Mountain Biking - Pedal Question

What types of pedals do you all use?
I'm not sure if to get get regular pedals with toe clips or fancy clip in pedals.
What else is available?

Sean

Dont get toe clips, as far as clip in pedals I think egg beaters are about one of the most popular.

MTBR.com has a "hot deals" section follow that link and there was some on sale I belive the "candy" series and the chrome ones.

I use egg beaters and have been for around three years now and I have no desire to change to any other pedal. I did try out the candy's for a few months and decided that I have no need for a platform.

would you use a special type of shoe for the egg beaters?

Just spd compatible shoes. I guess that would be those fancy clip in type shoes. ;)

Oh the candies dont clip? I thought they did.

How would you say egg beaters run if you choose to use regular shoes and and not clip in to them, (like for heavy traffic urban riding where you really dont want to be stuck on your bike) do they work pretty good as a dual purpose setup? If so I think I will get some down the road.

Oh the candies dont clip? I thought they did.

How would you say egg beaters run if you choose to use regular shoes and and not clip in to them, (like for heavy traffic urban riding where you really dont want to be stuck on your bike) do they work pretty good as a dual purpose setup? If so I think I will get some down the road.

Sorry, wasn't very specific. The candies are clipless (they do clip in). They have a small platform as well though. Regular egg beaters suck if you are not using the right shoes, there is only about an inch there to put your foot on.

I use good ol platforms, I don't like being clipped in to my bike (I think its dangerous) and I think clipless is only for pure XC racing and even then its still a bit dangerous in my opinion so be sure to take that into consideration.

As for the toe clip vs clip in question, go clipless (clip in lol) all the way, Crank Brothers seems to make some mean clipless pedals so be sure to look at their offerings like the Eggbeater and Candy pedals.

I have 520's on both my bikes. I was shocked on how much more climbing ability and power that changing to the SPD's had made. I rode my friends Stumphumper this past weekend w/ 929's and dont think I could justify the additional $100+ for the pedals.
I wouldnt say clipless are dangerous at all. Just dont get over zealous your first time out. It becomes second nature quickly.

I use good ol platforms, I don't like being clipped in to my bike (I think its dangerous) and I think clipless is only for pure XC racing and even then its still a bit dangerous in my opinion so be sure to take that into consideration.

Once you get used to them they are no more dangerous than any other pedal for most riding. The only time I wouldn't use them is doing north shore style riding or jumping. For just about all other riding styles they are very beneficial. I know in my experience they have saved me from a lot more crashes than they have caused me.

Different strokes for different folks though. :)

I use good ol platforms, I don't like being clipped in to my bike (I think its dangerous) and I think clipless is only for pure XC racing and even then its still a bit dangerous in my opinion so be sure to take that into consideration.

Ignorant post of the day, unless you can explain how exactly the first hand experience (over a fifteen year period) of tens of thousands of XCers, DHers, and BMXers who've been using (and winning with) clipless pedals is somehow less valid than your personal opinion?

Been on clipless since the 1985ish LOOK road pedals, would never switch back:) They are only dangerous if you dont know what you are doing or have a brain fart. I use Time mtn bike pedals on my bike. I love them because even if very dirty (read muddy - some of our trails here are clay, and if you get caught in a downpour....) they are easy to clip into. I also have a funky pedal pattern with my knee moving around. Time pedals have a lot of float in them and I get little to no knee pain from those pedals ( I also like the new specialized competition shoe for reducing knee pain, but that is off topic). They are also durable and have taken several significant cracks off of rocks etc over the 6 years I have been using the same pair of pedals... Definately two thumbs up here.

I second the post about Time pedals. My GF switched from basic Shimano SPDs to the Time ATAC XE and LOVES them. She is a newbie to clipless and has a much easier/comfortable ride with the Time's. I looked into getting her Eggbeaters/Candy but I've read way to many reviews of them breaking at the spindle and such. You can't go wrong with Times

Ignorant post of the day, unless you can explain how exactly the first hand experience (over a fifteen year period) of tens of thousands of XCers, DHers, and BMXers who've been using (and winning with) clipless pedals is somehow less valid than your personal opinion?

No need to be offensive really, I know how much they increase pedal efficiency, avoid pedal slips and overall increase control of the bike, they are great, I was just saying they are dangerous, a rider I know broke his femur and his thigh bone and can´t WALK without crutches or limping for one year, riding normally as he was before it could probably be one year from now (his crash happened in december) for riding clipless, its not like it was his first time, he was riding clipless for a LONG time then, he simply couldn´t unclip on time. No need to make it personal just because someone doesn´t like your precious pedals, I was just telling you my opinion based on my experiences with clipless and the experiences of people I know and I´ll repeat this, yes they are great as they improve the riding experience but being attached to your bike CAN prove to be dangerous even if you have lots of experience with clipless.

Crank bros. mallet, you have a good platform, and can clip in if you want as well.

No need to be offensive really, I know how much they increase pedal efficiency, avoid pedal slips and overall increase control of the bike, they are great, I was just saying they are dangerous, a rider I know broke his femur and his thigh bone and can´t WALK without crutches or limping for one year, riding normally as he was before it could probably be one year from now (his crash happened in december) for riding clipless, its not like it was his first time, he was riding clipless for a LONG time then, he simply couldn´t unclip on time. No need to make it personal just because someone doesn´t like your precious pedals, I was just telling you my opinion based on my experiences with clipless and the experiences of people I know and I´ll repeat this, yes they are great as they improve the riding experience but being attached to your bike CAN prove to be dangerous even if you have lots of experience with clipless.

No need to take personal offense, I just said your post was ignorant.

Ignorant of the fact that it contains unsound reasoning, namely "A rider I know with an unprecedented osteopathic abnormality crashed and blamed it on clipless pedals, therefore clipless pedals are dangerous."

Get these bad boys, thats what I am talking about.

http://www.crankbrothers.com/5050_xx.php

No need to take personal offense, I just said your post was ignorant.

Ignorant of the fact that it contains unsound reasoning, namely "A rider I know with an unprecedented osteopathic abnormality crashed and blamed it on clipless pedals, therefore clipless pedals are dangerous."

Why do you call me ignorant? and unsound reasoning? That rider is 17 years old and in excellent physical shape, his problem were indeed clipless pedals but hey, its pointless arguing with people like you, I would think a grown man would be a little more mature than that but no, you keep riding your clipless and I´ll keep riding my platforms, no need to act so superior about one or the other and next time, try respecting other´s people opinions and be more open minded to what they have to say and why they say it.

I use Time Atac XS carbon. definetly those "fancy clip in ones" and ShimanoM180 or 661Nuevo shoes, depending on the weather. they take some getting used to ( fancy clip in pedals) but are well worth it

Why do you call me ignorant? and unsound reasoning? That rider is 17 years old and in excellent physical shape, his problem were indeed clipless pedals but hey, its pointless arguing with people like you, I would think a grown man would be a little more mature than that but no, you keep riding your clipless and I´ll keep riding my platforms, no need to act so superior about one or the other and next time, try respecting other´s people opinions and be more open minded to what they have to say and why they say it.

Did you just lecture me? :cry:

Since your reading comprehension is clearly unclear, allow me to clarify that I am not advocating clipless over platforms - I ride either based upon the situation. Days with technical features or dirtjumps get platforms, gravity days and trail rides get clipless.

The point of my original post was to refute your absurd assesment of clipless pedals as "dangerous."

Did you just lecture me? :cry:

Since your reading comprehension is clearly unclear, allow me to clarify that I am not advocating clipless over platforms - I ride either based upon the situation. Days with technical features or dirtjumps get platforms, gravity days and trail rides get clipless.

The point of my original post was to refute your absurd assesment of clipless pedals as "dangerous."

Yeah whatever, I don´t really care now so lets just say your right so we can end this clearly stupid discussion.

No need to take personal offense, I just said your post was ignorant.

Ignorant of the fact that it contains unsound reasoning, namely "A rider I know with an unprecedented osteopathic abnormality crashed and blamed it on clipless pedals, therefore clipless pedals are dangerous."
hey, can we leave Osteopathy out of this?


:p

Crank bros. mallet, you have a good platform, and can clip in if you want as well.
yup
mallet c's all the way
all the crank bros eggbeat based pedals rock ex eggbeater, candy, mallet
i've ridden on all 3
good luck

I've been riding platforms for the last 3 years. Was riding clipless since '96 before I switched.

I've got several sets of clipless. Shimano, Knock-offs and Time's. I switched my Time's over to my cyclocross bike. Still my favorite clipless pedal.

If you do some searching, you can find ridiculously good deal on knock-offs these days. When I bought my last bike, the pedals were included. I never mounted them. I still have them somewhere in my parts bin. Still in the celophane (sp?) wrapping.

Hmm well im looking for a good dual purpose pedal, I want to be able to clip into the pedal when im off road, or on a paved trail, but for heavy urban riding from point A to B I really want standard platform pedals so that I can hop off the bike or put a foot down when needed with no worries and no hassels.

So wich one's are the best for that? The candy right?

I wouldn't use the candy for urban riding with regular shoes. The platfrom isn't that big plus it doesn't have much grip on it. It's platform is mainly intended for when a person comes unclipped in a rough section and isn't able to click right back in. It just provides a temporary platform.

Shimano clipless for me. I ride a lot of rough single track and I think it helps a ton to not have your feet flying all over the place (it's tough to pedal when your feet are not on the pedals :o ) But then again, I'm not the most gracefull rider, but i do like to hammer down. I bought some egg beaters once and they had no where near enough tension to keep my feet clipped in. I took them back and exchanged them for some shimano's that I can tighten up.