On Aug 18, 2012, at 7:50 AM, [email protected] wrote: >> flat pedals ????
The flat pedals are what most people are used to, and are good for use with sneakers. Serious bikers use clip-in pedals which use a cleat on a special shoe so you can also pull upwards on the pedal. The result of this is that you can apply much more force to the drivetrain as you can pull up on one side while pushing down on the other. There are a few different types available (eg mountain and road bikes use different designs). You twist your foot to one side to release it so you don't fall over when you stop. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_pedal#Clipless_pedals When riding fixed-gear you also get the advantage of stronger braking as you can apply more "backwards" force to the pedals. I sometimes ride my fixie in sneakers and the difference is massive. Mine has brakes though, so it doesn't matter too much as a safety issue. I've had enough close calls as it is though, so I'd never run brakeless with flat pedals. There's a halfway option of flat pedals with a cage that fits over your shoe. They stink IMHO :) Cheers, Dave -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
