Road Cycling - Pedals?? SPD, Look, Speedplay

Okay another question from the beginner. :)

Would you recommend a road shoe with Look or Speedplay pedals, OR SPD pedals and a mountain shoe (or road shoe)?

I don't intend to do much mountain biking, but may. Also, the spinning classes use SPDs. Is there a huge advantage to road shoes over mountain shoes?

Planning on buying something this weekend, so I could use some advice.

I like a good stiff road shoe and I ride Campy record pro-fit pedals, they lock you in but good. I ride them on my touring and road bikes and wouldn't go back to anything else, walking can be tough but I never walk in the shoes and when I have to for shoping while on tour, I carry a small pair of cheap folding sandles rolled up under my saddle. I just installed crank bros egg beaters on my MTB, too soon to have an opinion.

If you plan on a lot of road biking - I would stay away from spd. I had them on my bianchi - I didnt like the fit into the peddles, they always seemed to be forced and tight, even with adjustments. I went to speedplays and love them. The float is great, no tension from a tight fit - but they will cost you more.

If you are doing triathalon, then think about some tri shoes. These have a simpler velcro closure and give much faster transitions.

i'm actually in the same boat right now, and am interested in folks opinions. i've been using spd's and mtn. bike shoes on my roadbike, but that's just got to change. i'm thinking either spd-r's or looks, but i've heard some bad things about them. w/ regard to shoes, i know it's individualized in terms of what brand fits your foot, etc, but what are the better (value) brands? i'm NOT spending $270 on a pair of carnac's. I was thinking $150 or so for some nike/shimano shoes and look's non-adjustable ones or shimano ultegra spd-rs. thoughts?

I'm tellin ya, check out the Campy pro-fits, they're a minimal pedal with great bearings, they always hang right, lock in and getting out is consistant and they last forever. I have a basement full of the other junk, I tried it all before I got here, Do yourself a favor and find someone who rides the pro-fits and talk to them.

I used to ride SPDs. I hated them. Float, Platform, Adjustability, Tension all problematic IMHO.

I now have Speedplays X-3s. I like them a lot.

If you want my full opinion on SPDs, do a search for SPDs or Speedplays, you'll find at least a couple of well-reasoned rants under threads concerning both pedals and knee trouble. (Both posted since about 10 June 2002.)

Cheers,
Jamie

mrfix, how much for the campys, and what kind of cleats do they use?

If you are riding road, go with a good stiff road shoe. I like my Sidi Genius 4 Mega shoes and have a fairly wide foot. They are matched with Campy Pro-fit pedals. I wear a Euro 46 shoe. What I really like about the Genius 4 is the fact that it has two velcro closures (towards the toe) and one micro-adjusting (ala ski boots) strap over the instep. You can make nice adjustments to get it just right. I find that after I've pedaled for a few minutes I need to ratchet down the top strap.

i read up on the campys at roadbikereview.com; the chorus ones have some pretty harsh things said about 'em. y'all use those, or records?

spds ****ed and is stil ******* my knee up

Apart from ******* my knees, I found SPDs very soon wore loose and made an annoying click when pulling up or trying to spin fast, even at max tension.

Mine are the records, one set is 3 years old and have over 15,000 miles on them, and one set is new this year and has 700 miles on them, they both feel the same, the old ones are just as tight as the new, I payed 189.00 for the old ones and the same this year for the new. The cleat uses a look bolt pattern but has a resin front section and a steel rear cleat. I haven't tried the chorus but they look similar.

I vote for a good stiff shoe for road riding also. Here's why. On my bike tour in June I stubbed my little toe on a parking lot bumper. I pulled it so far back that I thought it came off. I was in so much pain that I couldn't put any weight on it. I thought I would be riding in the car the rest of the week. A podiatrist was on the tour and he checked it, said nothing was broken and if I could keep the swelling down I could ride provided I had a good shoe. He said the Sidi's were so supportive that they were as good as having a surgical boot!

It turned out my cycling shoe was the only thing I could wear comfortably. So for 3 or 4 days I wore my cycling shoe everywhere! I even slept in it because it helped to keep the swelling down. I was able to ride every day and got lots of questions as to why I was wearing the shoe but it saved my trip.

BTW, I have speedplay pedals and the wider platform helped to keep the weight off the toe. I don't have covers for my cleats and I walked everywhere with that shoe on. The cleats are no worse for the wear. I guess that I've had speedplays for so long that walking in them all the time did't bother me a bit.

I'm so glad that I had to buy good supportive shoes and my speedplays, otherwise my tour would have been ruined.

Okay, so the SPDs suck, but between look and speedplay is there much difference? It seems like most people like speedplay.

<---Speedplay fan.
Too many benefits to mention, see their site (http://www.speedplay.com)

the only "problem" I could ever imagine with speedplays might be what some people might consider a small contact area (versus Look-style pedals) which means higher pressure on your feet...but, I imagine good shoes with stiff soles alleviate this.
:)

if you are considering look or speedplay, your decision will probably be determined by your float needs. If you prefer less float, try the looks, if you want more float, try speedplay. I have a set of speedplay zero: adjustable float from 0 to 15 degrees.

Look does have a pedal with adjustable float, but I don't think it's true free float, and have heard that it doesn't really work. If you do go look, maybe stay away from these and go for the ones that take different cleats to change float.

All that said, I would probably go for speedplay (and did), cuz I like the float.


Dax

Originally posted by haley
Okay another question from the beginner. :)

Would you recommend a road shoe with Look or Speedplay pedals, OR SPD pedals and a mountain shoe (or road shoe)?

I don't intend to do much mountain biking, but may. Also, the spinning classes use SPDs. Is there a huge advantage to road shoes over mountain shoes?

Planning on buying something this weekend, so I could use some advice.

If you are planning to do ANY offroading, I highly discourage road shoes. I agree with what people are saying about SPD. I found them to be very unpredictable. Me? I have eggbeaters on my road bike with a softer sole mountain shoe. I'm after a more all-around setup though. I love the eggbeaters. They hold my feet in nicely and they're easy to get in and out of. Plus, they're light. There are road shoe cleats out there that are compatible with eggbeaters. So, if you change your mind, you don't have to get different pedals. I still have a pair of Sidi Rampa (mnt) that I use occasionally. I always found Sidi shoes to be very comfortable. You won't go wrong with Sidi.

I use Speedplay X2 pedals, have used them for over 2 years. They have helped my knees immensely, they are easy to engage or disingage. Basically, I like them. Used SPD pedals before, hated them!

I got Look pedals with adjustable tension and the standard float. I definitely like having that little bit of float. . .easier on the knees. They are also very easy to get in and out of. They work like a ski binding. And because the back end is weighted, it is very easy to get your toe into the front part of the pedal before stepping down. I did notice that the left is stiffer than the right, so I might need to make some adjustments, but overall I am pleased.

Speedplay X2's here and I love them! I wouldn't go back to anything else after using Speedplay. Great on the knees and they never and I mean never let go of that shoe unless you want them to and that cannot be said for any other pedal out there.

I was using SPD cleats and mountain bike/touring shoes on my road bike.

The reason for the touring shoes is that road shoes are all too narrow, including the supposedly roomy Carnac whats-its.

Now I've kept the same comfortable Shimano lace-up touring shoes but have switched to Speedplay Frog cleats and pedals. The Frog is the MTB version of Speedplay.

They cost about $129. They are very lightweight and can be lubricated without disassembling the pedal. They are very easy to get in and out of and the Frog cleats permit me to walk from the house to the garage without slipping down the back steps and breaking my neck.

I have a nice new pair of Wellgo WAM-R4, SPD-R pedals and cleats for sale, cheap, if anyone's interested. I tried to find road shoes to use with them and gave up.

REI sells a good-looking pair of Shimano touring shoes that have Velcro straps like a road shoe but might fit more comfortably. You could fit Frogs to them.

condor

Just another SPEEDPLAY fan.

Also look into Carnac shoes. These are really comfy.

Chris

I just switched to LOOK pedals and new Shimano R-150 shoes. The shoes have a carbon sole and are incredibly stiff. The large holding area of the pedals combined with these soles makes you feel like you are really attached to the bike. You press down anit feels like your whole foot is moving the crank. This combo of pedals and shoes have increased my speed and doubled my fun.

My bike came with a pair of Ritchey SPD pedals. Why? I don't know. But not knowing any better, I put the Ritchey cleats on Shimano's bottom of the line road shoes. After about 10,000 miles, I noticed that the cleats were no longer flat to the sole. The tendency of my foot to bend to the outside had bent the sole and eventually cracked it. I think that this would not have happened had I gotten LOOK pedals right off the bat, rather than just using the stock equipment.

Shimano shoes are a great fit for my wide feet. The R-150s come in half sizes. They cost US$170-180. You can get a good pair of LOOKs for about $100. Colorado Cyclist has some good sales on them right now.

Rich

I use Time Challenge Pros on my roadbike, they have float and are simple and cheap. I like them :) I also have two pairs of SPD pedals but I think they're not too good for road use, they have so small contact-area etc.

On my road bikes I have Look. On my touring bike SPD.. I really do feel I have more of a "hot spot" about the cleet on the SPD. I have a 450 mile tour coming up the end of September, consider changing SPD to Look. Like SPD OK, if not a really long ride. Maybe putting a liner in my SPD shoes would help?
Do definitely feel somewhat better after riding awhile In Look Shoes, in spite of SPD's convenience off the bike on long tours..

I actual have a set of Keywin Ti Road pedals that weigh 192grms per the pair. They have large platforms for stoping on and faboulous clairance on turns for half the price of Speedplay Ti. One of the best deals I have ever took a chance on. A real value!!!!!!!

Stomping not stopping

I just switched from Look to Speedplay X-2 in June. I ride road with Carnac Quartz shoes. They are a wonderful combo and well worth the money (I am not a rich man so they were a sacrifice!). The Looks were good and fit almost any shoe, but I like the float and ease of entry for the Speedplay pedals. I have also heard good things about the Campy pedals also recommended by other posts in this thread.

I have a bad right knee (two surgeries) and have never experienced any problems from either Look or Speedplay. The Carnac shoes are wonderful for my wide feet though. The Time shoes I had before were horrible.

Speedplay X-2's, recently purchased and put on my new bike (6 weeks now) love 'em 'cause
They have lots of float
Easy to get into and out of
Hold your foot really securely, no slop or unwanted releases
Easily servicable
Neat design
Good cornering clearence
Easy cleat set up
Light

Have I forgotten anything?

Buy them, don't follow the trend of Looks and SPD-R's, just 'cause that's what others are doing.