Mountain Vs. Road pedals for a road bike

In article ,
says...
I believe
I saw somewhere that road pedals result in a narrower Q-factor than MTB
shoes.

My MTB pedals bring my shoes as close as I'd want them to be to the
crank. If you want a slightly narrower Q-factor, you could move the
cleats over a little. In my case, my shoes would start rubbing against
the crank, but if you have narrow feet, maybe you could pick up several
mm.

I ride 2 road bikes and one MTB, all with SPDs. They don't provide as
positive a connection as some road cleats, but I'm used to them for
years without a single case of "premature release". Racers may have
different experiences -- I don't often need to sprint "balls to the
wall" as they may do.

The SPDs are convenient for walking especially with shoes built for this
purpose.

Rick

I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

Hope this helps...

Biff Stephens




"java man (espressopithecus)" wrote in message
ble.net...
In article ,
says...
I believe
I saw somewhere that road pedals result in a narrower Q-factor than MTB
shoes.

My MTB pedals bring my shoes as close as I'd want them to be to the
crank. If you want a slightly narrower Q-factor, you could move the
cleats over a little. In my case, my shoes would start rubbing against
the crank, but if you have narrow feet, maybe you could pick up several
mm.

I ride 2 road bikes and one MTB, all with SPDs. They don't provide as
positive a connection as some road cleats, but I'm used to them for
years without a single case of "premature release". Racers may have
different experiences -- I don't often need to sprint "balls to the
wall" as they may do.

The SPDs are convenient for walking especially with shoes built for this
purpose.

Rick

I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

Hope this helps...

Biff Stephens




"java man (espressopithecus)" wrote in message
ble.net...
In article ,
says...
I believe
I saw somewhere that road pedals result in a narrower Q-factor than MTB
shoes.

My MTB pedals bring my shoes as close as I'd want them to be to the
crank. If you want a slightly narrower Q-factor, you could move the
cleats over a little. In my case, my shoes would start rubbing against
the crank, but if you have narrow feet, maybe you could pick up several
mm.

I ride 2 road bikes and one MTB, all with SPDs. They don't provide as
positive a connection as some road cleats, but I'm used to them for
years without a single case of "premature release". Racers may have
different experiences -- I don't often need to sprint "balls to the
wall" as they may do.

The SPDs are convenient for walking especially with shoes built for this
purpose.

Rick

Biff Stephens said...

I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

Hope this helps...

Biff Stephens

I was on the phone with Crank Bros tech support today and they gave me
all the details. The Quattro has a narrower Q by 2.5mm per pedal. The
MTB Eggbeater has a Q of 55mm, so a difference of about 5%. Not enough
to notice, IMO. The Quattros aren't available yet, but will be soon.
Freddy R. used and won with MTB Eggbeater Triple Ti's but later on
switched to a narrower spindle, a prototype I assume. I was told this
narrower spindle will be made available soon as well.

Biff Stephens said...

I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

Hope this helps...

Biff Stephens

I was on the phone with Crank Bros tech support today and they gave me
all the details. The Quattro has a narrower Q by 2.5mm per pedal. The
MTB Eggbeater has a Q of 55mm, so a difference of about 5%. Not enough
to notice, IMO. The Quattros aren't available yet, but will be soon.
Freddy R. used and won with MTB Eggbeater Triple Ti's but later on
switched to a narrower spindle, a prototype I assume. I was told this
narrower spindle will be made available soon as well.

Biff Stephens said...

I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

Hope this helps...

Biff Stephens

I was on the phone with Crank Bros tech support today and they gave me
all the details. The Quattro has a narrower Q by 2.5mm per pedal. The
MTB Eggbeater has a Q of 55mm, so a difference of about 5%. Not enough
to notice, IMO. The Quattros aren't available yet, but will be soon.
Freddy R. used and won with MTB Eggbeater Triple Ti's but later on
switched to a narrower spindle, a prototype I assume. I was told this
narrower spindle will be made available soon as well.

Jeff Wills said...

Where? Both styles of cleats allow for sideways adjustment,
effectively increasing or decreasing "Q". It's an individual thing- I
adjust my (SPD) cleats so my shoes barely clear the crankarm, but your
particular anatomy may require a different setup.

Yes, you can adjust the lateral position of the cleat a little, but I
always position the cleat for the best balance. Even though I'm
obsessing a little over Q-factor now, I would rather sacrifice that than
a balanced, natural feel.

The ATAC pedals have 3mm lateral float, which makes your assertion
about low "Q" tougher to understand.

Some others have said that too, but I never considered float to have
much to do with Q-factor. I always considered it a comfort issue,
although if you could stop your feet from sliding around I guess you
could use it that way.

Speedplay sells spindles in several lengths, to allow for more radical
rotational adjustment (i.e. to compensate for duck feet). I believe
the "standard" spindles are the shortest.

I talked with Speedplay today and they said there is 1mm difference in
Q-factor between the Frog and the X/2s, so basically there is none.

Use the standard Look system and carry rubber cleat covers.


You'll still walk like a duck.

Yep, I love riding bikes, but there are some extremes I won't go to.

Right- The cleats use the Look three-bolt pattern. With the exception
of the Lake CX 115 shoes
( http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?brand=1170&sku=6359 )
no Look-compatible shoes are "walkable", IMO.

That shoe actually looks interesting. I wonder why more shoes aren't
like it. Does anybody really enjoy the clog walking syndrome?

I was on a supported tour last week and saw many very-high-end road
bikes (including a couple Serotta Ottrotts) with MTB-style SPD pedals.
I'd guess that the owners preferred walking comfort and double-sided
entry over other factors.

(FWIW: I use Shimano PD-M737 pedals- now 13 years old and still
working perfectly.)

Jeff Wills

I knew I couldn't be the only one who saw that the Emperor had no
clothes. I just really don't understand why we should have to give up
walking just to ride a high performance bike. Actually, the more I think
about it, the more I think I may just stay with SPDs. For one thing, I
don't understand the need for a lot of lateral float. I have never had
knee problems and I think if you take the time to get the cleat
positioned just right you shouldn't need float. But I could be wrong.
Maybe some people really do need it. What I don't like about SPDs is
that they can be picky to get in and sticky to get out. They also have
shin seeking protrusions that can be painful if you misstep. But high
quality and reasonably priced SPDs are widely available, like the
Shimano 540s.

Jeff Wills said...

Where? Both styles of cleats allow for sideways adjustment,
effectively increasing or decreasing "Q". It's an individual thing- I
adjust my (SPD) cleats so my shoes barely clear the crankarm, but your
particular anatomy may require a different setup.

Yes, you can adjust the lateral position of the cleat a little, but I
always position the cleat for the best balance. Even though I'm
obsessing a little over Q-factor now, I would rather sacrifice that than
a balanced, natural feel.

The ATAC pedals have 3mm lateral float, which makes your assertion
about low "Q" tougher to understand.

Some others have said that too, but I never considered float to have
much to do with Q-factor. I always considered it a comfort issue,
although if you could stop your feet from sliding around I guess you
could use it that way.

Speedplay sells spindles in several lengths, to allow for more radical
rotational adjustment (i.e. to compensate for duck feet). I believe
the "standard" spindles are the shortest.

I talked with Speedplay today and they said there is 1mm difference in
Q-factor between the Frog and the X/2s, so basically there is none.

Use the standard Look system and carry rubber cleat covers.


You'll still walk like a duck.

Yep, I love riding bikes, but there are some extremes I won't go to.

Right- The cleats use the Look three-bolt pattern. With the exception
of the Lake CX 115 shoes
( http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?brand=1170&sku=6359 )
no Look-compatible shoes are "walkable", IMO.

That shoe actually looks interesting. I wonder why more shoes aren't
like it. Does anybody really enjoy the clog walking syndrome?

I was on a supported tour last week and saw many very-high-end road
bikes (including a couple Serotta Ottrotts) with MTB-style SPD pedals.
I'd guess that the owners preferred walking comfort and double-sided
entry over other factors.

(FWIW: I use Shimano PD-M737 pedals- now 13 years old and still
working perfectly.)

Jeff Wills

I knew I couldn't be the only one who saw that the Emperor had no
clothes. I just really don't understand why we should have to give up
walking just to ride a high performance bike. Actually, the more I think
about it, the more I think I may just stay with SPDs. For one thing, I
don't understand the need for a lot of lateral float. I have never had
knee problems and I think if you take the time to get the cleat
positioned just right you shouldn't need float. But I could be wrong.
Maybe some people really do need it. What I don't like about SPDs is
that they can be picky to get in and sticky to get out. They also have
shin seeking protrusions that can be painful if you misstep. But high
quality and reasonably priced SPDs are widely available, like the
Shimano 540s.

"Biff Stephens" wrote in message
news:XS9Uc.37933$wo.12682@okepread06...
I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

A friend recently had a mishap that resulted in a serious injury. He suffered
a low speed endo while riding an off-road trail on his MTB. He had a twisting
fall that broke his lower leg bone in several places just below the knee,
requiring surgery to reconstruct things. His impression was that his
Eggbeaters didn't release on one side, trapping his leg and perhaps causing
the injury. He says that he has heard others make this complaint about
Eggbeaters and is interested in any other similar stories.

"Biff Stephens" wrote in message
news:XS9Uc.37933$wo.12682@okepread06...
I have a Road bike and a MTB and they both have Eggbeaters on them. Freddy
Rodriguez uses Eggbeaters on his bike to race with. Eggbeater now have a
Road specific pedal with a platform. The spindle length is the same (they
weight more by the way).

I would say that is you are thinking of Touring and even possibly wearing
MTB Shoes you will have not issues with Eggbeaters. If it is for racing then
to each his own but Freddy seems to not have a problem with them and I never
have....

A friend recently had a mishap that resulted in a serious injury. He suffered
a low speed endo while riding an off-road trail on his MTB. He had a twisting
fall that broke his lower leg bone in several places just below the knee,
requiring surgery to reconstruct things. His impression was that his
Eggbeaters didn't release on one side, trapping his leg and perhaps causing
the injury. He says that he has heard others make this complaint about
Eggbeaters and is interested in any other similar stories.