Hey all,

I just thought I'd share this in case anybody, like me, has been curious about trying clipless pedals and aren't afraid of ordering shoes online before trying them on. It was the best deal by more than $20 I could find anywhere on shoes & pedals for a beginner.

I just ordered a set of Serfas Saddleback MTB shoes and Shimano PD-M520 pedals w/ cleats from JensonUSA.com for a total of $54.98.

I don't have high expectations for the shoes or think that they'll be super comfortable. I'm mainly buying them with the intention of trying out clipless pedals for the first time to see how well I can get accustomed to them. Then, if I like them, I'll take what I've learned about them from experience and invest in a better pair of shoes and pedals. Who knows? Maybe the Serfas shoes'll be just fine and I'll invest in better shoes when they wear out? The shoes have 4.3/5 stars in the reviews on their site. I'll report back once I get them if anyone's interested.

Here's how. I requested a price match on the pedals because Nashbar has them for $26.99 right now and Jenson approved that instantly. The shoes are already on sale for $29.99. Then, if you've never ordered from Jenson USA, just create an account before you check out and use coupon code new2cust12 at checkout for another $2 off. Shipping is free for orders over $50.

Serfas Saddleback Shoes
Shimano Pedals at JensonUSA and at Nashbar

EDIT 9/5/2013: The price of the shoes went up $3 to $32.99, but the pedals are still $26.99 @ Nashbar so you should still be able to get them at JensonUSA for that price with the price match.

I would love to try them, but I cannot trust the sizing - it seems every company is different out there. Nike I roll a 12, Adidas 11, Asics a 10.5 and so on. Is there any kind of sizing guide out there to help me narrow that down? With all the different size shoes I have I really can't say what I am.

In my limited experience, I've found the Japanese or CM size be most accurate as it's based on a universal measurement, centimeters or millimeters. The four cycling shoes I've had have all had different US sizes, but the cm/mm size were all about the same.

Joy, those pedals are good, the main difference between them and more expensive ones is the weight.

I suggest that you spend 1/2 an hour with them in a car park or something practicing clipping in and out, left, right, left, right again and again.
It does become natural twisting your foot to unclip and after a while you don't even notice that you are twisting your foot, you just seem to lift you foot and you unclip automatically.

You WILL come to a stop one day and forget and fall on your side, Don't let it put you off them, you won't do it very often.

You will love being attached to the bike, I find it makes bike handling much easier, and more grunt when you want it.

I'll try to be the exception to that, but that's what I keep hearing so I'm sure you're right. I won't let it put me off I've had my share of bike related bumps and scrapes.

Thanks for the advice.

Got them today and took them for a quick 10 minute maiden voyage. Obviously, I'm far FAR from being an expert, but I can say it was a satisfying experience. The pedals were easier to clip into than I previously thought, probably because I dialed back the tension a 1/2 turn (2 notches). The shoes are pretty comfortable and I'd say they're true to size. I have a couple of size 11 (45 Eur) shoes that are roomier than these and the very tips of my toes just barely touch the front box but it's not uncomfortable.

So, let the clipless pedal fails (and hopefully a couple wins) begin, right?

I too was hesitant to go clipless on my road bike when I got back into cycling. I had some strange idea they would be tougher to get out of than the cages I had on my old Azuki back in the stone age. Couldn't have been more wrong. Clipless is the way to go, road or mountain. Perhaps there may be a few situations in slow technical stuff where they are a PITA, but, overall they beat the hell out of platforms. When I get on a platform bike now, it is quite comical. My feet fly all over the place.

So, you find those shoes to be a good fit? My old specialized tahoes are getting long in the tooth and I need a set another set of pedals now anyway, so sign me up! My tahoes are euro 45, 11 US and fit well. In sneakers I usually go with a 10.5, sometimes a 10 if they are NBs which come in extra wide. I think I will order the 45s as well.

I think they're a decent fit. If you usually wear a 10.5 I think these'll be just about right. The straps allow for a bit of play in the fit if your feet are a tiny bit small for the shoes. So, I say go for it. Even with the $6.99 shipping charge, I think these would still be a great value. Only time will tell how long they last me, but they feel like a decent quality shoe. I'm happy with how comfortable they are and the soles are real stiff, so I felt like I was really getting all my power into the pedal. (But again, these are my first ever pair.)

Been looking to upgrade to MTB shoes and clipless pedals on the old KHS (currently equipped with XC Pro's with toe straps!) without spending too much on checking them out. This seems like a perfect deal. Thanks for pointing it out.

-Warr

Well, I've put 30+ miles in with these shoes/pedals and I'm really happy I got them. The shoes are alright for comfort, though today after a 2 hour, 20+ mile ride I was ready to get out of them. Not dying to, but ready for sure. I'm happy to say I've yet to have a clipless pedal accident since getting them, but already I've experienced the panic of realizing I hadn't clipped out fast enough and I know it's only just a matter of time before I realize it too late to catch myself and hit the floor...lol.

I can say I'd definitely recommend these to a friend who's perhaps been a little apprehensive about trying clipless pedals. After three days of use, I can already tell the rubber treads won't stand up to years and years of abuse, so I'm guessing I'll try to get a couple years out of them and get a new, higher quality pair then.

Totally agree! I started mountain biking last year and despite years of being a roadie, I found that I needed to practice all over again with clipless pedals on the mountain bike. After many falls I'm finally becoming comfortable with them.

Shoes arrived today. I normally wear a size 45 in Vibrams (those "toe shoes"), and based on the recommendations of the reviewers on the Jenson site, ordered one size larger. The 46's that arrived fit perfectly, and at least in walking around, they feel great - certainly much better than the old Lake cleats I used to wear with toe clips and straps.

So, highly recommended for those wanting to try out clipless on the cheap.

-Warr

Sadly, I just noticed the price of the shoes went $3 up to $32.99, but IMO that's still a great deal on trying out clipless pedals.

Dam, I wish I could get any cycling shoes in NZ for under $100.

So fallen of yet?

I bought cheap shoes also but Road shoes....Diadora with the ratchet strap and Forte combo SPD pedal and i like them and the total was like $65.00...Now i am ready to try a MTB shoe because of walking ease...Those roadies are slippery as hell and will let you bust you a$$...

Welcome to the clipless world. There is no going back, kind of like the mafia.

Are the pedals 2 sided? And by that I mean you can snap into either side? My first experience with clipless on a mtb was with single sided. It kind of sucked as you don't need to be looking down and flipping a pedal around when trying to get going on an uphill. It is tough enough already.

Man, that's a bummer. I hadn't considered our international comrades when I posted this.

Still haven't fallen, but there have been plenty more close calls. I actually took the pedals off my commuter this weekend because I put them on my new(used) Trek 4500. So, I can now dedicate my Nishiki to commuting and the Trek to trail riding and I bought the pedals for trail riding. So, I won't be using them as often now with the platforms back on the commuter. We'll see what happens when I take the Trek out this weekend.

Yes, the pedals are two sided. Thankfully, a buddy of mine who rides clipless suggested going with 2 sided ones for that very reason. Also, yes I LOVE them and doubt I'll be going back fully to platforms. On my ride into work this morning I was already missing them.

Actually, I'm going away from two sided, after about 5 years of riding that way and bought clipless on one side, flats on the other. I don't think I'll ever go back to two sided. I like having the option when I'm out there of flipping over to flats.

Finally had a couple spills last Saturday on the trails trying to hop over log piles but I also had a bunch of wins, too. Goofy as this sounds, it was just nice to crash and get back up unscathed so I wasn't trying to keep the streak of no clipless pedal falls going. If anything, I got braver after my first crash which is probably why I crashed again trying to hop another log pile shortly after. Nothing major, just a couple rookie mistakes.

What adjustment have you made to the pedals since?

I've got the same pedals and I've been using the factory setting. I've found that clicking in is harder then what I want so I've just backed them off one click, (not ridden to test as yet)
I have had one instance where a foot came off the pedal unexpected, but I was 1/2 expecting an unintentional dismount, so maybe I twisted my foot, not sure.

FD

I started off backing off the tension one click. Since then I've tightened them past the factory setting two clicks. I'd had a few unintentional clip outs with them. Two clicks seemed to fix that although yesterday I had one foot unclip on a bunnyhop. So I might tighten it down one more click.

Keeping your feet straight on pedals helps keep the feet from coming out. I think that 4° of float can be a bad thing in that sense

Thanks, Got a good ride in today, no unintentional clipouts but pedals seemed to clip in without fuss (didn't think about it until later).
I'll leave as is (one click back from factory) for now.

FD

Just an update on these shoes in cold weather...whoa. They ventilate way too well for the cold weather. My feet get really cold. I wouldn't recommend these for temps any lower than 45°F (7°C) unless you buy a size bigger and stuff them full of socks or use shoe covers. (The latter seems like the most advisable to me.)