Strap Pedals
 

Hello People

I'm in the process of buying new pedals for my 2011 GF Mamba. I know that for thousand of reasons clip pedals are what 99% of MTBers use...

Being new to the sport I don't really know how to categorized the difficulty of trails that I'm doing but I can tell that some of those trails I go very VERY fast in narrow places/corners and small jumps. I said this cause all of these trails I ride I've done them with my platform pedals. Maybe with new pedals I'll risk just a little bit more. Now that I'm going to change pedals my indesicion comes cause I really don't like clip shoes. They look horrible and feel very unconfortable, at least the 2 or 3 I've sized.

I'm not going to go competitive here, I use my bike also to go out with my family and do a little bit of road for exercise during the week. So my question is: Will I really feel the difference between strap pedals and clip pedals for the type of biking I'll be doing?

The thing is that I like strap pedals cause they give me the liberty to use my skate shoes but if clip pedals are going to make a REALLY big difference then I will not hesitate to go that way.

Any comment or adviced will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you all in advanced :)

Toe straps are dangerous.

I used Power Grips for a while back in the early '90s. They're an alternative to toe clips and mimic the heels-out release of clipless pedals.

http://www.mountainracingproducts.com/power-grips/

Simply said and very true.

Straps=bad, SPD=good

I've only found clips and straps dangerous while wearing heavily lugged trail running shoes, the lugs can hang on the pedal and keep you locked in. Skate shoes in clips and straps = easy-out IME. Some boots hang up too, of course. The boots I have now work great in them, though.

Of course I have been riding in clips and straps since 1988 or so.

or

http://www.lakecycling.com/default.a...G2_10&clr=BKGR

Thanks guys for all the comments! and for the links!

Yep, I guess clip pedals is the way to go.

I found this http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product...6#ReviewHeader
as for now this ones are the ones I like most. But they have 6 not convincing reviews. What you guys think ?

Piffle. Almost nobody I know runs toe straps, but I know one or two truly inspired riders who swear by them. I started riding before clipless MTB pedals existed, and I survived just fine on Monarch Pass and Hermosa Creek with clips and straps, i.e.:

http://colbartsbicycleshop.com/bicyc...oe%20strap.jpg

I've never run power straps or the like,

http://www.cyclelicio.us/images/powergrip.JPG

but I can't imagine they are any more dangerous than old-style toe straps.

I use cage straps on my road bike. But I'm not riding the TdF - I commute on it. And Im old school - I rode cages before anybody heard of performance pedal designs.

Im thinking there's a good reason why MTB'ers have universally embraced the SPD style of clipless pedal. But since you intend to remain a casual rider, I doubt it will make much difference to you. And there is something to wearing your everyday shoes, if you prefer them.

So get some of the Delta Toe Clips and try em. They will attach to almost any platform pedal and are indestructible.
They come complete with straps and hardware and are $10. If you dont like them, you can fall back on plan B.

http://www.deltacycle.com/Toe-Clips

have your cake.

http://images.jensonusa.com/large/pe/pe501a00.jpg

http://images.jensonusa.com/large/pe...s______916.jpg

and eat it.

You still need to work on your terminology. You're looking at getting at clipless pedals.

This is a toe clip.

http://www.universalcycles.com/image...dium/42609.jpg

Pedals without clips, where you have shoes that click into them are called clipless pedals.

Oh, and to address your earlier comment:
Not even close to 99% of MTB riders run clipless. Maybe 99% of Cross Country racers run clipless.

Sheesh, Lester. A whole reply dedicated to semantics and correcting an exaggeration put in for dramatic effect. Does it really matter that he said "clip pedals" if everyone knew what he meant?

they blew it with the naming, hence the confusion. what does a clip clip anyway? nothing. clipless pedals clip. toe clips do not. it's more of a stop than a clip, doncha think?

heh.

I don't know, Kevrider, those pedals kind of seem like the worst of both worlds. You get SPDs on one side only, and Murphy's Law says that when you're riding clipless, the wrong side will be the one pointing up, so you'll have to flip them. Then the platforms on the other side are those crappy platforms that don't even have pins, and you don't stick to for crap. I guess they still beat toe straps though, but as far as I'm concerned, the choices are either regular clipless pedals or a good pair of platforms.

I figured it would help the op when he's done shoe shopping and starts looking at pedals.

the spd side weighs more, so it always rotates down. not a tragedy tho, you flip one and clip in before you pedal off. and since the other side is a cage, it's not hard to keep your other foot on the pedal until you're ready to flip it over. i think the metal cages are pretty grippy. i have some of these on my commuter machine, they never give me a problem when i wear tennies and pedal on the flat side.

that said, as far as i'm concerned, the best option for mtn biking is to go straight clipless.

I used to ride toe straps in the mid-latter 90's when I took my Rockhopper and GT LTS urban jumping off little lips and stairs. It worked fine for me back then, but I really did have to work on the muscle memory of pulling my foot back/out of the straps...and occasionally they were too tight and my "DC Sk8 shoes" stayed in them. 'Course...when I put my foot in, I'd pull the strap back as far as I could and then cinch it town tight. Careless compared to SPD's, CB's, Time...etc.

That's why I call the ones that clip in with a 'click', well... clips. I know the right term is clip-less, but that doesn't work either. AS you note, they clip in.
The ones that form a cage around your foot, I call those toe cages, or just 'cages. Never clips... which they're not.

I think I've had one too many Beam and Soda's....

I tried a few times to convert to clipless pedals, but it wasn't until I found ones that had a snappy-feeling release and adjustable spring tension that I abandoned toe-clips. Likewise there's a wide range of shoes available now, so keep looking until you find a comfortable combo.

It's much easier to convert to clipless if the shoes are comfy and you're happy with the release mechanism.

Which pedals did ya go with, timg?

Shimano M520 and M540. There's a good reason why SPD has taken over the world.

+1

Also, my wife tried riding with powergrips when she was nervous about going clipless. She hated them. As far as I'm concerned, whoever makes these powergrips is taking advantage of new riders, who may be indimidated by clipless pedals, by marketing a product thats just as ineffective and dangerous as toe clips.

If I'm going to spend $$ in new pedals (clipless) that is, I'm going to look for some cool frickish shoes to go with. The pedals I'll be getting will be, probably for now the Shimano M520 @ $33.99 in Nashbar. So because I want cool shoes they will more expensive as the common Clipless horribles shoes around. So, yes I'm still not done shoe shopping...

and sorry for my rookie mtb therminology I'm trying first to write correctly in english wich is not my first language...