Forum menu
I stick my bum back a bit and bend my legs, and lean my torso forward/make it flatter and bend my elbows a bit. I think.
I think I have the pedal spindles where the balls of my feet are too.
Hope to help.
JonEdwards - MemberTo conclude, I reckon the problem is maybe 80% shoes, 20% technique.
Nope- 100% technique, but it's a software problem that you can work around to some extent with hardware. Your shoes can't make your feet slip, but they can save you when you make your feet slip 😉 Nowt wrong with that as long as you're happy with the results, but you'll still be less secure than if you sorted out the underlying issue instead of working round it.
Product, product, product, awesome, stoked! - pity nonr of the product suppliers are actually paying you. 😉
Why even start a thread like this if you're not prepared to even try anything different.?
Your initial problem is 100% down to poor technique and still is!
100% agree with Northwind and GW here.
Too many people get hung up on having the ultra grippier shoes and pedals, and blaming their kit if it's not grippy enough. I like the fact that my Vans (when I use flat pedals) have quite a firm sole, and that my Easton Flatboys are just grippy enough but not ridiculously grippy, so I can make adjustments in position if I need too.
Correct technique WILL keep your feet on the pedals, regardless of the pedals and shoes used.
I'll also echo the comments on angling your levers up. 14 years of MTBing and struggling I deal with steep technical stuff was almost totally fixed in a few hours with Jedi. I raised my brake levers to maybe 25-30 degrees from horizontal (they were at about 60 degrees which at the time felt more natural!), instantly solving a couple of woes, then worked on pushing more of my weight through the pedals and less through my hands/arms. There's plenty more things you can do to help, but these two instantly made big advances in my ability to stay on the bike over rough and technical stuff.
And you keep banging on about pinch flats... Why? Have you heard of a pump? Put some more air in the rear tyre, that's normally the solution right! You'll probably find once your technique is sorted, you need to run a lot more air in your rear tyre than you previously thought anyway. I'm under 12 stone, and even with a 2.25" rear tyre anything under 35psi feels too soft now (and I run tubeless!), I'll whack it up to 40psi for particularly rocky rides if needs be!
Sounds like real men wear loafers 😉 I think I have some Ben Shermans somewhere..
My pedals are Kona WahWahs by the way, and I wear 5.10 Guide Tennies which were my dads, and free because i've 'aquired' them from him. Thanks dad. :o)
Why even start a thread like this if you're not prepared to even try anything different?
if you want new shoes, just buy them.
What I suggest is try to improve your position on the bike. From the pictures you seem to be too upright, with your torso not low enough. Lower your body more and this will give you more arm and leg movement allowing you to pump and skim over rough bits easier.
Another thing is with flats you need to be constantly balancing the pressure in your feet. The front pedal can be dipped and slightly higher, while the back pushes down to counterbalance (and vice versa). Mess around with subtly shifting the weight and see how you get on.
Oh and your levers are too low 😉
Remove the pins from your pedals, smear duck fat (lard will serve as a substitute) over the pedals and wear bowling shoes. Go down Cavedale every weekend until you can stay on the pedals - only then will you be a true MTB warrior.
Can't compare Tevas with Five-tens as never worn five-tens, but the depth of the sole pattern on the Tevas is shallow. I swapped the standard pins in my nano's (7mm long) for 6mm long ones, and the soles now sit down on the pedals, instead of merely touching on the tips of the pins.
As above, can't say how they compare with other shoes, but that pedal mod made a huge difference in feel/grip for me with the Tevas.
Having tennis elbow, not sure how I feel about the lever position ( I tend to angle mine down a fair bit to lessen the wrist/arm angle), but as stated previously, it won't cost you anything to try it eh?