Originally Posted by letrek
I've been battling condromaligia patella for two years, sharply curtailing my riding as I perform a regime of strength building exercizes.
Now I am preparing to alter my equipment and I need some advice. I have a
Trek 5200 with a double chain ring, which I am considering changing to a triple
chain ring to take some of the stress off my knees when climbing. This is very expensive (about $600 or $700) and the fellow who runs my bike shop mentioned
something called "compact cranks" that offer fewer options than a triple
ring, but more than a double.
Has anyone heard of these "compact cranks?
Also, I have red Look pedals on the bike and use Poggio shoes. I'm wondering
if this combination is too aggressive and if I should switch to a pedal and cleat system that might spare my knees some friction.
Any guidance on pedal and shoe choices or any related matters would be greatly appreciated.
I'm not sure that lower gearing would be a huge help, isn't NY pretty flat? I could be totally off here. The difference is in you, you need to spin lower gears. I'd go with a lower-geared cassette first before spending the big dough on a crank. cassettes are ~$40, a crank is gonna be at least ~$100.
Also, a good warm-up is essential, for the first 15 minutes of a ride, put it in the little ring, and dont even think about touching that left shifter.
as for the cleat confusion, the red cleats are the floating ones. I think your pedal/shoe combo is fine, i'd look for a fitting though.
The most important thing is to rest for at least a week. take a week off and dont do ANYTHING! Then go for the fitting. then take it easy for a week or two, with lighter riding. You should be good as new in a few weeks.