pedals with clips

This Spring I purchased Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and new shoes. The
cleats are almost worn out and the shoes are coming apart. Also I couldn't
release and fell on a tour. I am fed up with clipless pedals and am going to
try toe clips and a good pedal from Rivendell. Do you all think that this
will make that much performance difference?

Thanks in advance
Bob

I got tired of going through look cleats, so I went to spd's and a recessed
shoe (shimano T-092), and just recently switched to bebops. Easy to clip
in, and I no longer have cleat wear problems. I don't know about your
shoes falling apart, what brand were they?

Bob O'Keefe wrote:

This Spring I purchased Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and new shoes. The
cleats are almost worn out and the shoes are coming apart. Also I couldn't
release and fell on a tour. I am fed up with clipless pedals and am going
to
try toe clips and a good pedal from Rivendell. Do you all think that this
will make that much performance difference?

Thanks in advance
Bob

--
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This job is heavily NDA'ed,
You will be at the bo'nenkai, won't you? Full house (beers over nihonshu)
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- Stephen Turnbull

To answer from a performance stand point, big loss of power.

If you bought a cheap pair of shoes all I can say is buy quality--it comes
with a pricetag, but is well worth it. Well I don't know how many miles you
have ridden or how many times you have gone in and out of your pedals, so
you statement means nothing. By the way, just how are the shoes falling
apart? And cleats are an inexpensive consumable. Would you complain if
your inkjet printer needed new ink 4x a year? How many times does one get
one's shoes shined over say the 10 years one owns a pair if they are taken
care of? More than the cost of the shoes themselves I am sure. Hell I pay
$250 3-4 times a year to have my car thoroughly detailed inside and out--for
the extra care I will get 400-500,000 miles out of a car that would cost
over $100,000 today. Point is, if you are getting caught in your cleats
then you tried to disengage improperly, probably you tried to lift your heel
rather than clicking out horizontally and level. But if your shoes are
wearing from defect, bring them back to where you bought them. Next pair
you buy, try a company that just makes shoes, not one that manufactures
metal mostly. My 2 cents--don't blame, solve your style problem and stay
calm when you need to disengage, even in a difficult situation--we've all
been there and yes sometimes we pop out of our pedals (I did once cornering
at over 30mph and trashed my shoes but stayed upright somehow and managed to
come to a stop) or panic and get caught in them, and yes over you will go.
Your luck probably had it that there was a hot chick you were trying to make
time with and you felt humiliated rather than having a laugh about it at
your own expense. Good luck whatever you do. Dan

"Bob O'Keefe" wrote in message
...
This Spring I purchased Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and new shoes. The
cleats are almost worn out and the shoes are coming apart. Also I couldn't
release and fell on a tour. I am fed up with clipless pedals and am going
to
try toe clips and a good pedal from Rivendell. Do you all think that this
will make that much performance difference?

Thanks in advance
Bob

On Thu, 21 Aug 2003 04:18:33 GMT, "Dan O'Brasky"
wrote:

To answer from a performance stand point, big loss of power.

If you bought a cheap pair of shoes all I can say is buy quality--it comes
with a pricetag, but is well worth it. Well I don't know how many miles you
have ridden or how many times you have gone in and out of your pedals, so
you statement means nothing. By the way, just how are the shoes falling
apart? And cleats are an inexpensive consumable. Would you complain if
your inkjet printer needed new ink 4x a year? How many times does one get
one's shoes shined over say the 10 years one owns a pair if they are taken
care of? More than the cost of the shoes themselves I am sure. Hell I pay
$250 3-4 times a year to have my car thoroughly detailed inside and out--for
the extra care I will get 400-500,000 miles out of a car that would cost
over $100,000 today. Point is, if you are getting caught in your cleats
then you tried to disengage improperly, probably you tried to lift your heel
rather than clicking out horizontally and level. But if your shoes are
wearing from defect, bring them back to where you bought them. Next pair
you buy, try a company that just makes shoes, not one that manufactures
metal mostly. My 2 cents--don't blame, solve your style problem and stay
calm when you need to disengage, even in a difficult situation--we've all
been there and yes sometimes we pop out of our pedals (I did once cornering
at over 30mph and trashed my shoes but stayed upright somehow and managed to
come to a stop) or panic and get caught in them, and yes over you will go.
Your luck probably had it that there was a hot chick you were trying to make
time with and you felt humiliated rather than having a laugh about it at
your own expense. Good luck whatever you do. Dan


Sorry.. still trying to justify paying $1000 a year to detail the car.
Do you really get it that dirty? I've heard that a clean car will get
better gas milage - just like a clean bike goes faster - but a clean
car gets another half million miles? This is assuming that your
"detailing inside and out" is the same as what I know of - a detailed
wash, wax, polish and a detailed cleaning of the interior - maybe even
the engine compartment. This does not include any tuneup or
maintenance.

I know... way off topic, but statements like this tend to make me
loose site of your point.

This being said, I think what you were trying to say is correct. Pay
for quality, and use it like it should be used.

Dan Too

Personally I am not a huge Shimano fan...unfortunatley they are
everywhere...some places you can avoid them, some you can't. I agree
with Dan by saying shoes is one of those places you can avoid them. As
for the pedals, I tend to be a nervous nelly whenever I clip in, so I
just adjust them to the point where I can easily get out of them even if
I am panicking, and not easily pop out of them while riding. Then I
practice, practice, practice, cliping in and out. I would give them one
more try before you go with the others.

Coaster



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Posted via cyclingforums.com
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I've got SPD 747s, Shimano shoes, ride nearly 3000 miles a year, commute to
work and wear the shoes all day, and haven't worn out anything but the
shoestrings. With the multi-release cleats, two-sided entry, walkable shoes,
they simply can't be beat.
Unless you're a racer, I can't figure out any reason to use 'road' pedals:
single-sided, difficult to clip in, difficult to release, not walkable.
Lose the SPD-SL road pedals, get mountain-bike SPD's, and all your problems
(well, the ones you mentioned) will be solved.


"Bob O'Keefe" wrote in message
...
This Spring I purchased Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and new shoes. The
cleats are almost worn out and the shoes are coming apart. Also I couldn't
release and fell on a tour. I am fed up with clipless pedals and am going
to
try toe clips and a good pedal from Rivendell. Do you all think that this
will make that much performance difference?

Thanks in advance
Bob

On Thu, 21 Aug 2003 05:00:15 GMT, Dan Brussee
wrote:
Sorry.. still trying to justify paying $1000 a year to detail the car.

Yikes! That sounds expensive. I can't even find the
time to empty mine to get it detailed, let alone the
money to get a cheap detail job done (maybe $60-80).

Do you really get it that dirty? I've heard that a clean car will get
better gas milage - just like a clean bike goes faster - but a clean
car gets another half million miles? This is assuming that your

With proper mechanical attention, loads and loads of
miles can be had from a car.

However, when the dashboard is cracked, the window
sill has solid black gunk on it, and the carpet is
worn through, you're not going to want to bring it
to the mechanic every time you hear a new sound.

Of course, finding the right mechanic must be hard.
Most mechanics I've ever met tend to have the same
attitude as most drivers -- Fix something when it
REALLY breaks, maintain the car somewhat properly,
and replace it after [insert any number from 2 to
10 here] years or [insert any number from 60,000
to 300,000 here] miles.

I tend to err on the side of trying to maintain it
a little better -- I've found that I'm quite
disappointed when I have to spend hundreds of
dollars on repairing a car that I no longer like
because it rattles, or it's icky inside, or it's
dented outside, or whatever...

I know... way off topic, but statements like this tend to make me
loose site of your point.

Well, just as a pretty bike gets ridden more, a
pretty car has a happier owner.

This being said, I think what you were trying to say is correct. Pay
for quality, and use it like it should be used.

He also seems to have said that he has a lot more
money than I suspect everybody else here has...
certainly a lot more than me. However, it's still
not necessary to tolerate bad pedals; there's so
many good ones available inexpensively. Same goes
for shoes.

Dan Too
--
Rick Onanian

Bob O'Keefe wrote:

This Spring I purchased Shimano Ultegra SPD-SL pedals and new shoes. The
cleats are almost worn out and the shoes are coming apart. Also I couldn't
release and fell on a tour. I am fed up with clipless pedals and am going to
try toe clips and a good pedal from Rivendell. Do you all think that this
will make that much performance difference?

Thanks in advance
Bob




A drop or two of oil on the cleats can do wonders. You want to get it
on the part that actuates the pedal release mechanism when you twist
your foot sideways. Just a bit of oil can make the difference between
barely being able to disengage and doing so reliably. It lasts quite a
while and you'll know when it's time to do it again before it gets too hard.

There's nothing inherent in clipless design that makes the shoes prone
to "coming apart".

To get equivalent benefit from toe clips they need to be cinched
tightly, such that they must be manually released prior to stopping.
Twisting your foot sideways on a clipless pedal is easier.

My advice - try the oil, get a different shoe - preferably one that has
the cleat recessed enough so it doesn't grind the pavement when you
walk, new cleats if you need 'em, adjust the release tension on the
pedals (once you've done the oil bit).