Sports & Recreation

clipless for mountain bikes or road bikes?

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  • Feb 18th, 2011 2:08 pm
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Newbie
Feb 15, 2011
25 posts
halton

clipless for mountain bikes or road bikes?

with my lemond buenos aires (plus combination of ultegra/105 gruppos), would it make sense for me to just upgrade to clipless road pedals (i/o original mountain bike clipless ones that came with it)?
7 replies
Deal Fanatic
Sep 21, 2004
8687 posts
1542 upvotes
Just keep the MTB pedals. Personally I dont think it makes a huge difference. The multiple side access of the MTB pedals is nice too.
Newbie
Feb 15, 2011
25 posts
halton
Stock R wrote: Just keep the MTB pedals. Personally I dont think it makes a huge difference. The multiple side access of the MTB pedals is nice too.

that's what i was thinking. more "flexibility" with MTB pedals. however, it is a race bike after all. maybe when im "criterium race" ready myself i can swap it out and enjoy the benefits but for now, ill stick with it. thanks
Deal Fanatic
Sep 21, 2004
8687 posts
1542 upvotes
holefoods wrote: that's what i was thinking. more "flexibility" with MTB pedals. however, it is a race bike after all. maybe when im "criterium race" ready myself i can swap it out and enjoy the benefits but for now, ill stick with it. thanks

Obviously the hardcore roadies will probably disagree, but I don't really think it's that crucial to have road pedals on a race bike. I've been thinking about swapping out my keo's for some eggbeaters on my tri bike.
Deal Addict
User avatar
May 6, 2005
1959 posts
285 upvotes
Toronto
Road pedals usually have a larger pedaling platform so the force of your pedaling is spread over a wider area. Its supposed to make it more comfortable, but if youve never felt any discomfort using mtb pedals, then it makes no difference!

Its also easier to get into mtb pedals anyway.
Newbie
Feb 15, 2011
25 posts
halton
yeah, thanks again for the tips. for now ill train hard, then switch later on when im sure ill need some "edge" for a criterium LOL. similar to training in my motion control shoes for a half, and switching to my lighter stability shoes for the race itself, i guess... :)

btw additional info, ive ran in those lighter stability shoes prior to the race, just not trained all those miles in them though (disclaimer, may lead to injury if not properly done) :)
Deal Fanatic
Sep 21, 2004
8687 posts
1542 upvotes
holefoods wrote: yeah, thanks again for the tips. for now ill train hard, then switch later on when im sure ill need some "edge" for a criterium LOL. similar to training in my motion control shoes for a half, and switching to my lighter stability shoes for the race itself, i guess... :)

btw additional info, ive ran in those lighter stability shoes prior to the race, just not trained all those miles in them though (disclaimer, may lead to injury if not properly done) :)

I think a lot of ppl do something similar. Especially if you wear racing flats. My zoots are only worn for the occasional training but usually only for race day. They simply don't have the support/tread for high mileage training.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Jan 7, 2006
1005 posts
Also remember that road pedals usually come with less float so there is better energy transfer. On the road, you are usually going pretty much straight so you don't need the float whereas with mountain biking you want the float so you are more manuverable.

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