fore and aft blots to hold the slotted cleat in place I had some knee pain, however if I removed the fore blot no problems even on the longest of jaunts. The aft bolt was very firmly secured to the shoe.

Having visited most LBS in the local area I am not overwhelmed by their knowledge or enthusiasm for the sport, but they are quick to take the money from my pocket.

I do have a plan I am away on holiday (non cycling) for a couple of weeks, when I return having rested my beleaguered knees I intend to go back to a cage and strap system and see if the problem reoccurs.

 

[accountantpete]

I've never heard of this. How can it be? Aren't the cranks the same length?

The cranks are equal length but the right crank is positioned alongside the chainring with minimal leverage along the B/B shaft.

The left crank on the otherhand has the leverage of almost the entire length of the B/B shaft to compensate for the "weaker" left leg.

 

[youngoldbloke]

The cranks are equal length but the right crank is positioned alongside the chainring with minimal leverage along the crankshaft.

The left crank on the otherhand has the leverage of almost the entire length of the crankshaft to compensate for the "weaker" left leg.

- sorry, I still don't understand. Surely the crankshaft is supported/held equally by the bearings at either side of the bottom bracket, and any leverage on the cranks is at right angles to the axis of the crankshaft, resulting in its rotation? And why is the left leg assumed to be weaker?