Triathlon - Pedal selection advice

I was hoping to get some advice on which type of pedals people prefer for triathlons. I have been riding for a few years and have done a handful of sprint triathlons. My current bike (Cannondale R800) got stolen a few weeks ago and I have to get a new bike. Just ordered the Cervelo Soloist, hopefully it will be in soon! Anyway, I had Look pedals on my Cannondale and was pretty happy with them. Since I have to buy new pedals now I was wondering everyone else is using and what they saw as the pros or cons for triathlon use. I was looking at the Speedplays because they have the two sided entry. Don't know how much that would help during the T1.

I'll also be using this bike for all my regular road rides too. Usually those consist of group or solo rides anywhere from 50-100 miles.

I use SPD-SLs. It seems like all the tri-specific shoes fit a Look cleat pattern only. I think you can fit an adapter for the Speedplays, but that makes them even heavier than they already are.

So it sounds like you don't start out with your shoes already attached to the bike either. I couldn't figure out how to make that work and wonder if it's actually any faster. It's not very difficult to get into a one-sided pedal that you're used to.

It's not good to hear someone may be interested in stealing my bike too.

I use SPD-SLs. It seems like all the tri-specific shoes fit a Look cleat pattern only. I think you can fit an adapter for the Speedplays, but that makes them even heavier than they already are.

So it sounds like you don't start out with your shoes already attached to the bike either. I couldn't figure out how to make that work and wonder if it's actually any faster. It's not very difficult to get into a one-sided pedal that you're used to.

It's not good to hear someone may be interested in stealing my bike too.


I have Louis Garneau Tri air shoes, and I dont require an adapter for SpeedPlay. I love mine, clip in very easy.

Leaving your shoes clipped in is much faster, and as far as I am concered better for equipment longevity, and safer(try running on pavement in speedplay cleats(solid metal)). Your T1 time is usually much faster, and onve you get good balnce on your bike, and experiance in this type of mounting, you slow down veyr litle when actually putting on your shoes.

After switching from Look pedals I am a die hard Speedplay fan. The float in the Looks felt too high resistance so it really pissed off my knees and the hip I usually clip out with. (And yep, I knew about the screw to change resistance). The knee pain went away when I swapped pedals.

There is a solid argument against Speedplay for newer riders. The increased constraints on foot motion (for properly placed cleats) will force a new rider to have a more efficient pedal stroke without unecessary motion. A more experience rider will not necessarily have this problem. I've also had PTs tell me that the extra float in Speedplays can cause knee problems by permitting biomechanically unsound repetitive motions.

I've seen so many girls scared to to death of riding at all because they can't clip out of their Look or Look-type pedals that I now universally recommend Speedplays anyways. What good does the foot position constraint do for someone who is desparately afraid to go on training rides?

I'm with Batman on the T1 argument. Leave the shoes clipped in. If necessary secure them with a rubber band that snaps when you clip out. It saves a boatload of time.

Bebops. I can click in on either side of the pedal, they have plenty of float for my knees, and can enter or exit by rotating either to the left or right. They're a minimalist sort of pedal, and quite light, which may appeal to your inner weight weenie. I've been using the same pair for three years without a problem.

racergirl, i have heard that argument alot against the speedplay pedals. Allowing constant bad movements which can hurt your knees, but with the float i feel that with speedplays, once your knee hurts, you can play with your position to fix it. Other pedals, you are stuck with what you got, atleast for that ride.

I've seen so many girls scared to to death of riding at all because they can't clip out of their Look or Look-type pedals that I now universally recommend Speedplays anyways.

I'm with Batman on the T1 argument. Leave the shoes clipped in. If necessary secure them with a rubber band that snaps when you clip out. It saves a boatload of time.

I understand that many people need, or at least think they need float. I'm convinced though that float is the problem for the people who can't get clipped out of their Look-style pedals. I've always used fixed cleats until I bought new SPD-SLs that came with float pedals. I can't stand having to twist my foot an extra 8 degrees to get out - how is that not bad for one's knees? I'm used to it now, but I will be buying fixed cleats when these are worn.

I agree that your T1 method is superior, although I think the difference in time is more like 15-20 seconds, not really a boatload of time. But I could never get it to work for me. How do you keep the bottom shoe from hitting the ground and popping off the pedal while you put your foot in and adjust the top shoe?

What I do, is just clip in, and when i pass the mount line in a medium run, i hop on my bike and flip my left shoe around so i am standing on top of it, then do the same on my right, then I ride untill I am at a section of the bike that is reasonably flat to beable to stop pedaling for a few seconds at a time.

I usually do my right foot first(dunno why, just do), while standing on teh shoe, i bend over and grab my shoe, then slide my foot in, then do up my shoe. Repeat for left shoe, then adjust as nescesary.

I would say it is about a 30-40 second difference, but what you are forgetting, is that doing this in the reverse for your T2 makes it faster still. For my age group the average T1 time for someone not doing the above method is about 1:30-2:00. I average about :45-:55. My T1 is usually sub 30 seconds.

In any thing Olympic and less saving your self a minute of total time in the transition, can be a difference of up to 20-30 places.

Yeah, I was always able to do that method for T2. How fast are you able to go while trying to get your feet in your shoes? That's the part that would almost even it out for me (minus the 15-20 sec I was talking about): I can get right up to 20+ mph by having my shoes on and adjusted right away.

Just wondering, and to let you know I'm not arguing with your method. It's the way all the winners use.

Yeah, I was always able to do that method for T2. How fast are you able to go while trying to get your feet in your shoes? That's the part that would almost even it out for me (minus the 15-20 sec I was talking about): I can get right up to 20+ mph by having my shoes on and adjusted right away.

Just wondering, and to let you know I'm not arguing with your method. It's the way all the winners use.


Ya, i know its not an argument, discussions let alot of other people learn.

I dont know my speed, i just hammer it all the way, the only break i give myslef is on the bike when I put on my shoes. I have been as far as 1km into the bike to do it, it is all situational. There was one race I did, that had a really big climb about 500m into the bike. So i was slow at the start to put on my shoes, so i could pull up on the climb.

I've always used crank brothers pedals on my mountain bike and I picked up a set of the quattros for my soloist and I'm really satisfied with them. granted I've had a lot of experience with the crank brothers system, but I've always felt really strong with them. Easy to get into, enough float to ease my knees and an easy but deliberate release movement. the great thing about the crank brothers is that the harder you pull on pedals the harder it grips your cleat. I never think about my feet while riding which frees my brain up to worry about avoiding the potholes. :)

I just bought a new Madone 5.2 yesterday. The guys in the shop were making some comments about the original LOOK pedals I had swapped from my old bike. (White with Red release, 18 years old)

I am planning on getting KEO's. I asked about Speedplays, and one common input from several differant shops is that the small contact area starts to hurt on a long ride. They said it feels like a small pressure point drilling in to your foot.

I have always been happy with my LOOK pedals.

I went from Time to Sampson Titanium Stratics (hope that doesn't age me too much) to my current pedal the Speedplay Zeros. I've been happiest with these pedals so far. Installation of the cleats to the shoes was very easy and not a big deal for the LOOK setup.

I'm using speedplay zero's and ave no pressure point issues. I think on a softer shoe that might be an issue although mine aren't carbon soled shoes or anything really stiff like that. Properly adjusted the contact area on my speedplay cleats is the huge cleat not the tiny pedal as the pedal just presses on the cleat.