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ridden my time atacs for years but been interested in some recent posts, cold feet in spds, 5 10s great blah blah and realised that actually now i am older and a little fatter, (read lots) 3rd in xc races not gonna happen anymore. more interested in doing sleepless solo and staying out more that the pathetic 9 hours i did last time and more in for fun and long rides and endurance and marathon stuff. i suffer often from numb feet, definately cold feet when temp low and also feel like my cleat position helps numb feet, have adjusted them all, used a micro measuring thingy to get them even, changed around in case feet of differing sizes but still happens alot.
thinking, from what i have read, maybe should try flats?? realistically, over a marathon will they slow me down? and should i can the hardtain
l and get a boingy thing then?
i never get cold feeet on flats like i did on spds (even in summer)
it willl take time to adjust your riding style and change your power points in the stroke slighly
What, spds make your feet colder...first time ive heard that theory!
Ride flats for fun, ride spds for efficiency. Yes you'll notice the difference over 9hrs.
think its my shoes and cleats and odd feet! time atacs
I've got 2 pairs of SPD shoes, one pair of Addidas-always bloody cold and one pair of Cannondales-always warm feet. Its down to the shoes, buy some winter boots and some good socks.
stuartanicholson - Member
What, spds make your feet colder...first time ive heard that theory!
Ride flats for fun, ride spds for efficiency. Yes you'll notice the difference over 9hrs.
what? that i will be warmer, more comfy, less numb,or just much slower?
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Numb/cold feet is likely to be down to your shoes, especially if you do them up as tight as you can possibly get them. Shoes for flats also tend to be a lot more bulky than SPD shoes which can be a blessing or a curse - 5:10s are lovely and warm in cold dry conditions, but drying them out is a complex multi-stage operation, and you can't really wear overshoes.
Personally I really like flats and I've not noticed any massive drop in efficiency since I started using them, nor any massive gains when I clip back in to do the odd CX race. I do feel more comfortable, more confident on technical terrain, and have done some longer events on them with no problems - nothing as long as a 24 hour solo though.