Viewing 22 posts - 1 through 22 (of 22 total)
  • Trying to get up to speed offroad with spuds, how long did you give it?
  • glasgowdan
    Free Member

    I’m comfy using spuds on road, and have used them for years so no issues unclipping. Recently I’ve tried persisting with them offroad on a lot of the steep narrow rough trails we have in this part of the world, and my riding has really slowed down. Difficulties are generally needing (or feeling like I need) to unclip to get ready for sliding out, not getting the feet back in place in time and then struggling down stuff that you really want to have secure footing to ride down. Think trails where braking only make you go faster!

    So, I’m on the brink of just going back to flats as that’s what I’m comfy with, I’m faster using them at the minute and generally enjoy using them. I guess the motivation for using spuds is the possibility of going faster eventually.

    Has anyone tried, given up, tried again and then been glad they stuck with it?

    v8ninety
    Full Member

    I go back and forth at will. Keep going; sounds like just a confidence thing.

    jonnyrockymountain
    Full Member

    I kept swapping for years spd’s to flat’s and back, but 3 yrs ago decided flat’s no more and stuck at it with spd’s, now I would never dream of flats, but it took 12 month’s to get my head round it!!!!!

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    It’s a confidence thing,

    Difficulties are generally needing (or feeling like I need) to unclip to get ready for sliding out,

    are you going to slide out?

    Think there was a pink bike article about the mind games, from being on flats and knowing you can get your foot out means you are more likely to. Enter the trail as if you are going to ride it out.

    david47
    Free Member

    having put it off for years, it took me a couple of weeks… I was suprised how short a period of time it took… I was expecting to be hating it for a long long time…

    howsyourdad1
    Free Member

    yeah agreed with mikewsmith. i went back to spuds after a 10 year absence and the things that worried me would happen, didn’t happen. for example technical climbs, hopping up things etc, i always thought well flat are great you can stick a foot out. But because i could, i did. Using SPDs makes you commit that little bit more and it works fantastically i think. However you can still of course get your foot out no problem if you want to..! Stick with it i reckon

    However i do still use flats for the pump track, dirt etc..!

    chvck
    Free Member

    I tried for 6 months then switched back to flat. I just didn’t get on with them, didn’t ever have problems clipping out but had a few clipping in and just never found my mojo with them. I have mates who have love them. I found no real advantages to using them so just switched back. I don’t tend dab on flats often either.

    julians
    Free Member

    I also tried SPD’s for 6 months, then switched back to flats. I’ve never had so many accidents as I did in that 6 month period using spds. With flats I never bothered with knee/shin/elbow pads, with spd’s it became an essential.

    So after 6 months, I ditched the spds and havent looked back.

    JPR
    Free Member

    I’ve been on spds for the last seven years after getting back into mtbing – however I’ve just got flats for the really steep, technical stuff.

    I probably ride better/more committed on spds but I’ve been finding that getting back into them takes too long and the subsequent fluffing through the next bit of riding slows me down and knocks my confidence.

    I’ll be putting spds on for most of my riding and just using the flats when things get a bit “ENDURO!!!!!!!!!!!!!”.

    jwt
    Free Member

    Tried spuds for two years but never felt that comfortable and much prefer flats, yet always use spuds on the road.

    belugabob
    Free Member

    I think that it’s mostly a mind-game.

    The thing about feeling like you need to un-clip sounds like the reverse of when I got my first pair of decent winter boots – having them meant that the consequences of putting a foot down in a muddy section were no longer a concern, so I stopped worrying about it and now generally ride through long muddy sections with impunity.

    Some people like them (I do) and some people don’t – you could give it a while longer, but it’s difficult to judge how long each individual will take to click (pun intended)

    Hob-Nob
    Free Member

    I’ve been riding clipped in solidly for about 9 months now, before that, i’ve been chopping & changing for about 12 months.

    Even now, i’m still not as confident on proper steep tech when i’m clipped in. I right tight & become a bit of a liability.

    On less tech stuff, I would say i’m as comfortable, and possibly even slightly quicker.

    My big issue is I seem to have big swings in ability riding clipped in – i’m a lot more inconsistent, in that when i’m on it, i’ve had some decent race results, but when i’m not on it, i’ve had some absolute stinkers.

    I never had this pendulum effect with my results riding flats before.

    I’m considering going back to flats for everything offroad.

    ads678
    Full Member

    Use some pedals with a decent cage like shimano DX’s or the cheaper version, this way if you don’t get you’re foot in straight away you still have a platform to put your foot on. Should give you a bit more confidence.

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Think there was a pink bike article about the mind games, from being on flats and knowing you can get your foot out means you are more likely to. Enter the trail as if you are going to ride it out.

    +1 Also makes you go faster as you quickly[i]at some point[/i] realise that you can actually go even faster than you imagined without sliding.

    I started on clips about as soon as I could afford a pair of cycling shoes, 10-15 years ago no one rode flats for XC unless they were an absolute beginner. Even in DH they were the preserve of a few showboaters usually found at the bottom of the results sheets.

    scu98rkr
    Free Member

    I would say I learnt to use SPD’s pretty quickly as most do.
    Weeks – Month.

    But looking back I was fairly uncomfortable on them for years.
    I just could nt seem to unclip my foot as enough.
    Also I had a tendency to use an inward motion rather than outward.

    Anyhow looking back 13 years later Im so much more comfortable with clips.

    Even for thoose who say they got it straight away they’ll probably find them selves more comfortable later.

    tenfoot
    Full Member

    Keep trying a bit longer.

    I have friends who have gone back to flats, saying it gives them more confidence. For me, I like the mechanical connection to the bike, and generally find my foot comes out automatically in a “must-dab” situation.

    glasgowdan
    Free Member

    The important riding, to me, is the really steep technical stuff, so I guess I’m fishing for whether the advantages are worth the hassle, months of trying to get into it, sliding down muddy bankings one-footed. It is DX pedals I’ve got and I don’t find the platform is giving me any confidence when just chucking my foot onto it to get out of trouble.

    I think I now the answer for me, and it’s stick with flats! I must say it’s only been 4-5 rides on the spuds so far but they’ve been way slow and less enjoyable than they should be, and I don’t want to waste precious bike time 🙂

    The guys I ride with using spuds do tend to be the faster lads, but even they regularly have comedy moments when the going gets slippery.

    catfishsalesco
    Free Member

    I would give it more than 4 or 5 rides. I’ve been getting used to them for the past 5 years..

    glasgowdan
    Free Member

    Fair enough catfish, but why? Why spend a long time trying to get as fast as you’d be on other pedals rather than just ride those other pedals? Unless the benefits once you are properly used to them are actually tangible and worthwhile?

    julians
    Free Member

    Fair enough catfish, but why? Why spend a long time trying to get as fast as you’d be on other pedals rather than just ride those other pedals? Unless the benefits once you are properly used to them are actually tangible and worthwhile?

    Exactly – for me, there’s not enough reward with clips to be worth the hassle of learning to use them, and I did give clips a proper chance, 6 months of riding in them.

    Flats or clips – who cares, just ride whatever you feel most comfortable with.

    I ride clips on the road, but flats on the mountain bike. This works for me.

    alpin
    Free Member

    spuds on a bike…. easy shit.

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Unless the benefits once you are properly used to them are actually tangible and worthwhile?

    They are undeniably faster, even in WC downhill they’re still the main choice. Im not sure the steepness of the track has all that much to do with it, if its steep enough then dabbing isnt an option anyway!

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