best pedals for a clumsy person

[klement]

No, the C shaped spring should be able to be moved not the cleats sliding against the shoe. If the screws mounting the cleats to the shoe are overtightened then the C shaped spring won't move at all and won't be able to clip in. All this information is in the instructions.

Thanks biker jk (and poster above as well), I checked the c shaped spring and they weren't budging. Have loosened the screws and now I can move them a little with my hands. Will give them a go in the next day or so when the weather pulls up.

Sorry to the OP for having hijacked your thread. Good luck with your new cleats

[fishguy23]

Thats fine mate, and finally took the bike out for a ride.
Went to the local velodrome and did 15km around that. Boring as hell though. But thought it was somewhere where I wouldn't be bothered by traffic to learn to use the cleats.

Yes fell over a few times but thankfully the bikes light enough to just move out of the way if damage and take the grunt of the fall on my shoulders.

I do have a question for anyone with tattoos, I have my calf and thigh done on one leg (around 16hrs of work), I would normally put a pull on compression bandage on my leg when doing things it may be scraped on. Will this still suffice for protection? Or something better available?

[mambo]

Be bop ppedals are very easy to use. Lots of float for a beginner and you can clip in on both sides

[mikesbytes]

Hi fishguy, congrats on doing your first cleated ride

Did you fit the cleats yourself or get the shop to fit them?

[fishguy23]

Hi fishguy, congrats on doing your first cleated ride

Did you fit the cleats yourself or get the shop to fit them?

Thanks, and yes I did fit them myself. I think I need to adjust them a little though.

[mikesbytes]

A common error I've seen when people fit their own cleats is that the make them straight with the shoe, were you need them to be in alignment with the centre of the heal

[biker jk]

A common error I've seen when people fit their own cleats is that the make them straight with the shoe, were you need them to be in alignment with the centre of the heal

Good advice although better to align with the centre of the heel.

[outnabike]

Thanks i had already done them up tightly and they both clip in and out nicely. But was just clarifying, im completely new when it comes to road bikes so any advice is great.

Some good info on positioning.
http://sheldonbrown.com/shoe-pedal.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

May have gone unnoticed when I posted this link; but this man recommends this cleat position as a start, as most people splay the foot out a bit.

[fishguy23]

Thanks i had already done them up tightly and they both clip in and out nicely. But was just clarifying, im completely new when it comes to road bikes so any advice is great.

Some good info on positioning.
http://sheldonbrown.com/shoe-pedal.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

May have gone unnoticed when I posted this link; but this man recommends this cleat position as a start, as most people splay the foot out a bit.

sorry i thought i had replied to that post of yours origginally mustn't have posted as i was on my phone.
thats pretty much how mine appear to be positioned on my shoes at the moment.

[mikesbytes]

outnabike, can you post a picture showing the entire bottom of the shoe

[outnabike]

Sorry, that is all they have on the site, but there may be other sites around clearer. That is on the site I posted about.
They suggest going for a ride with normal shoes and looking down to see what position your feet like to rest in. Then basically make the cleats suite.
Mind you if you have a real foot problem , it might not work out.

[mikesbytes]

Then that's a really bad photo, because you can't tell if the cleats are aligned with the middle of the heal

[Duck!]

Then that's a really bad photo, because you can't tell if the cleats are aligned with the middle of the heal

Quite often cleats shouldn't align with the centre of the heel. They should be aligned to suit the rider's leg geometry, and that's very rarely truly straight.

[outnabike]

Then that's a really bad photo, because you can't tell if the cleats are aligned with the middle of the heal

Wot Duck said. The point of the photo is to have the cleat position splay out your foot. Realise that the pedal is square and the axis can’t be changed. So if the cleat is in line with the heel it would square up the foot action. In rotating the foot square with the knee it can cause problems with the knee as we do not walk that way… our feet are splayed out.
However if you use the “ground down corner more rounded” type cleat the “Shimano SM-SH56 SPD Multiple Release Cleat Set”, This may not be necessary as the cleat will release left or right or up and down. (Just my info)
So it will inadvertently give a bit more sideways play to a person that has a differing foot offset to someone else.
I can’t say, but some folks complain of knee soreness and in some cases these cleats have relieved the pressure.
If the cleats are square with the foot on one of these cleats though it could also mean the person splaying his foot, (Heel slightly in towards the chainstay) he may be very slightly actually be departing or heading towards separating from the cleat so it’s a bit of suck and see.
I know nothing, and can only say what I have found out, just saying.

[Duck!]

Here's a couple of pics of my cleat position, which hopefully clarifies the point...





If I set my cleats up any straighter, not only would my knees be whacking the top tube, they'd be bloody sore from mistracking.

[outnabike]

Well done, it does help to show the whole shoe.

[biker jk]

Here's a couple of pics of my cleat position, which hopefully clarifies the point...





If I set my cleats up any straighter, not only would my knees be whacking the top tube, they'd be bloody sore from mistracking.

The way you have set your cleats will make your feet splay out a fair bit. Usually, the cleat needs to point towards the small (not large) toe side to have your feet aligned straight on the pedals.

[Duck!]

No, my cleat position does not cause my feet to splay out, my cleats are angled like that because my feet splay out.

Cleats should be positioned so the feet sit on the pedals in their natural orientation, allowing the knees to track parallel to the bike.

[husked]

I know people may cull me for this, but SPD are awesome but I remember when I started riding I was using crank bros eggbeaters on my bikes and they interfaced so easily with the cleat there wasn't any real clumsy finding the other side of the pedal situations. Though some people feel they don't feel as secure as spd and tend to float a bit, but i loved them.

[mikesbytes]

Duck, on most people setting up the cleats like that would cause rotation in the knee. If someone requires the cleats to be on such an angle, then I would send them to a setup expert

[Duck!]

Looks like I need to highlight this bit that I posted with the pics.....

If I set my cleats up any straighter, not only would my knees be whacking the top tube, they'd be bloody sore from mistracking.

Yes it's extreme, but most people will require their cleats to be set up like that to some extent. The point remains that you do not set cleat angle such that it forces the leg geometry into an unnatural position, which most of the time a perfectly straight foot is.

[outnabike]

Here's a couple of pics of my cleat position, which hopefully clarifies the point...

The way you have set your cleats will make your feet splay out a fair bit. Usually, the cleat needs to point towards the small (not large) toe side to have your feet aligned straight on the pedals.

Snipped

biker are we looking at the same photograph? Just looking at the pic the toe would be left and the rule is pointing to the to isn't it? The big toe wouldn't extend further over than that stud.

As no one seem interested in reading this stuff I will post it. Note that is all based on correct fit and not hot air.
http://sheldonbrown.com/shoe-pedal.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
A good way to start with cleat alignment is to note how your feet rest on plain pedals. You may also want to ask for the help of an experienced bike shop mechanic who uses the New England Cycling Academy Fit Kit, with its R.A.D. (Rotational Adjustment Device). If a foot feels like it wants to rotate, then it does. In tough cases, you do well to seek professional help from a sports orthopedist. You may need orthotics (shoe inserts, or wedges under the cleats) to align your feet, and/or "knee savers" (pedal axle extenders).

http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_e-f.html#fitkit" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Fit-Kit ©
A proprietary system for fitting a bicycle to a rider, devised by Bill Farrell, of Lebanon, New Hampshire. The Fit-Kit has two principal parts:

1. Bicycle fitting: Various dimensions of the cyclist's body are measured, then entered into a book of tables (or a computer program) which will then suggest a frame size, starting saddle height, top tube/stem length, and seat tube angle.

2. Cleat fitting: Fitting pedal cleats to the cyclists shoes, using a special pair of floating pedals with indicators. (Known as the R.A.D.--Rotational Adjustment Device) The indicators on the R.A.D. show the natural angle of the cyclist's foot on the pedal. By adjusting the cleats so that the foot engages the pedal at i's natural angle, harmful stress to the knee may be minimized.

[outnabike]

Sorry to pinch your foot Duck, you may have to limp a bit.
I suppose it gives a bit of a different look with a foot in the shoe as to position...All good fun.

[mikesbytes]

Sorry but posting pictures with cleats in such extreme positions like that in a beginner thread is simply not a sensible thing to do. Only someone with a significant postural misalignment would have their heals rotated out like that

This beginner has not mentioned any misalignment

You have also expressed that if you heals were rotated inwards, it pushes your knee towards the bar, this is most unusual, usually rotating the heal in pushes the knee outwards. Are you aligning the cleat where your foot falls naturally or using the cleat to change the rotation direction?

[Duck!]

Sorry but posting pictures with cleats in such extreme positions like that in a beginner thread is simply not a sensible thing to do. Only someone with a significant postural misalignment would have their heals rotated out like that

This beginner has not mentioned any misalignment

You have also expressed that if you heals were rotated inwards, it pushes your knee towards the bar, this is most unusual, usually rotating the heal in pushes the knee outwards. Are you aligning the cleat where your foot falls naturally or using the cleat to change the rotation direction?

Try reading things correctly......

Look at the pics in conjunction with the text from Sheldon Brown that outnabike has linked to and quoted.

I repeat the bit about reading correctly.... I said absolutely nothing about my heels being rotated outward (and the pictures clearly show that they are not!), or that if they were forced to rotate inward my knees would do the same. I said if my cleats were positioned so they forced my heels further out than their natural position that my knees would track inward and contact the top tube. My cleats are positioned where they need to be to suit the natural position of my feet , and that's exactly what outnabike and myself have been trying to point out.