Clipless Bicycle Pedals (1st February 2013)
Bought my first pair of clipless pedals today, the Shimano M324 combination pedals from Wiggle to be precise.
One side uses the MTB SPD system, where the mechanism is on the pedal and the shoe just has a simple cleat. Mountain cycling shoes feature thick tread and the cleat sits within this, letting you walk around with clip-clopping on the ground.
The other side is a normal flat pedal, so I can use regular shoes until I decide which clipless shoes I buy.
Was easy enough fitting them to Secteur. So far, so good!
Bought my first Clipless Cycling Shoes (6th June 2013)
Took the plunge and bought some old stock Mavic Cruize from Cycle Surgery in size 11.
The fit is perfect. They have lots of mesh cooling which are helping to keep my feet much fresher than when I wore regular shoes during last Summer. They still get hot but nothing like they used to. A big improvement.
The shop fitted the cleats for me, free of charge.
I loosed the pedal clipless tension almost to the minimum. The instructions warn that unwinding it beyond the minimum actually removes the mechanism entirely so I was sure to avoid that!
They are pretty easy to get in and out of. Hardly needs any force to unclip but I do have to remember to twist, not simply pull or try to slide off the pedal.
Although I’m hardly pulling on the pedals, it’s helped to break my bad habit of pushing with both feet. My muscle selection is a bit more accurate now so I release fully on the upstroke.
My feet track the pedals better now, think I used to squidge and squirm around on them before. The hard sole provides great support for pushing and winding.
Overall I’m really pleased with them. The clipless thing is still new to me but I’m getting the hang of it. The shoes are just what I was hoping for.