Originally Posted by
HTupolev
Classic quill pedals had that shape to mesh with slotted cleats. Since high-performance applications have basically totally moved to clipness, there's near-zero demand for cleats with toe clips. Since there's no cleats, there's no reason to design the pedals to mesh with them.
Lots of old quill pedals are still out there in great shape, though.
I meant slots for the straps to go through. What's the point of rat traps with no clips and straps? I commuted to school and work for years with this setup. Rode the hills of Ithaca very nicely.
MTB shoes would have been weird. Not what I'd want to wear if I were on my feet all day, every day.
Downside of that setup is that one's tennis-shoed feet get tired of the straps after a century of so. And they're really cold in winter and rain, partly because the straps cut the circulation off a little, partly because the metal just sucks the heat out of one's feet. There is some small performance loss with flexy shoes, but hey folks, it's very small compared to plain flats.