Shoes and Pedals

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fraz101

Senior Member
hi guys

I’m fairly new to road cycling and thus far I haven’t bothered with clip on pedals and shoes. I tend to just wear trainers.

I know very little about it all and having had a look it looks like a minefield of different options with shoes,cleats and pedal types.

Obviously I have a few questions regarding it all, so I’ll start.

Why do the shoes have plastic studs etc to the rear and front of the shoes if they clip onto the pedals? Does that not make it difficult to walk on if you want to get off the bike for sometime?

Also it appears there are various types of system, SPD,Keo etc,what are the main differences and what would suit a beginner best?

Are there any recommendations for pedals,shoes cleats for someone in my position?

The only positive I can see is it will stop my foot slipping off the pedal on the very rare occasion this happens? It certainly doesn’t appear like the shoes are designed for walking on?

Thanks in advance
 

Teamfixed

Tim Lewis
Hi
For sure many cycling shoes are not designed to walk in..... just as trainers are not designed to cycle in. The cushioning in trainers is exactly what you want for running but that layer of foam between you and the bike is counterproductive and makes you inefficient when it comes to power transfer. Cleats are also safer.
I would wholeheartedly recommend clipless pedals and shoes (the term clipless derives from the fact that they are devoid of clips, the old style toe clips that is)
By far the best/easiest set up would be SPD pedals and cleats....go for the double sided pedals. The great thing about these is that you can get shoes that have the cleat recessed into the sole making walking in them easy. You can take it a stage further and find relatively flexible SPD shoes that are very easy to walk in but still retain enough stiffness for cycling.
Absolutely go for it! don't worry about not getting your feet off.... you will get that sorted within a very short time and it will become second nature.
 

figbat

Slippery scientist
Shoes with stud in tend to be for use in off-road situations like MTB or cyclocross, to afford some grip when having to walk. Shoes designed purely for road use tend to have a very smooth and clean underside (extra aero, innit).

But as said, the off-road focussed clip system (Shimano SPD) is the easier one to get on with. I use SPDs on all my bikes, MTB, gravel and road. That way I can use the same shoes across them all. The SPD system also allows a little bit of 'float', that being a little bit of side-to-side movement when clipped in to allow for a bit of foot movement. SPD cleats (the bit that goes on the shoe) are metal too, and MTB shoes tend to have them recessed into the soul, meaning that walking in the shoe is easier and less damaging to floors. SPD pedals are often double-sided, meaning you can clip in to either side quickly (single-sided ones are available and I do use them).

The common alternative is Shimano SPD-SL - this is road-specific and uses a triangular, plastic cleat on the shoe which makes walking difficult but is very efficient at aligning your shoe and transferring maximum power. SPD-SL shoes are one-sided but tend to hang in the correct position to allow a quick clip-in.

After that you have Look, Crank Brothers and maybe others, but I am not familiar with these.
 

ianrauk

Tattooed Beat Messiah
Location
Rides Ti2
hi guys

I’m fairly new to road cycling and thus far I haven’t bothered with clip on pedals and shoes. I tend to just wear trainers.

I know very little about it all and having had a look it looks like a minefield of different options with shoes,cleats and pedal types.

Obviously I have a few questions regarding it all, so I’ll start.

Why do the shoes have plastic studs etc to the rear and front of the shoes if they clip onto the pedals? Does that not make it difficult to walk on if you want to get off the bike for sometime?

Also it appears there are various types of system, SPD,Keo etc,what are the main differences and what would suit a beginner best?

Are there any recommendations for pedals,shoes cleats for someone in my position?

The only positive I can see is it will stop my foot slipping off the pedal on the very rare occasion this happens? It certainly doesn’t appear like the shoes are designed for walking on?

Thanks in advance
Check out THIS thread. Especially the first post. It helps to answer a lot of your questions.
 

vickster

Legendary Member
As above, you can walk perfectly well in MTB or touring style shoes with SPD (2 bolt) cleats recessed, granted not as well as with a normal shoe so if that's an issue stick with flat pedals. A decent walking shoe or trail running shoe would likely have a grippier and stiffer sole than a plimsoll, skate shoe or lightweight running shoe.
I've switched back to flats and a trail running shoe after using SPDs for many years as I now don't have enough knee flexion to clip in and pedal without pain. I'm not a racer (so frankly power transfer whatever that may be in reality is utterly irrelevant) so not being clipped in makes no difference to my speed and is much easier in traffic, no risk of a clipless moment if need to stop quickly or if going up a hill and run out of steam.

Entirely up to you if you want to clip in or not but all that macho roadie nonsense is just that :laugh: The best shoes are the ones that fit you best, bear in mind a shoe that is comfortable in winter may not be in hot weather when your feet have swollen
 

Roseland triker

Cheese ..... It's all about the cheese
Location
By the sea
I use mountain bike shoes with 3 velcro straps for summer adjustment.
It's worth spending a good wack on shoes as they do last a while.
Double sided pedals are much quicker to use and that makes it safer.
You WILL fall off clipped in at some point so the trick is set the tension on the pedal fairly loose to start with.
They usually have a small grub screw that pushes the spring tighter.
It is worth trying them out while stationery by a bench or on a turbo trainer to get a feel for it.
You won't look back... Go for it 🤣😃
 

vickster

Legendary Member
Despite what others say. Not every one falls off or has what is called a clipless moment.
... yet ;)
 

CanucksTraveller

Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
Location
Hertfordshire
I started in trainers in my youth, eventually went to Look road pedals on my road bikes for quite some years, now I've been in hiking / trail shoes for the last 3 years. My Look pedals went when my last road bike was sold, and my spanky Northwave road shoes sit on a shelf. My feet haven't slipped off my flat pedals, so I don't feel I'm really missing anything by being in trail shoes. In retrospect I think I just felt that on a road bike I should be wearing road shoes, because that's what roadies wore.
Why am I not bothering with clipless now? I just find street shoes easier overall, any of my street shoes can be worn on any of my bikes. (I've got a tourer and a hybrid now).

Yes road shoes can be a bit of a faff to walk in, they're very slippery on smooth surfaces and you can't walk far in them - If you wanted to explore a nice village high street on a whim, or if you have a severe mechanical you can't fix, then you're very probably in for a hard time. SPDs mitigate that a lot so if you do go clipless, you might want to consider that. Road shoes do look the part, they have that going for them at least.

You don't have to go to a clipless system; By all means have them if you're cycling competitively, or if you genuinely think you'll benefit, but it's not compulsory or particularly needed so don't feel any pressure.
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
I never understood this either. I've never "had a clipless moment"!
It happens.

Not had one for a long time. Used to happen at home at my folks, turning onto the path, then realised I was at a funny angle and couldn't get my feet out of my Look Deltas.

SPD's are easy to get out of.
 

nlmkiii

Well-Known Member
It happens.

Not had one for a long time. Used to happen at home at my folks, turning onto the path, then realised I was at a funny angle and couldn't get my feet out of my Look Deltas.

SPD's are easy to get out of.
Yeah I know most people have had it, just never quite understood it! It may be that I grew up BMXing so have good (not exceptional) bike handling?
I've used SPD-SL on very tight settings from day 1, but I'd sure agree that SPD are likely better for the OPs use case if he cares about things like walking. I use cleat covers, but that's basically to get me over the gravel without ruining my cleats. Never walked a distance in them, would be awful!
 
My main problem with unattached shoes was then slipping off the pedals
Then the LBS suggested putting some spikey pedals on and that problems has stopped - I just ride in trainers (summer) or walking shoes (winter) and it works fine.
Mind you - I ride an ebike and don;t care about speed and efficency - so my opinion may not be relevant to others

I have seen to MTB shoes that are basically trainers with stiffer soles - which I would look at except that I have 3 paris of trainers so I have forbidden myself from buying more shoes until I wear some out!!
 
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